Importance of Knowing the Company's Background before an Interview

Get pertinent information on a company, its industry and the person who will be interviewing you before the interview. If a company is publicly held, get its annual report or even an in-depth security analysis from a bank or a broker. The public relations department of many companies is a good source of information. It will often provide you with a company history, recent speeches of top officials, product information, newspaper articles, and so on. Other possibilities are local newspaper or library files, the chamber of commerce, your banker, your accountant, or trade magazines. A library with a good business section can also be helpful. For data on an industry, try annual reports of competitors, studies by securities analysts, or trade magazines. This can give you real insight into what's going on in the industry and the problems this company is likely to be facing. Get the background information fas t-you often have only a couple of days to prepare for the interview.

Acquiring information on the interviewer is much harder, but in some cases it can be done and can be extremely valuable. Here are some possible sources: personal contact either through a director, a banker, or a friend who may or may not be an employee, or his or her college alumni directory or class report. Many colleges publish biographies of the members of a class at the time of a reunion.

They are available through the college alumni office. Standard and Poor's Register, Dun's Reference of Corporate Management, and Who's Who are other sources that may be useful. Your goal in this research is to anticipate the key problems the interviewer has on his or her mind in your field of expertise.



Locating the material on the company and the interviewer is an important part of the task. An hour or two studying it should put you in a strong position. Such things as recent earnings, sales, new products, markets, plants, what competitors are doing, recent performance of the stock, and so on, is particularly pertinent - depending on the job you're seeking. Prepare a list of five or six questions about the company and its problems in your field of expertise. This will get the interviewer talking about his or her problems in connection with the job you're interviewing for and will help you show how valuable your experience is.

You not only must prepare for the questions you may be asked, but you also must prepare to address hidden criteria likely to be on the interviewer's mind, but which probably won't be brought out in the open. In fact, if there are things you are vulnerable on, you'll want to insert the answers into the conversation, even though the questions aren't asked.

Sam Price, head of the marketing group of a large company, recently showed me the importance of hidden criteria very dramatically. There never has been a woman in this department of over 20 professionals. Sam told me that two or three MBAs are hired every year, and there is an increase in the number of women applicants. It is Sam's feeling that a successful employee in this department must show that he or she can compete on a "fast track," enduring a lot of overtime and traveling. It has been the feeling of the management department that such jobs are best filled by men. Sam readily acknowledges that his department's practice is discriminatory (and therefore illegal). But this situation points out that good candidates are blocked by factors the interview doesn't reveal. Furthermore, a candidate, to be successful, must address this undiscussed issue and be able to make a strong case that the liability is more imagined than real.

Hidden criteria can take many forms (for example, concerning the candidate's age, whether he or she will fit, etc.).

Here are some of the unasked questions:

• How will this candidate fit in?
• What makes this person tick?
• Is this applicant really results-oriented?
• How long will he or she need to be really effective?
• Will lack of experience in this particular field (or industry, or type of organization) be really detrimental?
• Will he or she consider this an interim position?
• Can this candidate really get things done through others?
• What about weaknesses?
• What about working well under pressure?
• Does this person get angry or easily depressed?
• What is the real reason for the present job search?
• Will family life or outside activities adversely affect performance?
• Why is she or he interested in working for us?
• What about communicating with all levels, verbally and in writing?
  

If such items are things you are vulnerable on, you'll want to introduce the subject yourself in an offhand way. Comparing your job description with what you have to offer) will identify the most likely hidden criteria. For instance, an older executive may defuse the age issue in the following ways:

"I had a good relationship with my boss at Harris Spring. He was 11 years younger than me.

He had a lot of new ideas and was willing to take considerable risks. I think he valued my judgment as he often used me as a sounding board. He then modified his plans to prevent them from going awry."

"I play for my club in a tennis league and still ski downhill a lot."

"The last couple of years have been the most exciting of my career. I have accomplished more, worked under greater pressure, and done more traveling than at any time during my career."