I have never done an interview and not got the job

[ClassicTron]

A not so stealth boast

However, the point of my post is to ask what, generally, the quality of interviewees is. I always do some prep but not always as much as I feel I should and for some of these successful interviews I've felt that my performance on the day was pretty rubbish, or at least could/should have been better.

If you interview a lot of people, what is the average standard of an interviewee? Does my small effort at prep and Ok performance make me stand out, or have I just been lucky?

It just occurred to me that maybe I could make some money offering advice, but I have no real idea what it is I've been doing right IYSWIM.

How old are you? How many interviews have you had? What kind of jobs are you going for, how much experience/education do you need for them? Are you applying for jobs you're overskilled for and playing it safe in your applications?

DH use to be like you, then he wasn't. He got older and was applying for more difficult jobs and had to be caught out eventually.

I interview a lot. There are various reasons why people don't get jobs. Some new graduates are truly shite in an interview (admitting taking drugs, texting during an interview, saying they've never worked because they didn't want to do barwork and mix with sinners. We've had some great ones!). But older people with experience usually it's about who is the best match with the requirements for the job. Some good candidates don't get offers purely because there was a better candidate. A good interviewer should be able to see past 'interview technique', it's not hard to get someone to dig themselves into a hole if they are bullshitting.

When was the last time you applied for a job? I have never not got a job until recently and this was int he same organisation. Times are different nowadays

I've just done a stack. Quality of preparation was appalling. Lovely, qualified people who couldn't be arsed doing a bit of preliminary research on the company or the industry, and who ignored all the information I gave them about team objectives when answering scenario questions

I would love to know what the other interviewees are like!

Like you, OP, whenever I've interviewed for jobs in my sector I've always been offered the role. But then they are very "wing-it" interviews where you just sort of chat through stuff, and I just find I don't get flummoxed or flustered by those.

However whenever I've interviewed for jobs in a slightly different sector I haven't got them, though I've always had good feedback. I'm nosy and would love to know what the other candidates were like.

I do a lot of interviewing. We generally interview 6 people for a post, generally there are 2-3 appointable people, 1-2 ok but unsuitable/not as good as the top 2-3 and 1 complete weirdo/maniac who's managed to dupe the shortlisting system at some point during the process!

Hard to say if it's something amazing about your technique without knowing how many jobs you have successfully interviewed for and what the competition was. I suspect you have had an element of luck in addition to your interview skills which has helped your success (like most of us)
I interview quite a lot and am always surprised when people don't know what the job is about of admit to really stupid flaws like having difficulty working with women or being argumentative etc. generally speaking a lot of the interviewees are poor so you wouldn't have to do much to stand out.

I used to be like you. Then I turned 49...

I love interviewing. Massive range of candidates. Really interesting.

Invizicat ditto. And now I'm even older, I don't even get the interview.

Thanks, I was just being nosy really and wondering how bad the rest must have been!

To answer the questions, I'm 45 and the last interview was today. A school Business Manager position, so whilst a step down in terms of salary, compared to some of my past experience, these jobs are highly sought after by people like me because of the long holidays etc. It was a big step up from the job I'm doing ATM, which was my last interview 2 years ago, a p-t finance officer in a school when there were 100s of applicants.

Prior to that, I was a (wicked) corporate banker and changed jobs every 2-3 years. Some of them were internal moves but always required a competitive interview, often competency based - today's was a 30 minute chat type thing, plus some practical exercises. My last banking interview was c. 2011 as a project leader for a big operational change and the one before that 2009 for a Regional Manager position.

Today I came away thinking it was "OK". Not cringingly awful but I did a fair amount of waffling to buy thinking time to get to some decent answers and I can't think of anything I did/said that should have really made me stand out. I did a lot of repeating back what the head had said in his introduction at the start of the day. He must really like his own ideas!

I actually knew one of the other candidates from my banking days and his skills and experience are very similar to mine. He would have been a good choice for the role.

I do lots of prep but get very nervous and always manage to say something stupid. I am seriously considering interview training.

I used to be terrible in interviews, now even though I dont always get the job, I often get told that I impressed and its usually something that I cant help (like more recent experience or better qualifications) that means that someone beat me to the job. In the jobs I don't get I often get told how close it was. Maybe Im not great, but Im certainly better than I was.

I go in with a bit of research of the company, look at the job description and how I feel I could do the job and I have awesome questions up my sleeve for the end of the interview at the 'any questions' stage. I also go with the 'they will either like me or not' approach and be myself. I think one major thing that interviewers look for is your personality and how you will fit in with the team or the company. I let them see me as I am. I dont get upset if I wasn't to get a job and just look at it as there must be something better suited for me out there.

I have just started looking for work again and have an interview next week along with another 5 jobs I have applied for and feel confident about my applications. I am going to have another look on Sunday to apply for more.

