How to Prepare for an Interview - Research the Hiring Company

One of the critical steps to successful interview preparation is to research the organization you are seeking employment with. It is productive to perform this research prior to trying to secure an interview so that you focus on those opportunities that best suit you. But in any case, there are three reasons that you must do this step thoroughly;

1. To answer the question: Do I really want to work there?
2. To gather information to formulate thought provoking questions to ask.
3. The information you gather will help you stand out from your competition.

There are countless ways to find out information on an organization, but here we will focus on three of the most productive;

• On-line resources. In many cases you can find pages of information about an organization using the Internet. But if you are seeking employment with a small privately held organization you may need to rely on other sources. Good sources of on-line information are:

• The organization's external website - This is how they want to be perceived.
• Financial websites like Google Finance, Yahoo Finance, Money Central and The Wall Street Journal On-line will provide financial information as well as the latest new stories about the company. Here you can see how others are perceiving the company. Google Reader will allow you subscribe to different sources of information, making it easier to get fresh news each day.
• Linked-In. This business social networking site can point you to contacts that can help you with your research. You should consider joining if you are not yet a member.

• Industry publications and business directories. There are many valuable directories that are expensive to own or access on-line. But most are available at your local library. Visit a research librarian to help identify which resources would help you the most in your job search. An example is the Corporate Yellow Pages. This book provides background information on the key executives. Much can be learned from this type of research that will help you understand what the company is about.

• Contacts. This is probably the best source of company information. While this takes more effort, if you can talk with someone who has a relationship with the company you will uncover valuable information not available to most other candidates. Try to identify current or former employees, suppliers or others who have had contact with the company or its representatives. Your network or a social networking site like Linked-In can help you identify the people to talk with.

Now that you know where to look, let's identify what to search for;

• Company strengths/weaknesses -  From a financial, sales, products and people perspective
• Industry trends - Where does the company fit in the industry, are they an innovator or follower
• Who are the competitors and what are their strengths/weaknesses
• Current company strategies and initiatives
• Company culture, what is it like to work at the organization

Based on what you find or don't find you can formulate questions to demonstrate your preparedness, insight and fill in the answers to things that you want to know more about.

The reason that this research technique works is that most people put in minimal preparation and are in react mode during the interview. Those that take the time to prepare will clearly stand out above the rest.

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