markewicken in featuredJob Interview

Graduates… Learn how to make an interview work for You

The person who gets hired is the person aces the interview. And the person who aces the interview is the person an employer remembers during the interviewing process.

It all starts with the first impression you create. Whether it is an introduction, a letter, a resumé or your first, “Hello, nice to meet you”…First impressions are critical to a relationship, a meeting, an interview and getting a job.

There are many first impression opportunities. Some are formal and some are informal, but they are all first impressions.

Ace the interview and you will get the job. You get hired for your potential. Determine how you are going to explain your passion and potential for the job.
Remember that a job interview is not about you, it is about the person who makes the decision who to hire. Know everything you possibly can about the company, their competitors, revenues, clients, community involvement, history, etc.
Before an interview, meet with people who do what you want to do.
An interviewer wants to know three things:
- Can you do the job?
- Will you fit in?
- Do you want the job? That is all!
The interviewer wants four things from a candidate:

Job qualification is 10% (…if you weren’t qualified you wouldn’t be in the interview)
Appearance accounts for 25%
Communication skills account for 25%
Attitude and motivation are 40%

The interview answers need to describe your skills or the qualities you know they are looking for. Prove them with Situation Action Result stories.
Pretend the interviewer is saying, “What’s in it for me?” after each question.
Now it is your turn. The best question at the end of the interview is

“Is there anything I can say or do that can help you make a decision to choose me before you make a decision?”

The biggest mistake is not closing the interview or telling the interviewer that you want the job. DO NOT BEG!
Be memorable, wrap up with a 60 second sell.
Send, snail mail, a Thank You letter, the real purpose is to say REMEMBER ME!
When you land, tell everyone you know. It is called advertising. Post it on LI.
Say a special thank you to people who have helped you along the way.
The person who gets hired is the person they remember.

How do you differentiate yourself in an interview? Send a Thank You card and send an email. Both of these scream – REMEMBER ME! What else can you do to be memorable?

markewicken: Mark Wicken is a marketing professional with over 30 years of advertising, communications and strategic planning experience within the retail and packaged goods industries. He has been a senior member of agency management teams with both account and brand management responsibilities. His strengths have always been on innovative thinking, solid organization and strong interpersonal skills. Starting in the advertising agency industry, Mark held senior account management positions at several multinational agencies including Leo Burnett, Foster, Caledon, Vickers & Benson and Saffer Advertising, and has been responsible for the management of accounts like IBM, McDonald’s, Esso and General Motors. Mark moved from his agency roles to the Client side and held the position of Divisional Vice President of Marketing for Domino’s Pizza International and Director of Marketing for KFC, Hardee’s and Sbarro restaurants in the Middle East. In 2002 he established The Mark Wicken Group, a business specializing in executive search, training and consulting within the marketing, advertising and communications industries. In addition to executive search, Mark has devoted much of his lifetime to teaching, education and youth development. He is President of MusicFest Canada ‘The Largest Annual Music Festival in North America’ and has been an instructor at the International Academy of Design and The Toronto Film School since 1998. Mark graduated from The University of Toronto, took post-graduate studies at Northwestern University, and is married with two sons.