One of the most common things we are asked before going to an interview is “have you done your research?”. Majority of people, of course, would’ve researched into the company and their aims, goals, beliefs etc. But what people don’t ask is how much of this research is actually useful for your interview?

If you have 1 hour to showcase who you are, your experience, your attributes and try to sell yourself to the interviewer(s), regurgitating information from their company website may all be too much to try to cram in.

Why is research important?

First and foremost, people fear the unknown. So when you don’t prepare yourself for an interview situation, you’re more likely to be nervous as you’re not sure what you’re heading in to and you don’t have the same feel for the company that you would’ve if you’d have done your research.

By doing your research you can get a feel for the company’s culture and the type of people that fit in to the company and therefore, the type of people that may be interviewing you. Once you understand the type of people they look for, you can prepare some potential answers to showcase how you fit into that too.

It’s also useful to research these people who will be interviewing you as firstly you will recognise them when you first see them and you can understand more about them before the interview and you can compare and contrast their background to yours and make conversations relatable and personable in the interview.

What to Research…

1. The company’s culture, core values and its mission statement
2. Its key people
3. The person(s) interviewing you
4. Skills & experience valued by the company – you can use your job brief to help
5. Understanding what they do – their products/services and who they provide this to
6. Recent news

Another key thing to mention is knowing the role you’re being interviewed for. If you don’t know what the job entails when sat in front of interviewers, it’s not going to go down very well as it will be easily picked up on as many interview questions will be around the tasks of the job and your ability to carry out these tasks.

Is too much research possible?

No! When it comes to research, you can do as much or as little as you like, it’s just a tool to help you in interview and help you feel more prepared.

However, what is important is knowing how to prioritise this research into what needs mentioning and what’s useful to know if it comes up in conversation. You don’t want to be in an interview spending your time regurgitating the company’s website or the news articles about the company from 2012. It’s just not necessary and equally it’s a waste of valuable time you could be using to sell yourself.

What to mention…

This is where your research is going to come in useful, or at least some of it.

Remember, it’s not about how much information you can retain and spout out during the interview, this may actually have the adverse effect. It’s just about mentioning the right things at the right time.

Often one of the questions asked in interview is “what are our company’s key values?”. If you’ve done your research, you will know the answer and prove that you’ve bothered to do some research. But of course, there may be other interesting things you’ve found out about the company during your research that you may want to mention.

If you’re unsure where amongst interview questions you’re able to showcase some of your research then wait until the end and ask the interviewer(s) some questions about them, like their background – here you can mention their previous job you’ve come across on LinkedIn and this can spark a conversation between you. But remember, don’t make it too personal or come across like a stalker!

Equally, if you’ve found out some recent news about the company that’s interesting, you could ask questions about this in your interview as it can help you stand out from other candidates.

Other than questions the interviewer(s) ask you relevant to the research you have done, we would suggest mentioning 2 or 3 other things you’ve found out about the company that’s relevant and interesting as this isn’t overwhelming for the interviewers, it’s just a nice subtle way of telling them you’ve done your research.

On your first day of a new job, it’s normal to get butterflies and sweaty palms, but you’re not alone in this. Most people get nervous in this situation as you’re walking into the unknown, an environment you’re not familiar with, people you don’t know and perhaps a different style of working you’re not used to. It’s a lot to take in, in just your first day.

BUT it’s important that you don’t let the nerves get to you!

Everyone handles situations differently, and that means everyone reacts differently when they’re nervous. You just have to make sure you react positively and not negatively as you want to come across in the best possible way you can. Here’s some ways on how you could achieve this and calm those nerves…

Remember Why They Chose You

You are the person the company chose out of every single application they received, and every person interviewed. You were the person that impressed them the most as you’re the one who’s now part of their team.

Remind yourself when the butterflies make a return, that your manager believes in you and that’s why you’re there. All you have to do is prove them right, that they’ve made the right choice.

Plan of Action

The main reason why people get nervous on their first day is because people fear the unknown. You may not know the plan of action for your first day, the people you’re going to meet, what tasks you’re going to be doing etc. so it’s good to make your own plan so you have some kind of strategy in place to focus on and not feel completely lost.

The best way to do this is to think of some goals that you want to achieve and set timescales around them. So, have in mind some goals for your first month, third month and sixth month etc and then think of some ways of how you’re going to achieve them. This way you will feel more relaxed as you have something to aim for and think about.

