7 steps to Research a company for a job interview
At Alexander Executive Search we always share up-to-date information with our candidates. See our list of interview preparation steps.
1. Know what job you’re interviewing for
As a potential employee of the company, you should have an idea of what type of work you’re going to be doing and what role you are applying for, the more you know about the place you want to work at, and who the company are and can show this is the place you want to work at only makes you a good choice. So, the first step is to look at their web page to know the products, services, clients and who the competition are, look at social media, or case studies and white papers (in the interview ask questions about a case study or whitepapers)
2. Find out what skills and experience the company values.
To find these out go to their career webpage and they will likely share these details. Also look at the company mission statement, If you can’t find a mission statement just Google the company name with “mission statement” When you know what they are looking for in a candidate you can position yourself as the best version of that. Also Reach out to past or current employees and network with them to find out skills and experience they look for. “Hi, I know you work for company X what do you thin about them, what do they value the most?”
3. Find out who will be interviewing you
It is very helpful to find out who your interviewer will be, this will give you an advantage as you will have a better chance of connecting with them and sparking a meaningful conversation. Find them on LinkedIn and view past roles and achievements. Google the company name and person’s name. If they have played a part in the company, they will come up on Google. This will set the stage for you, and you will be able to reference some of the work they have done.
4. Key Players of the organisation
Try to find out who they are. These are people that could hold the highest levels within the company, they could be Managers, Directors, even the CEO. Once you know who they are do some research on the names and find out what they have been doing in their industry. And how they have been contributing to the industry. Go to third party website to get an outside view of them, look for online contributions they have made in the industry. You may find they have made large contributions, maybe they built a bridge or designed a process of work, this will give you more to talk about in the interview.
5. Research their competitions
know where they stand in their industry. Are they a leader? Are they falling behind? Is there competition that have better products? How are they competing against other players in their industry? This is all good to know. You may even find they are last in the chain, and you must then decide if you really want to work for them.
6. The Inside scoop
Use Glassdoor.com to find out what their employees are saying about them. If they all hate it, you may not want to work there. Or you may find that everyone loves the culture, then you could share these complements, everyone loves to hear good things about themselves even hiring managers.
7. News and recent event about the employer
It can be very helpful for you to know about the company’s latest news and events, even their stock price. Read website, press releases and third-party websites. This will give you more to talk about in the interview and show you know the company you are interviewing for.
As part of our candidate services Alexander Executive Search help all candidate make sure the company in question is the correct company for them. For more details contact us for details.