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Decoding the Dress Code |
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Interview techniques and preparation |
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Interview techniques and preparation
Interview
techniques and preparation
You applied for the job of your dream in a wonderful company. The
resume you so carefully worked on got you in and the day of the
interview finally arrived. Now it is all up to you to succeed or
fail at this your only chance to make a great first impression.
Preparation
Preparing well before the interview will boost your confidence and
enable you to deal effectively with the interviewers questions. Find
out as much as you can about the organization, by looking at their
website, reading any literature the employer may have, including
their annual report, and making sure you’re familiar their product.
If you know anyone who has (or still does) worked there, take time
to chat things through with them, they may be able to give you an
idea of what is expected.
Practice
Practice your answers, both for routine questions and for those that
may be specific for the job you have applied for. Going through the
advert and job description may help you to discover what skills they
will be looking for and allow you to think of examples of how you
meet the requirements.
If there are any discrepancies in your resume, for example, long
period out of work, make sure you have relevant answers prepared.
On the day
Make sure you arrive in good time. Always allow extra time to get
there, you can always find a café to relax and re read your notes if
you are early. During the interview listen carefully and answer
questions positively. Find opportunities to be enthusiastic.
Que observa el reclutador en el momento de la entrevista?
Your personality, how you present yourself in the interview
Your experience
The qualifications you have for the position
Your background and references
The enthusiasm you have towards the organization and position
Decoding the Dress Code
It's not your
parents' workplace anymore - nor their dress code. Gone are the
stuffy three-piece suits and conservative skirt sets of times past,
replaced with a canvas of khaki on which a world of individuality is
expressed, as if to say, "Trust me: I'm casual." In some
corporations and industries, it's Casual Friday every day of the
week. Yet even with today's relaxed standards, it's still not a good
idea to show up for work in torn shorts and a baggy tee shirt.
Especially if you deal directly with customers, the way you express
yourself to the world is far more important than the true you - at
least while you're on the job. With a little thought and creativity,
you can bring the two into harmony with positive professional
results.
Evaluate your workplace
Whatever shall you wear to work? Before you can answer, look around
you in the office - as early as the interview stage. What's the
company style? How does dress relate to the nature of the work? What
are people wearing these days to make design presentations?
automobiles? closing arguments? pizzas? Get ready to dress the part
- in this year's style.
Look to your coworkers for direction, and take your lead from the
top, as the catch phrase "dress for the job you want" still applies.
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"There's a gray area," said human resources
professional Lena Bottos of Salary.com. "If your boss breaks a
few dress code rules, then it's okay to adjust your wardrobe
choices. Just don't be the first one in the office to break
the style barrier."
Also, think about who visits your office when deciding how to
dress. Is your space open to visitors, or is it strictly
down-and-dirty? Are the visitors from inside the company or
outside? What impression do you want to leave on them? And
don't forget company executives - top brass might not
appreciate the deep cultural symbolism of your latest music
concert acquisition. |
Some people keep a business suit or the equivalent in their
office or workspace in case guests arrive on short notice. Are you
ready for a television crew to arrive and film you for the news?
The do's and don'ts are changing
Etiquette books tend to take a conservative approach to the office.
Emily Post, for example, swears that "business casual" doesn't
exist, while Amy Vanderbilt prefers women not to wear pants to the
office. Workplace style in the 1990s was liberated from the
structured 1980s, and improvements in synthetic fabrics have given
designers new materials from which to create casual clothing that
appears professional. During the Internet boom, the startup culture
of the West Coast brought business casual to an art form.
So, is it "anything goes" today? As in the past, your appearance on
the job is a mirror that reflects your personal style in the context
of the office culture and the nature of your job. What you wear
continues to say a lot about your work. So think about your company,
your teammates, clients, management, and your position when reaching
into your closet, and you'll always come out a winner.