The Past

Another good thing to do is think about a time you’ve been in the same or a similar situation, as it’s unlikely this is your first time starting something new. Whether this be your first day at University or your first time meeting someone you didn’t know, just remember that time and think about how you handled it, the good and the bad. The good things you did, try to do again and the not so good things, try to avoid.

It’s also important to remember that you have done it before, you’ve felt nervous about something new and you’ve overcome it, so you can do it again. And after a while, that new situation becomes part of your normal routine, your normal day to day life, it just takes time, so give it chance. And remember, it probably won’t be the last time you do something for the first time either so try to turn those nerves into excitement for what’s ahead.

They’ve Done it Too

Keep in mind when you’re meeting your new colleagues that they were the newbie once too, and they’ve been in your shoes. They know how it feels, and it’s good to talk about this with them. If you’re feeling a little lost or nervous, it’s okay to admit it, your colleagues may even give you some tips they have from their first few days in the job. This can also help you to build a bond with your colleagues as it gives you some common ground to talk about, and this may bring about great friendships.

The last thing to remember; ENJOY IT!

No team is perfect. Not everyone can get along with everyone and just like every team, problems can occur. But to make a successful team it’s important to keep these problems to a minimum, help the team to bond and make the working environment a positive one to be in. So, “how do we do that?” I hear you ask…below we have come up with a few key qualities any team needs to adopt to be successful.

Communication
This attribute is arguably the most important as without it, a team can’t work collaboratively or effectively. But with communication, a team can be unstoppable. This is because once a team gets sharing their ideas and opinions and taking onboard other’s comments, it enables the best work possible to be done as it allows each member of the team to have an input and also it enables the team to keep on track of progress by constantly talking to one another, keeping those wheels turning. No communication could lead to a team failure as you increase the risk of misunderstandings, missing deadlines and causing conflict.

Goal & Result Orientated
Setting goals is a really important part of a team’s success as it gives them something to aim for together, and it’s important that the whole team agree on the criteria. Once the goals have been set, a plan can then be put in place on how they’re going to achieve those goals as a team, and what each member needs to contribute. This can introduce a bit of healthy competition as they will have individual targets to hit in order to hit the team target, so they all have their own part to contribute individually but ultimately, they’re all aiming for the same thing.

Be Fair
When distributing individual tasks out to each member, it’s important that the workload of each member is as equal to every other member as possible otherwise people will start to feel overworked or less important than other members. Therefore, when distributing these tasks, it’s important each member understands their role and responsibilities and what impact their role has on the team target, so they feel they are contributing and making a difference.

Play to each other’s strengths, not weaknesses
Successful teams bring out the best in people, not the worst. Each member will have their own strengths and weaknesses, and you can use this to the team’s advantage. For example, if team member A was good at data input and team member B wasn’t, it would be more time effective for team member A to do the task instead of letting team member B struggle with a task that’s not suited to their skill set. People also tend to thrive at things they’re good at and it boosts their morale and keeps them motivated as they feel they’re doing a good job, but by giving team member B the task, it could have the adverse effect and lower their confidence and could make them feel like they haven’t contributed to the team as much as they wanted. Therefore, it’s really important to incorporate team member’s strengths when distributing tasks.

Support
Working together and being a team means supporting all members through the good and the bad. If another member is struggling with workload and you have a spare hand, help them out. This makes teams far more productive and also helps to build that important team bond. Support isn’t just from the team itself either. Support can be received from the company, so if someone is struggling or wants to develop further, the company may be able to offer resources to help and support improvement and development.

Diversity
No two people are the same, and it’s this uniqueness that you need in your team. The more people you have from varied backgrounds, cultures, ages, characteristics etc. can only enhance your team as these factors influence the way people think, their approaches, their knowledge, their skill set etc. The more diverse your team is, the more likely it is to come up with new and different ideas and also to cover all the skill sets required to reach that team target.

Leadership
Every team needs guidance, and this usually comes from a leader who has earned the team’s trust and respect. To be the team leader you must be responsible for managing them appropriately, motivating the team, keeping up team morale, supporting each member, ensure things are ticking along as they should be and step in when they aren’t. It’s also important the leader keeps the team updated so they don’t feel below the leader or less important because each member of a team is just as important as every other member.

Organisation
This skill can be hard to master, but essential for the smooth running of any task. It’s often up to the leader to set the example to the team. The leader should organise the plan of action and ensure everyone is on track, and each member should then organise and manage their own workload. If you don’t organise yourself and your workload, you run the risk of missing things, overrunning on deadlines and ultimately not hitting your personal or team target, which could then have a knock-on effect on your confidence and team spirit.