I do think it's a personality thing - some people just don't interview well, whereas some people can come across very well in interviews without the same amount of prep.

That said, although interviews are attracting more and more applicants, we are finding that we are still getting the same pool of potential candidates as we always were. Whereas before we would have thirty applicants, of which maybe half we considered would be suitable for the role, now we are getting 100 plus candidates, and still only around fifteen to twenty we would consider suitable.

The amount of research I expect varies on the position; for more junior positions (which tend to be very competitive due to the training packages we offer) I expect them to be able to show that they have had a good look at the website, in particular the specialist areas, looked into the industry in general and the qualification we would be paying for. 'I like/am good at maths' is not going to impress.

I've only had one interview where I didn't get the job, and that was for a role I had no relevant experience in. I don't always get an interview for every job I apply for though. I'm late 40s. I have always been told that I come across really well in interviews - I am smiley and friendly and quite professional. I am good at thinking on my feet too, so can usually come up with a good answer for most questions.

I'm useless at interviews. Although, once I do manage to get a job, everyone thinks I'm amazing. The best 2 jobs I've got have been when the employers have already known me or known of me through a contact, so the interview wasn't as important, although even then, I read every word of their websites + further research, + writing out over 100 questions that I thought I might get asked, and writing out answers for them and then revising them off by heart. It's heavily to do with personality I think. I'm an introvert and a bit of a geeky nerdy type, and often don't "click" with people when I first meet new people. Even though I have a very high IQ (especially maths), I do struggle with thinking on my feet verbally. Second guessing possible questions, writing out answers and revising those answers is the thing that helps me the most (I just go blank otherwise - and come across like an idiot, I suspect). Although, there was one job where I did silly amounts of preparation, got the job, and wish I hadn't because I didn't fit in at all! So I now wonder whether less preparation can sometimes be better, and taking the attitude that DrHarleen mentions.

OP it is funny that you posted this as I was thinking about this topic today!

In my professional career (35 and started working in this sector at 23) I have had 5 interviews and got the job each time (been offered a new job this week, which is why I was thinking about it!)

Quite a few people mentioned to me that they always get the job from an interview and I thought, we can't ALL be getting the jobs all the time, what happens to the other interviewees?! Someone has to not get a job! Or perhaps the less successful ones are not talked about.

Between 21 and 23, as a directionless graduate, I went for about 10 unsuccessful interviews though, so it balances out!

In the last 12 years, I have applied for a couple of jobs and not got an interview. I have also been offered a couple of interviews which I have decided not to go to.

In my case, I think a lot of it is I only go for interviews when I REALLY want the job. I do A LOT of research, as this is something I find makes candidates stand out when I am on the other side of the interview table!

I've just read my post back, and I am because it reads as if I'm so bloody marvellous. Im good at interviews - I'm crap at lots of other things.

Interviewing is a skill in itself and some people are very good at it. Unfortunately, they are not always the same people who would be good at the job. Some people who would be fantastic in the role, do not interview well. Also, some interviewers are just crap. That's why interviews are not a particularly effective selection tool, especially on their own.

Despite interviewing for around 30 years, I'm still surprised how few people prepare properly. I see some candidates who don't know what the company does, who our customers are, where we place ourselves in the market. I see junior people who come with jogging bottoms, uncombed hair, ripped tights. These things don't take skill - just a bit of research and smartening up.

What sort of things would you suggest researching those of you who conduct interviews? I have 2 interviews on Thursday so need to get cracking.

I was like that until 18 when I got my civil service job where I stayed til 25, then left to go to uni. When I left uni, it took me 8 months to get my first job, I had approx 6 interviews and loads of applications where I never even heard back. I have been there nearly three years and applied for about 30 jobs, had about 12 interviews and only been successful once but unfortunately I had to turn it down

For DrHarleen
What does the company do?
Who are the customers?
Does it trade internationally?
How many employees does it have?
How many locations and where are they?
Where is the head office?
Where is strategic position (e.g. high quality or low cost or service excellence)
What market share does it have?

If it's a senior role
Who owns the business?
Annual turnover?
Any press stories in the past few years?
Where do people go next (LinkedIN is your friend on this one!)

Probably loads more. The internet makes all this so much easier so really is no excuse for not being well informed about a company where you are suggesting you want to spend 40 hours per week.

Thanks Olly

I'm 51 and am now not even getting interviews for jobs I could do standing on my head with my hands tied behind my back and for less than half the money I used to earn 15 years ago :(

In the last 5 months I've applied for about ten jobs - and I've done 'proper' applications i.e. only applied for things I want to do, can tick all or almost all the essential and desirable qualities on the person specification thingy, researched the organisation thoroughly, and written a stonking supporting statement - and I've only had two interviews. Of those I got down to the last two for one and got offered the job for the other but had to turn it down as they couldn't be at all flexible.

So for me the problem is not interview technique it's getting to the interview in the first place