Sam Bambridge, Director of Artemis Recruitment Consultants Ltd, has more than 20 years of recruitment experience both nationally and internationally, having lived and worked in the US, Australia and New Zealand, running recruitment businesses.
During that time she has interviewed literally thousands of people from all walks of life and, although she assures there is no one size fits all, there are some pitfalls that you ought to avoid.
- Don’t turn up to interview without doing your research on the company. This is a big ‘no no’. Today with the internet it’s never been easier to research the company you are interviewing with. Make sure you have some appropriate questions about your new potential employer and the ability to demonstrate that you’ve read up on them.
- Don’t dress inappropriately. Appropriately is to dress in the way that they dress. If they wear a navy uniform, turn up in a navy suit, if they’re a power dressing company, dress ultra-smart. Always err on the side of caution. If in doubt dress smart. Turning up in ripped jeans for a reception job would be completely wrong, as would glittery make up for a bank job.
- Don’t turn up late. Punctuality is of utmost importance when attending an interview. The best time to arrive is 5 minutes early as this enables you to be more relaxed at the beginning of the interview to gather your thoughts and to take in the company surroundings. Turning up late shows you to be unorganised or disrespectful. Traits unlikely to get you employed.
- Don’t be a victim of sloppy body language. When you meet your interviewer, firm handshake, direct eye contact and shoulders back. Don’t slouch in your chair, point your body towards them and engage.
- Don’t ever smoke just before going into interview. This is a big put off for a lot of employers. Although smokers believe a cigarette calms them down don’t smoke until after the interview. Smokers don’t realise how much the smell of smoke lingers on them and interviewers that don’t smoke will often discount you from the process, also being concerned that you’ll be in and out on smoke breaks if they hire you. If you really can’t help it, load up on body spray and mints.
- Don’t turn up without a couple of prepared questions and avoid asking about perks only, like holidays, benefits etc, as it will appear that you are only interested in what’s in it for you rather than a positively reciprocal relationship with your employer. It’s generally good protocol not to discuss salary in the first interview. If your recruiter has briefed you properly you will be aware of the salary range.
- Don’t swear! No matter how passionate you are about how much you hate your last employer, or love this new job opportunity, please express that in polite language and always thank your interviewer at the end of the interview.
If you are nervous about interviewing, recruitment consultants at Artemis can advise clients on the best way to present themselves and even carry out a mock interview for practice.
Artemis Recruitment Consultants Ltd has more than 60 vacancies at the moment.
They are always looking for great candidates, check out the website at www.artemisrecruitment.co.uk and submit your CV.