It’s true. All interviews are NOT created equal. While it’s easy to think that interviews come in a “stock format”: a hiring manager, then a member of leadership, then HR…. the truth is that there is far more to an interview than just the person with whom you are speaking and the questions they are going to ask.
Now more than ever, interviewers are meeting remotely with their potential employees or meeting over a meal. In these instances, the interview itself may be the same, but the knowledge base you need to have to navigate them is completely different.
There is a certain etiquette that comes along with each type of interview. For example, meeting in person in the office space is most often what we think of when we consider a formal interview. In this case, the traditional protocol applies. When the venue changes to a lunch interview for example, as does the etiquette. Suddenly you are not only being assessed on your professional acumen, but also how you carry a conversation over a meal, what you order, how you eat it and how you handle yourself upon check arrival. There is also a lot of “downtime” that doesn’t always come with a formal, in-office interview.
Virtual interviews come with a separate stack of etiquette notables, far different than an in person or lunch/dinner meeting. Again, you will be assessed on professional acumen, but also how soon you logged into the meeting, how skilled you were with navigating the platforms, how you start a meeting, end a meeting, what lies in your background and round and round we go.
This is where hiring a professional can project your interview to the next steps. A professional interview coach can tell you the ins and outs of each type of interview and school you on the eccentricities that will surely be assessed. It would be a shame to have gotten right to interview with that professional resume you invested in and then lose opportunity because you blasted through your French fries and mushroom and swiss hamburger during your lunch interview. See the error there? (hint- it wasn’t how fast you ate, but that didn’t help).
Feel confident in yourself as a whole and do not fall for the idea that your experience will be all you need to secure that next step. Hire an industry expert and enjoy your induction into the ranks.