Interview Tips Guide
Keep it concise and professional. Two pages is a good guide, avoid any unreadable fonts.
Use the following headings:
Profile - This is not essential but a short paragraph on your key skills and experience can be helpful.
Personal Details - Outline your full name, address, email and home/ mobile numbers. Avoid any unsuitable personal information.
Education and Qualifications - Start from the most recent first, detailing all relevant qualifications, grades and the establishment attended. Professional Qualification - List separately work related training and professional qualifications again in order of most recent obtained for consistency.
Employment History - Start by stating your current employer with start date and end date as well as position held (perhaps in bold to draw the eye). A brief description of your duties and responsibilities should follow. Remember to list your achievements (Remember this is a sales role, sell yourself!) i.e. Cost Savings Achieved, Efficiencies identified etc. Really think about this and have evidence and strong examples as these will be probed at interview.
Interests - Briefly outline your interests as this will give a slight view into you as a person.
Referees - It is important to go back at least five years it is always a good idea to gain permission from your previous employers for this information.
ALWAYS read this over a few times check for any gaps in employment as these will need to be explained and finally spell check your finished document.
The final stage - Email us at info@ppassociates-rec.co.uk we are happy to offer advice at every stage of the process, we are experts within the field of recruitment. So use us!
Interview Tips
The key to a successful interview is preparation! First impressions count. Dress corporately and conservatively. Polished shoes. Do not wear too much jewellery and avoid revealing clothing. Strong eye contact, maintain this throughout the interview, never look down. Strong hand shake. Arrive early (perhaps do a dummy run if you are not familiar with the area) it's a good idea to arrive early find the interview location and have a coffee locally this will give you time to relax before the initial meeting. Know the full name and title of the person you are meeting.
You MUST research the company and the industry you are seeking to join. You will impress a client greatly if you have an understanding of their industry and their company, i.e. know their mission statement, values, etc. In an addition company reports are normally available.
The interview - Maintain good posture throughout the interview, do not slouch. Read the interviewers body language, let them lead, it is something easily missed but quite important i.e. mirroring body language if someone is to move their body inwards towards you this shows interest and you should reproduce this. Show openness by keeping your arms on the chair and not folding them.
Know your CV! Experience, key responsibilities and achievements. Have clear reasons for leaving previous employment (remembering never to be too critical about past employers/managers). Have clear examples ready for competency based questions. Have examples of previous successes i.e. cost savings achieved. You will be asked about strengths and weaknesses. With regards to weaknesses be honest here, but have examples to show how you can easily overcome them.
Finally the interviewer will ask you if you have any questions. Have some questions prepared as it is important to show that are interested and have thought about the role.
Example Questions - Ask with regards to the structure of the team? What career progression is available? What is the company culture? What will they expect from you in the first 6 months? What are the company's aims and predictions for the next 6-12 months? What attracted them to the company? What are the KPI's? (Key performance indicators). What training is available? What will the next stage be and when will you hear? Do they have any reservations that you can answer there and then? Avoid questions with regards to salary at the first interview stage.
Finally ask for the job!
After the interview - Reflect on the interview, this will assist you in any future interviews, particularly if you think you could have performed better. Provide feedback to your Purchasing Professionals consultant, who will immediately contact the company for their feedback.
If you are successful and you are still interested in the position your Purchasing Professionals consultant will arrange the next stage. If unsuccessful we gain constructive criticism from the client in order to assist in further interviews.
