 Welcome back. Welcome back. Still why in the morning? Thank you for staying with us. We appreciate your company We have now come to the career and youth and career Discussion and today we want to talk about job interview strategies. What are you supposed to do when you're looking for a job? What are you supposed to do when you've been called for that interview and what happens after? Well, we are joined by Evelyn Muteo She is our HR executive and career coach with over 13 years experience in the HR space She has interviewed over 500 positions from top level board to the low level Evelyn Welcome. Thank you so much. It's an honor having you with us. It's an honor going to be here Yes, and you know, you know the guest over here. You've been here before Yeah, so today we are talking about career and you know, of course the job interview strategies So before that introduce yourself. Well, I think you've said more than enough about me But anyway, I usually say I'm a child of God. That's who I am first But I've worked in different spaces as a HR As a HR executive both at an operational level and at a strategic level. I've also been interviewed before here I've worked in the renewable energy sector. I've worked in non-governmental organization both Health and also agribusiness. I've worked in agribusiness before and I also sit in different boards as an advisor Yeah, that's in a nutshell and yeah, I don't know sometimes when it comes to interview. It's a lot. It's a strategy by itself Yeah, I'm just saying see you can just send CVs blindfolded. You have to really understand what does the role require But I believe you're going to get into that. Yes. So that's exactly where we are starting So, you know, when you get the job advert, where do you start from? What are the areas that you need to highlight key areas that you need to look out for? Yeah, first of all, when you get a job advert, you need to first of all and ask yourself What is this role looking for? You need to get into the eyes of a recruiter That's what I always tell most of my clients and even most of the people that I eat that because I have interviewed people before So you have to first of all analyze the role first of all, which which which cada first of all get to understand This role, who is it going to be reporting to? What does the key competence of this role require? Let me give an example of for instance, you're applying for a role of a CFO the CFO first of all one of the key responsibilities that is to drive business and Understand the numbers. Yeah, one of the things and then the key requirements that this is also the part of Desirable and also a minimum requirement minimum requirement for instance The role requires that you have a background in finance. Yeah, and the graduating finance or you are a registered Accountant or you have done something like that's minimum if you don't have that There is no point of bothering to do to apply for that. Then they is desirable Desirable is like it's not a must you have it, but if you have it you have an added advantage So once again, and then you also look at the key competences like for instance someone who is analytical Someone who can be able to create partnerships So these are key competences that really need to be to be appearing in your CV And it takes only two minutes like actually I usually say it takes five seconds For a recruiter to determine whether they are going to look at that CV or not Yeah, so I mean you can imagine you're applying for a role whereby It's over 500 people who have applied for that role. So you really really need to be very smart So you've aligned your CV you've aligned and then one of the other things you have to also look at that role Your CV should not portray a doer your CV should portray a value add Yeah, I mean I keep on saying that people are hired to solve problems like for instance As again, I give an example of a CA for CA for like for instance a role Someone who can be able to drive the business to up to or for instance in quick market share by a certain percentage Then you need to demonstrate in your CV. How you've done that before You you need to demonstrate that like for instance Let's say in your past experience, you say that you probably you see you advice the board to increase market share you negotiated Maybe an agreement between for instance a land the lenders of your organization and investors that needs to come out there You put that in the cover letter. You put that in your CV and also in your cover letter So, okay, so yeah, but it has to be very brief, but your CV is now where that's now what will determine you to be called to the table The value add aspect. So you need to have that value add. Yeah, you have to have the value add aspect Otherwise who wants to just hire someone who's just doing a job in the people want a value add in the organization And if you are called to add value, then that's what should be portraying. Remember your CV is what is going to Get you into the table Yes, then the other aspect also get to understand what that organization is all about like for instance Go to the website Most of the times I've even seen cover letters who have written cover letters like for instance You've used one generic cover letter for like five jobs and then you even forget to remove the You forget to remove the name of that the company you had previously This person is saying is and is very keen to detail and that keen to detail already a Perception has been formed. Yeah, so you need to understand first of all, what is all about the organization? What is the vision? What is the vision of that organization? You have to align that in your cover letter Remember you might be technically sound for that role But you are you a cultural feet and cultural role feet have to align with your co-values and the values of the Organization To get the call to the interview So now when you talk of the CV and you know The value at bit of it and you say what you've done maybe in that position in another job So, how do you you know mention that briefly because a CV is usually just an outline from this year to this year You know, yeah, so how do you one of the things is like for instance, what I've seen also in some CVs What really happens is that sometimes people? Replicate that their job description. They don't replicate their value add like for instance Yeah, that's what happens. So you see a JD is what you're required to do, but