Preparing for the interview
Featured in the Proactive Interviewee Skills training manual
By Beverley Williams
Category: Recruitment, Selection and Induction
Credit price: 4 download credits (Single user)
An interview for promotion within an organisation needs to be approached like a military campaign – you need to decide on the strategies and actions that will give you the advantage. Detailed preparation is expected and will be done by all candidates; preparation work has to be well above the normal standard for a candidate to stand out as a front runner. Encouraging participants to prepare thoroughly for interviews has many benefits for the individual, with corresponding benefits for the organisation. The individual gains knowledge about the organisation and the industry, and also develops their confidence and forward planning skills. The organisation benefits from a more knowledgeable workforce with enhanced transferable skills. The actual interview itself will be more valuable due to the interviewee’s enhanced ability to contribute fully and meaningfully, making the best use of organisational time. This training activity asks the participants to identify normal expectations and then goes on to discuss possible methods of going ‘above and beyond’ those expectations.
You open this training activity by introducing the topic of being well prepared for internal recruitment or promotion interviews. You then go straight into a quiz, which asked the participants to provide all standard interview preparation points. The participants work in small groups to generate preparation methods that are ‘above and beyond’ those that would normally be done. This group work is followed by a plenary discussion to examine the ideas generated and to think about the impression that this level of preparation work will give to the interviewer. The participants move on to work individually on the comparison table exercise, giving specific examples to demonstrate the fit of their background and abilities with the required knowledge, skills and attitudes. They are also expected to make an objective assessment of their own development areas and propose possible methods of meeting these development needs. You take one or two key learning points from each person before distributing and commenting on a key learning points handout where appropriate.
Who is it for: This training resource is intended for use by trainers to enable participants to focus on the value of arming themselves with information above and beyond what would normally be expected of them when preparing for an interview.
| Resource Type: | Activity |
| Min Group Size: | 4 |
| Max Group Size: | 10 |
| Typical Duration: | 02:00:00 |
| No of Pages: | 21 |
Resources: View standard resources for Fenman training activities
Purpose: This training resource is intended for use by trainers with participants who intend to apply for promotion or other jobs within the organisation at some point. The principles also apply to participants who may be applicants for external positions. ‘Looking the part’, ‘Trial by sherry’, ‘The inadequate interviewer’ and ‘Tricky interview questions’, can usefully be run in conjunction with this training activity.
Download the training activity, Preparing for the interview as featured in the Fenman training manual; Proactive Interviewee Skills