During my career I’ve experienced on average a 90% success rate when applying and obtaining employment. Do I have special powers? No I don’t. Nor do I do anything special or clever, just follow a few rules, well 5 to be exact.

Based on my experience of applying for jobs and having interviewed countless individuals for various positions the advice I offer isn’t that from a seasoned recruiter with a deft touch for finding the talent nor is it perhaps the advice you’d find from other like-minded professionals. Here are 5 tips to impress during your next interview.

  1. Talk in terms of how you can benefit the companyThe first key element is to talk in terms of how you can benefit the company. If you do nothing else remember to focus on this. It can be as simple as saying ‘I work hard’ but hard work doesn’t always translate as results achieved.Example A:Recruiter: ‘What experience do you have’?

    Candidate: ‘ 5 years as a consultant for xyz and 2 years as a manager’

    Example B:

    Recruiter: ‘What experience do you have’?

    Candidate: ‘ 5 years experience as a consultant where I worked a s specialist gaining inside knowledge and applying it for xyz this would benefit your company as it is an area I much knowledge in and can achieve results in a short time. I then had 2 years experience as a manager where I gain other skills your company would benefit from, etc, etc.”

    Here I have exaggerated the examples but the principle is sound. Talk in terms of how you will benefit the company

    2. Understand the role and demonstrate how you can fulfil it.

    If you are going to talk in terms of how you can benefit the company it is important to understand the role. Without doing so you will not be able to demonstrate your ability in the said areas. Print out the advert, read it twice. Then take a highlighter and start marking keywords. For example: ‘the successful applicant will need to co-ordinate various initiatives’ – you will now need to think back to any experience job related or not as to how you can answer this. During the interview it is likely the interviewer will refer to these key points thus being prepared, understanding the role and being able to demonstrate how you can fulfil will not only impress but prove you understand the role thus giving the recruiter confidence in recommending you

    3. Learn about the company

    Nothing impresses more than an understanding of the company you wish to join. Understanding their mission statement and vision is a good start and sure-fire way to show you’ve done your research. However, unless you can really ‘buy-into’ their statements and believe in their mission then stating this to an recruiter will come across as empty and found less. You can take it one step further and look into company reports for profitability and plans for the future, understanding these elements will help you understand the dynamics of the company you wish to join.

    4. Demonstrate how you can bring extra value to the company

    I have found that when I’ve advertised jobs ion the past I get a fair few qualified candidates all looking capable of doing the job advertised. What impresses me is if the candidate can add value in other areas, especially an area the business isn’t doing as well as it could be. This could be for example applying for a sales job within a company, maybe you have recruitment experience as well. Talk to the interviewer about this and how this experience will benefit the employer in terms of how employing you could be used in helping to employ better candidates in the future.

    5. Letter of recommendation

    My favourite. References don’t really ‘cut-it’ for me, they usually lack substance and only tell me what I already know.

    A well written letter of recommendation can be hard for you to obtain since it requires the employer to write something heart felt when it bears no benefit for them in doing so. Thus, one of the best testimonials you can obtain. But be aware! A letter of recommendation must be sincere or nobody will believe it.

    This article was writen by Mark K. Hollingworth. Copyright jobs2ireland.ieÂ