Tag: candidate

Tips on Handling Interview Nerves

Posted on by Naomi Marshall

How do you handle nerves before an interview?   We get asked this a lot from our candidates and truthfully, it is not so much how you stop those nerves but how you manage them. Here are our top tips for prepping for an interview & not letting those nerves get in the way:

  1. Take Control of what you can

Nothing gives your nerves an adrenalin kick like running late or being disorganised for an interview. Make sure you control what you can and be as organised as humanely possible. This means:

  • Do you research a few days before your interview (no cramming on the bus on your way in).
  • Know where you are going, who you are meeting, what time you have to be there and allow extra time for any delays out of your control.
  • Have your outfit picked, ironed and ready to go to avoid any wardrobe malfunctions.
  • Have a good nights sleep the night before (no big nights or hangovers before the Big Day).
  1. Take Care of the Physical Nerve Reactions

If sweaty palms are a side effect of your nerves – be prepared and have a hanky in your bag or pocket (we know – you might have to borrow one from your Nanna – but they are so handy & don’t disintegrate after the first use). There really is nothing worse than shaking hands with a candidate and feeling the balmy squelch as you connect…YUK!

  1. Own your Nerves!

We get it. The Hiring Manager gets it. Everyone is human and nerves are natural. Own them!! Let your interviewer know you are feeling a little nervous and be honest. It will not only help diffuse the situation & let everyone know how you are feeling, it also demonstrates that you are a good communicator who is able to articulate what you are feeling and not being too shy or embarrassed to say so! Also, nerves mean you are keen on the job & want to make a good impression! That never hurts for the interviewer to know!!

  1. Deep Breaths and Take your Time

Your voice is shaky, or perhaps you are talking really fast, maybe you have sweat dripping off your brow as you try to listen to the questions. Sound like you??
STOP. Take a deep breath. Have a drink of water (wipe your brow if necessary). Slow everything down.
Focus on the question you are being asked and answer the question. Don’t waffle. Stop and take a breath whenever you feel like you are starting to nervously waffle, wobble or lose concentration.

Interviews are not easy. They are not mean to be. They are as much as about seeing how you perform under pressure as they are about your experience & getting to know you better. Take control of what you can, do your best to manage the nerves with all the components you can control. Practice deep breaths, have a laugh and run with it. Now is your time to SHINE!

If you want to talk more about how you can prepare for an interview, feel free to get in touch with the Sprint Team.

10 Steps to Finding your Dream Job!

Posted on by Naomi Marshall

Are you looking for your dream job? Are you waiting for it to land at your feet or are you out there, pounding the concrete on a quest to find it?

Did you know that more often than not, people are sitting back, passively, waiting for that opportunity? That means, your competition has already been halved, because they aren’t even trying.  So don’t be sitting in that group – follow our Sprint Steps below and be the one to stand out and secure your dream job!

  1. Have your CV & Cover letter ready to go:

Urgency is imperative in a job search. So often, by the time we’ve placed an ad on Seek, the client is already asking us for a shortlist of candidates from our database. The ad is often a recruiter throwing the net out to see who else is available but in actual fact, we could already have candidates interviewing! If you sit on a job you like the look of on Seek for a week before you actually apply, chances are, it will be too late. If you want the job, be quick and get in early, before the rest of the candidates trickle in over the coming days.

  1. Have a Seek Alert system

That way, you will be alerted to any new jobs and you can be one of the first to apply. With any job placed on Seek., we expect at least a hundred applications (sometimes it can be a lot more). Although at Sprint we go through each and every one of them, we start at the top and often as soon as the resumes come in we are calling those candidates and organising to meet them. Once we get a few good candidates, we often pause to interview them.  Be at the front of the line to be seen first! If you are one of the last, chances are, that ship will have sailed!

  1. Follow up with the Recruiter or Hiring Manager

There is nothing wrong with showing some enthusiasm! If your skills match the job requirements and it sounds like the role you want, make yourself standout! Call and introduce yourself to the recruiter. Let them know you are keen and let them know you believe you have the skills. HOWEVER, please send your CV in before you call! There is no point calling if the recruiter can’t visualise your experience and see first hand from your CV that you have what it takes.