how are you adding value? So let me give an example of I'll just take a role of Let's say someone's who manages projects. Yeah, so what are the key competence of? Of a project manager or a project officer project cycle risk mitigation and all that Maybe if you're handling a project from what your company from your company to another client And it means that you're also negotiating in terms of payment for instance You have the project cycle So you need to put out you need to put out those key competencies and the value add you've done like for instance You increased efficiency by let's say 13% You did this you you negotiated you negotiated You negotiated the payment process whereby at least at least the payments Cycle for your organization and that I mean ensure that the organization had some cash flow So those are the key things you need to be putting up to be put to be putting out Okay, and how long you know, how long should your CV be? How many pages should it be? Is a cover letter mandatory when you're sending out your application? Some companies will want you to have a cover letter Others it's not necessarily It's not a must that you have a cover letter, but it's good to have a cover letter. Especially when they say that It's not compulsory. That's then you have to be proactive to show so that I mean sometimes maybe One might not want to go through your CV and especially some organization whereby they use application Tracking system whereby it's only like let's say like 50 CVs that will get to the hiring manager All these others have been All these others have been have been filtered by the system and the system will put Who has already been custom made in a manner that? Has been custom in a manner that it will filter out what that all requires if it's five years experience That it is is going to filter that out if it's the key competencies you have this you've worked in a certain industry That it is has been filtered that by the time it's getting to the hiring manager or the recruiter And they are like 50 and now now this is now filtering out now to the long list now to determine who are the people going to come to the To the interview so you have to be very you have to be very Intentional on what you want to put out there in terms of how many pages that a CV should have I'd say five marks ma'am, but also let that have five pages have content And I think I need to add something else about also something that is very very crucial and Has gotten so many people hired is the LinkedIn. I personally have actually been headhunted for I think of a four jobs in LinkedIn through LinkedIn. Yeah through LinkedIn. So what are you putting out there? What kind of I mean? I mean LinkedIn is just a profile is just a summarized CV again now bring out your value at your key achievements What have you done in different organizations? Because when the headhunter or the headhunters or recruiters are looking for someone they'll just search for Project manager and even told you've added value in your sector Your your name is gonna come it like among the top 10 Yes, okay quite interesting and When you're mentioning some of the key things that they look into You mentioned the minimum requirements. Yes. So now, you know people apply to jobs I say you just say let me just try this out Yeah, I don't meet the minimum requirements. So I shouldn't apply for that job if you really feel like if you really feel like you you have made them Let's say the minimum requirements like it's a hundred percent and maybe you have let's say 80 70 I mean apply for the role but be very very intentional in what that recruiter is looking for you have to pick Pick keywords even when you're applying for that role that need to appear in your CV and also that need to appear on your Have a letter. Yeah. Okay. It's very very crucial key to you should be key to pick the key words So if the ones are you know, what are our skills and you match your competencies Your professional objective really needs to align with what that role requires. Okay, otherwise, you'll end up just You always ask yourself more listening applications. I'm not getting a short list I'm not getting shortlisted, but it's because you've not taken time to align with that role and what that role requires All right. So now you've done the application you have been shortlisted you get the call Yeah, so when you get the call, how are you supposed to respond to the call? Maybe you've applied to over 20 jobs, you know They tell you You've been Invited for an interview. Did you apply to with our companies? Yes, because you're not even sure which company you applied to Should you is it okay to ask which company is this? Yeah, it's okay to ask However, when you are also When you're also applying for role, it's always good to save some of these descriptions because you never know Like sometimes you might be actually be shortlisted in like in fact when you ask the company If you took time, if you took time to apply that role, you just didn't sense if he's blindly And you didn't get to understand what the organization is all about For a fact, you're gonna remember. So it's okay to ask. There's nothing wrong But now now let's now talk about the aspect of now you've been called for the interview now That is what is going to separate It's going to separate it's where the rubber meets the road Yeah What what do you need to first of all be very very intentional in preparing? Yeah, I get to understand like for instance again assuming I'm called for an interview for a role of a HR director or a chief feature I Automatically know the person I'm going to be reporting in that role is going to be a CEO and the board So I need to understand I need to go out and look out. I like let's say I've been invited in Y254 I need to understand who's the CEO of 2 or Y254 because that's the person. He's going to be seated in the panel Yeah, I need to understand. What is the organization all about? Yeah, I need to understand what have they done At the top level of leadership, I always tell people Organization strategies are always in the organization are always in the website. Yeah Go have a look at that. Have a look at their strategy. We are big going the five-year strategic plan Where I in the in the entry level, why do you want to work for them? What inspires you for them? Who are you all about? You know? Yeah, so that's very very crucial Especially yes, you've been called get to research