Tom continues his journey through the interviewing process and I believe this segment is very important. Knowing everything about who you are talking to before you talk to them is not only going to help you present yourself that much better, but also allow you to exhibit confidence and genuine interest. If you walk in to an interview with a company you know nothing about, you will not be able to successfully focus on why you are a fit. You will  subconsciously focused more on learning about the company and that will show through. Remember….knowledge is power! 

Viva la Difference, Part IV

The following is an entry from PART I of the series: 

The key question is how do we position ourselves to get the job in this environment?  We must be able to know when the rules have changed in midstream and be able to adapt quickly.  However, before we get to the adaptation process, we must first pass one very important test:  the resume screener. 

You have passed the first important test and are now ready to move on to the adaptation process where knowledge becomes your friend. This is the most time intensive part of the process, so this will really test how much you want the job.  This is also the platform you will build to help you prepare for your interviews with the company, so it is an extremely valuable task to complete.

I call this the adaptation process because you use all of the knowledge you gain about the company in this phase to make the adjustments that will allow you to assimilate into the culture.  In other words, you try to match up with the company as best as you can.  Should the company exhibit a personality or atmosphere which you know does not mesh with your style, or if the organization lacks some of the core fundamental ethics or beliefs that you deem to be important, then you should not go any further with your pursuit of the position. The “fit” is extremely important to your job satisfaction. The exception with this statement is if you absolutely must have a job now and there is nothing on the horizon.  Even then, think of the job as a short bridge to your next role. To take a job at a company which does not share some of your core values is a recipe for disaster.  So, with the assumption that this is an environment in which you want to assimilate, you now start your research.

The great thing about the age we live in now is that there are so many avenues to retrieve information about people, companies, and industries. The challenge is to narrow down these avenues to a couple of blocks so you are not walking all over town. 

I find the easiest place to begin to research a company is with the company website. This is really the first place where you can start to get a feel for the personality of the company.  If I do not know a company when I see a posting of interest, the second thing I do (after looking at the job specifications) is to go to the website and take a quick glance. There have been occasions where I will not even apply for the position because I can see from the creative and presentation on the site that the company is not a good fit for me. This is more than just a quick glance as you need to make sure to comb through the entire site. Read every section.  The site usually provides a great opportunity to learn about the origin of the company as well as some of the key events which have helped to mold the organization to what it is today.  Take notes on the relevant pieces of information and be sure to write down any names which are presented.  Don’t skip the product section, regardless of the nature of the position you seek.  Look at the product, how it is presented, the lifestyle that it portrays, the target consumer as delineated by the usage of models, imagery, and activities.  Remember, you are now in adaptation mode, so the more you understand about the heart of the organization—it’s consumers—then the greater distance you put between yourself and the rest of the candidates.  Also be sure to pay close attention to the “PR” or “News Release” section. This area will provide information about current issues and news worthy events as well as more recent activities of the company.  Speaking to some of these items during the interview process will show your interest and knowledge about the organization. 

Now you go into power search mode! Sherlock Holmes would be teaching such courses were he around in this day and age. Your ability and energy to sleuth can pay big dividends here.

First begin with Google, or whatever your major search engine is, and search for every article and piece of information available on the internet about the company. You will be amazed at what kind of information makes it into cyberspace.  Some of the information is confidential but somehow makes its way to the super internet highway.  I have seen the lists and dollar volumes of a company’s top accounts by using the method described below. The format which will allow you to complete this task is as follows:

Ø  Enter the information you want and/or the company name (use quotations around phrases)

Ø  Enter filetype extension 

1. pdf = Adobe acrobat; 
2. xls = Excel spreadsheet; 
3. ppt = PowerPoint; 
4. doc = Word document  

Ø  For example, a listing in the search area shown as “athletic footwear” “brands” pptwill provide an assortment of powerpoint presentations which are on the internet.  If you type in the search mode “ACME Corporation” ppt, the engine will search for any ACME corporation PowerPoint presentations sitting out their in space; “automotive industry” “trends” pdf will locate reports and or articles related to trends or issues in the automotive industry which are in PowerPoint format on the internet.

This is a great tool to find all kinds of information which one would not think would be accessible. The cyberspace is massive, so your challenge is to see what information is floating for you in it.  A word of caution:  you will literally come across thousands of results, so you need to be selective in how you choose which returns you want to review.

Teaser for Part V:  The old adage of “it’s who you know that counts” now needs to be revised to “it’s who you know that knows who you need to know that counts”!

============================================

 Now that you have information about the company, you want to turn your focus to the individuals in the company. Since you have been writing down the names of the members in the organization at every opportunity, you should have a small list at the very minimum and a complete list for your areas of interest if possible.

-Tom Cassidy