Team Bonding
This is an important part of any team, as having fun with your work colleagues can lead to a much more positive working relationship. This will also reduce conflict in the office and will make the office a much more enjoyable place to work. If you don’t have fun with your colleagues and it’s all just work, then this can lead to team members being demotivated and deflated which can reduce productivity. So, bonding with the team and having fun has benefits for everyone!

Writing a CV for a potential employer is one of those dreaded tasks we all put off until the last minute. But it’s something that needs perfecting if you want to give yourself the best chance at getting through to the next stage of the process.

So, we have come together and created a short and simple guide on some hints and tips including what to include and what not to include in your CV.

Presentation

The first thing anyone sees when looking at any piece of paper with writing on, is the way it’s been presented and laid out. The same thing applies to your CV.

You need to make sure all your CV is formatted the same way and follows a theme throughout. So, it’s important that if you have put the first heading in bold, then every heading needs to be in bold. If you have put one subheading in italics, then every subheading needs to be in italics etc. This will ensure the document flows well and is presented in a way that is simple and easy to understand.

It’s also important to think about the order of importance. What do you want the reader to see first? We suggest to individuals to lay out their CV as follows;

1. Name
2. Address/Contact details
3. Personal Profile
4. Qualifications
5. Employment (with your current company first)
6. Other

This way the reader will see the important things on the first page such as your personal details, profile, qualifications and current company.

Try to keep your CV to 2 sides of A4 paper and don’t be afraid to use bullet points. Your CV is there to provide a snapshot of your experiences, not your life story so remember – keep it brief.

Text

Choosing a font may not seem like an important factor when it comes to writing your CV, but you want to come across professional so using a font that’s too animated or hard to read, won’t be perceived well by a potential employer.

We suggest going for those ‘boring’ fonts that are easy to read and will make your CV look professional. Fonts like;

• Calibri
• Times New Roman
• Arial

Another tip is to keep your text between sizes 10-12 because you don’t want HUGE text to make your CV look bigger than it is, and you don’t want small text so you can try to get in every single detail. You just want something in between that’s legible.

It’s also worth noting that by justifying the text it puts all of your text in line with the document and makes it look much neater. (Thank us later!)

Word Selection

We can almost predict which words are going to appear in someone’s profile of their CV without even looking at it because we see the same words over and over again written by everyone else. But you want to be different and stand out from the crowd, so avoid cliché words like;

• Hard-working
• Driven
• Self-motivated
• Strong work ethic

And try to use words like;

• Committed
• Flexible
• Responsible
• Reliable

At the same time, don’t just throw these words out there. You must give examples in your previous employment or other areas of your CV to evidence this, otherwise you will lose credibility.

If you have used a word that doesn’t really apply to you, then take it out of your CV and think of another one that does apply to you. There’s no point lying in your CV because you will get caught out as many interviewers will walk you through your CV and ask questions based upon this and may even ask for further evidence to prove this, so if you lie it will become clear and you will risk losing the job by lying or over-exaggerating the truth.

Honesty is the best policy!

Another pair of eyes

Once you have finished your CV, run a quick spell and grammar check and then ask someone else to proofread it.

After looking at the same document for hours or even a document we have written ourselves, we are far less likely to spot a mistake as your brain reads it as you want it to be read, so it’s always a good idea to have a second person with a fresh pair of eyes to read through it to double check for any errors.

This is also a good way to tell if your CV is interesting or not by asking this person for honest feedback. At the end of the day, the potential employer reading your CV is also human so, make sure your CV grabs the attention of the reader!

We spoke to our Managing Partner here at Spirit Executive, Steve Edwards, about the current situation at JLR and the push to move to electric cars. Here’s what he had to say on the matter…

“JLR is more to do with an incompetent government not supporting manufacturing and the mishandling of diesel in the rush to go electric.

We already have supply issues with our electricity supply in this country. We have the first real nuclear power station being built for over 25 years (which the Chinese are paying for), we buy our gas from Russia and our coal from China, added to the fact we have stopped supporting renewables with subsidies and blew tidal power out the water.

So how are we charging all these electric cars? Never mind the infrastructure to do it and what will this do to electric prices.

In addition, we are reducing the subsidies for electric cars and free charging is stopping.

So where are we going? Confusion causes problems.”

It’s that time of year again! When everyone comes back from their Christmas break, struggling to find the motivation for the year ahead. January is also a time for people to reconsider their options, and think if they really want the job they’re currently in.

