You are not just beginning your career, and the interview advice you’re seeking isn’t about the basics. You’ve been there and done that, and now you are ready to move up. After reviewing your resume, choosing a suit, developing your interview voice, smile, and handshake, how do you prepare for an executive level interview?
Review your own digital footprint. Search your name with a few spellings or nicknames included. Take a look at your social media profile, publications, and tagged photos. Ensure there’s no cause for concern. This is part of maintaining your personal brand that many executives or potential executives may skip. That’s a mistake. At the executive level, many hiring influencers look further than your resume to learn about you.
Polish your personal brand. Ensure your LinkedIn profile is up to date and your resume. Begin posting a couple of links to interesting business articles or a few posts on industry issues or news each week. Build your reputation as an industry insider.
Do your research. Do background research on both the position you want and the company you hope to join. Learn about your interviewer and the organization’s movers and shakers on LinkedIn. This allows you to ask informed questions, show a deep interest in the organization, and shape your responses to interview questions.
Show confidence, not bravado. Take the initiative to introduce yourself instead of waiting for the interviewer to begin introductions. Dress with a conservative flair, understated elegance says more about your confidence in yourself than a gaudy tie or flashy watch. Remember, your interview is a high level sales pitch of your fit for the position, not a brash, late-night infomercial!
Say thank you. Interview etiquette is important, as it makes a positive impression and winds up the interview on a positive note. Express your appreciation for the opportunity afterward with a handwritten thank you note as soon as you return from your interview. Mention something you spoke about in the interview, your interest in the position and company, and touch on why you would be a great fit.
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