Colleen Grant, HubSpot's manager of Global Campus Recruiting, shares practical interview prep: tailor your resume to the job description, research the company and interviewer, take calls in a quiet space, and pause before answering tough questions. Send a thank-you email after and ask when you should expect to hear back.
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Hi, we're here with Colleen Grant, HubSpot's manager of Global Campus Recruiting, and she's here to tell us how to prepare for your next job interview. So, Colleen, it can be super tough to stand out from the pack, especially when there are hundreds of applicants applying for a job. What's a few things an applicant can do to make their cover letter and resume stand out?
Absolutely. It's definitely a really tough thing to stand out, especially for those entry level positions. What you can do is really stay true to that job description. There's always specific requirements that are must haves.
Make sure that you get those into.
Your resume and your cover letter. That way we can really understand that you care about this role and why you're qualified.
And let's talk about the interview. What are the top things a candidate can do to prepare before speaking with a recruiter? And where's the best place a candidate could take a phone or video interview?
So the top things to do, know who you're speaking to, know what the job description entails, and know what the company does. That way you can really talk to how you qualify to each of those things. As far as where you should be doing this, as quiet of space as possible with limited distractions. So make sure there's no background noise, a bedroom, quiet house. Any of that is really gonna work.
And how about when they move on to the on site interview, what should they do to prepare at this point.
When you're coming on site, your recruiter's really your ally. So ask them questions about what you should know beforehand, anything that needs to be prepared as far as a case study, and also what to wear, when to ARR. They'll help you and take whatever they say to heart.
Awesome. And we all know that interviews can be super nerve wracking. So what should a candidate do if a recruiter or hiring manager asks a question that really catches them off guard?
It's pretty much a guarantee that this is going to happen during every interview. And that's okay. Take a second, take a deep breath, collect your thoughts and then try to answer the question. If you truly don't know the answer to the question, it's okay to say that as well. We don't expect every candidate to know everything. So just say that you don't know and you'll move on from there.
And at the end of the interview, usually candidates are asked if they have any questions. What questions do hiring managers wish candidates would ask?
Hiring managers always want candidates to ask questions that are doing a deep dive into the actual position that they're applying for. What does it mean to be successful? What is something that might not be as successful in this position? It's better than the fluffier questions about, you know, why someone joined HubSpot or anything like that. Really try to keep true to why you're there and what you're applying for.
And now that the interview is over, how and when should a candidate follow up?
Always send a thank you email.
It's much more appreciated than you might think.
Send it to the recruiter and the.
Hiring managers and if the recruiter hasn't.
Set an expectation on when you should.
Hear back, ask for that too.
That way it alleviates some of the stress of wondering when you're going to hear back from the company.
Awesome. Thank you so much for your advice, Colleen. So next time you're trying to prepare for your next job interview, be sure to keep these tips in mind.