Maybe there’s no forecast of a promotion, you feel undervalued or you’re just bored of the same old thing, day in day out and fancy a change. Moving jobs can be daunting, but you’re not the only person in this position.

Surveys suggest that there are many people out there that are dissatisfied in their current position, but in the modern world we now live in, employers are finding it even harder to keep hold of their employees.

If you are looking to potentially explore your options, then take a look at some hints and tips below you may need to consider before getting started…

1. Don’t let the current political situation scare you off

As we are all aware, Brexit is due to take place in March this year. It has already been causing concerns for many people and businesses across many sectors, but the fact of the matter is, we don’t know what impact it will really have on the UK or on us an individuals, so you must seize every opportunity that comes your way because you can’t pause your career over something you can’t control.

Our Managing Director, Stephen Edwards, says “whilst the current political and economical climate is uncertain, it is clear that there are companies out there wanting to hire and especially when we face a skills shortage in areas such as construction. Where there is a skills gap, people can take advantage of this to further their career, or even move into a different industry entirely”.

After speaking with some of our industry leading clients, we discovered that many of them haven’t changed their recruitment plan because of Brexit and that they are still wanting to hire talented individuals.

2. The Skills Shortage – Use it to your advantage!

Now is a great time to make your way into a skilled job, that you may have never even considered before. Although the skills shortage may be causing some concern, it is a great chance for jobseekers to start their new career or to further their current career.

According to the government website, some of the areas that are facing a skills shortage include; power & energy, building services, health professionals, IT and environmental.

This creates immense opportunity for the people within these industries or for people that want to get into these industries. Many companies within these industries are currently hiring and are also offering apprenticeships to help you get on the career ladder, so now’s your chance!

3. Make sure your CV is up to date

Once you have found a job suited to you, before you do anything, you must ensure your CV is up to date. This also includes any websites you use to build your professional profile, such as LinkedIn.

Updating your CV is a crucial part of the job process because if your CV is out of date or contains spelling and grammatical errors, you risk the chance of having your CV thrown out at first glance by employers, even if you’re perfect for the role. So, make sure you don’t take the risk and revise your CV and LinkedIn. We also advise you have someone else to proofread afterwards as two pairs of eyes are better than one!

Another thing to consider are the keywords and skills you write on your CV or LinkedIn as this is what employers and even recruiters look for when matching someone to a role. It’s important that if you have a niche skill set, make it known to whoever is viewing your profile to make you stand out from the crowd.

It is also worth noting that when you do begin to apply for jobs or get approached by a recruiter, it’s sensible to check through your personal social media accounts as many employers now use social media as a routine check on potential employees to find out more information, so make sure your posts and pictures are appropriate and not too wild!

4. Don’t just apply for anything

Don’t panic! There are plenty of jobs out there, but it’s important to choose the right one for you.

It’s a waste of your own time and the employers time applying for jobs you know aren’t really what you want or aren’t right for you. It’s a much better use of your time if you spend time thinking about what it is you actually want from a job, and then using that information to find the right one. You don’t want to end up in a job where in 6 months’ time you find yourself in this same position, looking for another job because it wasn’t right for you.

Our rule at Spirit Executive is if it doesn’t meet 80% of what you want from a job, then it’s not worth making the move.

By spending the time at the beginning of the process thinking about what you want, it will save you time later on in the process and is more likely to land you with the job you want.

5. Let your current employer know

Once you have started applying and you have received interview offers, be honest with your current employer. Inform them of the situation. This way they will respect you and your decision, and it can also ensure when you leave things aren’t left on a bad note, which keeps the door open for you in the future.

By telling your employer you won’t have to call in sick and worry about lying to them about where you really are. This way you can put all your effort and concentration into the interview.

If you’re still struggling to get the time off work, let your potential employer know as many employers will understand and will make the time for talented individuals, so out of hours interviews may be an option.

The other advantage of informing your current employer is if you decide that actually you don’t want to move, your current employer may offer you a better package to stay, so you always have options. But always keep in mind the reasons that made you want to explore your options in the first place, as money doesn’t solve everything.

6. Do your research

As obvious as it sounds, come prepared to your interview. Do your research on the company, its people and have some questions at the ready.

Not only will this demonstrate your interest and impress the interviewers, it will allow you to find out if the role is right for you and take the next step.

If you need help with your next move, please get in touch with us on 01905 28590 or email admin@spiritexecutive.com to see if we can help.