  1. Tidy up your LinkedIn Profile

Does your LinkedIn profile represent the best of you? Is your photo up to date, professional and clear? Make sure your LinkedIn experience matches up to what you are saying in your CV because it is highly likely any recruiter or hiring manager will be checking you out online before they progress you forwards.  There is nothing more embarrassing than LinkedIn saying you’re one thing and your CV saying another.

  1. Check your Facebook Privacy & Profile Photos

Just like they are looking at you on LinkedIn, it is likely the hiring manager or even HR will be checking out what else they can find out about you online. Please remove all inappropriate photos from your Facebook and Instagram accounts and check your privacy settings. You don’t want to be looking like the perfect candidate on paper, proceed all the way to interview only to have it go down the toilet because of some inappropriate photos posted on social media 6 months ago!!

  1. Ask around friends and Family

Sometimes the role for you won’t even be advertised. It will be through a friend of a friend or an old colleague. Make sure you are letting your wider network of friends and family know that you are on a mission to find the job of your dreams.

  1. Do some research

Not 100% sure what the dream job entails? Ask around. Meet up with different friends, family and colleagues past and present. Find out what they do in their jobs, what they like, what they don’t like. What they do day to day! Identify what parts of their jobs you would be good at and start to see where your skills match up.  You never know where this exercise could lead by way of introductions and job offers!!

  1. Identify a Company Hit List

What type of company do you want to work for? Small, large? In the city or in the suburbs? Make a hit list of organisations you’d like to work for. Research them. Send your CV in to the HR team and let them know why you’d like to work for them and why you’d be a good fit!! It’s all about being proactive and getting your name out there.

  1. Don’t Give Up

We know. Believe us. We live and breathe it every day. Finding a job that you love is really hard and it takes a lot of resilience and perseverance. Don’t let a false start or a missed opportunity be a deterrent. There is a job out there for everyone and there is a career out there, one that you will love and prosper in. It can just take time, so keep going!!

We believe if you follow our Sprint Steps to your dream job it is only a matter of time before that perfect role is offered to you. Just remember finding a job is hard work. It isn’t meant to be easy and it rarely falls at anyone’s feet! If you want to chat more about how we can help you to finding your next role, please get in touch with us at Sprint People!!

Employers Remember…The Candidate is Interviewing YOU Too!

Posted on by Naomi Marshall

At Sprint we are fortunate enough to recruit for some of the best businesses in the market (not that we’re bias at all). However, though we know they’re great and we tell our candidates that they are great, we always remind our clients to remember that in an interview situation, the candidate is interviewing them as well!

It is important for business owners and line managers to remember that as an interviewer, it is also your responsibility to get the candidate excited about the role/company etc. You can’t always rely on your brand to attract the right potential employees to your business. The way that you engage with the candidate and the level of interest that you show in them as a person could determine whether they choose another role over the one you’re offering when it comes to the crunch!

Clients often say that an hour interview is such a short period of time to try and decipher if a candidate is going to be right for their business, but remember, it’s the same for the candidate too! They want to know that you will care about them, foster learning and development and provide them with opportunities to create a true career path for themselves.

Often employers are so focused on “testing” a candidate that they forget to engage with them. I can’t tell you how many times we have had clients come back to us telling us how they really “put the candidate under pressure” or “threw the candidate a curve ball”, or “had their interview poker face on”. When the employer then comes back wishing to offer the candidate, they are often miffed that candidate declines the role because they didn’t get a good vibe from their interviewer and they felt disengaged with the process.

Yes – it’s true that there are a lot of candidates on the market at the moment, but the top quality, hard working, loyal candidates, that most employers seek are still hard to find! If a candidate is sitting in front of you, ticking all the boxes, then it would be such a shame to miss out on them simply because you were trying to trip them up, rather than engaging with them.

Chances are, if you think they are fantastic, other employers will too! So don’t miss the opportunity to tell them how amazing their life is going to be if they choose you. At the end of day, given multiple options, candidates will most likely choose the employer that;

  • Was friendly in the interview and made them feel comfortable
  • Showed genuine interest in them and their development
  • Moved quickly
  • Gave the impression that they would really add value to their business and that they were excited to have them on board.

Yes, it may very well be your brand that made a candidate apply in the first place, but as they sit in front of you in an interview situation… all nervous and excited… subconsciously (or sometimes even consciously) they are waiting for you to sell your company back to them.