about the people who are going to be sitting in the panel You get an opportunity you can even ask the person who's who has called it for the interview How many are going to be in the panel or who should I expect in the panel? So yeah, they see you others will even give you the name they see you or For instance, the see you maybe it's the head of a certain head of that department. You look them up I mean you get all the information there. So it's okay to ask when you get Yes, it's okay to ask. It's very much okay to ask Because I remember there's one time I was called for an interview Sometimes sometimes back and the lady who had called me for that interview Give me a name that I thought was a female name only to realize that it was a male name So I had to really ask her who's going when he said he I had to go look up at the look at the One of the panes is like wow It's very crucial to always be prepared and it also gives you some sense of confidence Because you and you go there with the confidence that you already know this person So it's not and you'll also align to their language because one of the things is that When you go for interviews, yes, you're technically sound, but you don't know what makes this other person tick Like you need to understand what this other person makes them tick Like for instance, and you can pick a lot even on what they post on their social media like LinkedIn Like maybe someone like I remember there's one interview I sat for and The CEO was a very keeper was a person who really valued people's development And every time when I was answering things to do with people's development, I could see the guy nodding Yes, okay All right. So what what else should you prepare for in advance apart from researching about the company research No get to know about that as I said that Bullet by bullet of that role you really have to have gone bullet by bullet Everything so that you even come up with various examples of what you've done like for instance Interviews are structured in a safe three or four perspective You have the technical question. You have the behavioral questions and you also have something we call the risky questions Behavioral questions. They are trying to test your cultural fit to the organization like for instance Like for instance, let's say as an organization. They really value collaboration. They love teamwork. They value trust They'll ask you questions around that and it's up to you to make sure you show that Like for instance, they can ask you give us an instance whereby you had to So you have to give the what was the situation? Yeah, what was your task? What was your action and what was your was your result and in that aspect you have to bring out the aspect of How did you collaborate with the other people? How do you demonstrate teamwork collaboration? What was your role, you know? And then again, for instance a role requires the teamwork a role that can be able to manage a team You do know when you go there give us how I mean, how do you manage your team? How do you motivate your team? That's not the point to say that that that I work well alone. No, that role requires that you work with other people Yeah, so you have to be very crucial on what and what they really require Yeah, and then so that's that then the technical aspect give us an example where you are you manage to build Partnership give us an example where you had to handle a crisis Give us and you know those those are behavioral like technical Do you have can you understand how to use? Have you used an ERP system? Then yes, you give examples what for instance you've managed the transition of one ERP system to another You need to bring out that that's the point to actually show what you're all about Yeah, you bring all you bring your egg your egg is the table Yes, so there's uh, researching about the company knowing about the role Exactly now. Do you do the MOOC interview is it okay to do the most? Yes, it's actually very very important to If you can get even a coach to prepare you even better I usually say that it's not the most qualified candidate who gets the job It's the most prepared candidate Who gets the job most prepared candidate the most prepared You yes, and you you wonder you always ask yourself. Why didn't I get I mean how did she? She was really prepared or he was really prepared for the role. It's a strategy by itself All right. So apart from that and the dress code so the dress code is also very very important Uh, I mean when you dress when you are when you dress appropriately You really bring out your egg and it also gives you confidence Yeah, it's very very crucial to be very intentional on how you dress when you're going for interview Even now right now that we are having interviews that are being held virtually You really need to look the path. It gives you confidence It gives you confidence It makes you feel that you have the content to to show I mean you want to go for an interview where you whereby You're struggling for instance. You've done either you've done too much makeup for the ladies or you have An outfit that it's showing is too revealing You now start making the panelists to stop concentrating on asking you the questions where you came from They are now starting to be distracted and you'll you'll have not you'll have not captured your value in that In that setup. Yeah, so is there a particular way that you know ladies should dress that men should dress And what is that particular dressing? If you are for I have never had a problem with gentlemen, but of course I've been in interviews where Gentleman came up showing very funny Yeah, so as a gentleman it's good to put on a very good a good shirt if you can wear a tie Are very good Very good pants. Yeah, so that you look very very presentable if you can even a coat Yeah, if at all the organization they are for instance, they are casual smart put on good casual smart not Things that will actually wonder whether you are really Really taking this role seriously because you're going to be they say you're going to be addressed the way you are dressed Okay, you're going to be addressed the way you are dressed. I like that. Yes All right, so you can do casual smart casual smart depending on that organization But to be on the safe side just wear a good outfit a good formal outfit I mean when you come in even if it's a casual It's it's where they they are They encourage casual smart you can always