Second interview advice

I went to the first interview where the employer told me in the second one he is going to have me meet with two other guys so they can get a better grasp on me and my fit within the company. This is standard procedure, however, I am worried about something.

The first interview was perfectly okay, but I don’t feel like it was as good as it could have been. I can tell he just wasn’t sold on some points.

Obviously you (the reader) wasn’t there so you can’t say what I need to improve on and what not, but I need some advice on how to close the deal and sell my self/skills in this second interview to land the job.

It is for a financial analyst position. This company values strong presenters. We spoke of that in the first interview but he asked me such open-ended questions like “why are you a good presenter” and obviously I could have come up with stories, examples, strategies, to cover a discussion of over an hour. I spoke for about 1 to 2 minutes and he kind of looked at me and went on to the next question.

So what I am asking is, what have you done in a second or third interview to land the spot? Did you sell yourself more, did you explicitly ask for the position, did you ask killer questions, were you trying to build rapport?

If you’re meeting with other people other than your potential immediate supervisor, they’ll most likely be more behavioral in nature. Make sure you can express your interest in finance, in the company, and if you’re hiring for an investment role, be ready to talk about one or two investment ideas. Mostly though, they’ll be screening for fit so just try to stay relaxed, personable and enthusiastic.

Most probably they will ask a question that will create a little tension in order to test how you will act in such an environment. Act like a politician, agree with everybody and support their opinion, but at the same time, voice your own opinion and explicitly explain why you have a better opinion without undermining your peers. For example, if they ask about a company, explain why it is such a great/not great investment, second your opinion with 1 or 2 sentences from the other 2 people in order to make them feel good (pride always kicks in) and express different/creative ideas that was not mentioned by the other two guys.

I faced a similar situation in PwC Turkey interview. The team of 10 people and only 2 of us (including me) had different view from that of 8. Suprisingly, both of us were US-educated students. In the end, I ended up supporting the majority so that my prospective employers would see that I am a team player. I didn`t even try to offend that 1 guy, despite that fact everybody was against him. The guy ended up not getting the job, despite having the second best resume in the team :slight_smile:

Was this from your earlier phone interview, statusone?

Final interviews I’ve had & given can can be simply the MDs wanting to have a look at the new recruits (i.e. the team has basically made up their minds about one and just looking for some senior approval). You’re meeting two other guys so I think this might not be your case (depends on the seniority of the guys and how connected they are to your potential role).

The objective of any interview is to make the interviewer root for you. After the interviews these guys are all going to huddle and discuss, so the more people that think “yeah, I’d hire statusone” you would be able to push out one or two bad interviews by peer consensus.

Making the interviewer root for you can be achieved in many ways, some more obvious than the other. ones Displaying your competency, eagerness for the job, and generally being an interesting person are all standard points. I would try and share more personal stories as it establishes a more personal conenction between you and the interviewer - try and find some common interests and spend a small part of the interview bonding. As I mentioned before the interviewer is assessing “do I want this person in my team” so it’s about being a great person to work with as well as being competent, team worker etc.

BTW I wouldn’t read too much into pauses in the interviewer and things like that. Good luck! :slight_smile:

Hey usj2, yes it is from the previous phone interview. They seem interested in. The managing director gave me positive feedback on my resume and the interview process itself. He said they will narrow down their candidates and he also said he would be interested in talking to me again. So I have some time to prepare for a potential second interview.

I think I may read too much into the interviewer’s body language, a personal trait I am sure. Some things like him not making eye contact when he shook my hand at the end of the interview are just things I am vary of.

Usj2, thanks for your advice, all the way through!

I remember the early days of interviewing as a student (for internships). I’d read so many books on ‘how to nail interviews’ that my head was spinning with all the top tips during interviews. It was impossible to behave like a normal human being trying to remember all the things I should be doing.

I’d enter the interview room and think crap like “stride confidently”, “don’t shuffle your feet”, “remember to smile”, “maintain eye contact”, “sit only when asked”, etc etc.

Then I’d shake his hand and sit down - “firm vertical handshake”, “smile and greet with warm personal greeting”, “hands on desk / not on desk”, so on so forth.

Body language, mirror your interviewer, remember to ask questions, etc etc.

With all this crap spinning in my head I just completely bombed my first few interviews, some of them rather spectacularly. Much better to get a few pointers and do most of the learning in practical experience, much like throwing a frisbee or riding a bike.

Good luck and let us know how it turns out!