How to Stand Out During a Second Interview - Melissa Llarena

How to Stand Out During a Second Interview Explanation:Whenever I coach a client I encourage them to get firsthand experience with the product or service that they will be supporting once hired for the job â€" within limits of course. For example, if you are vying for a job at PayPal then consider transferring money using the tool before going in for an interview. However, if you are going for a job at a heart device company I’m not suggesting using yourself as a guinea pig. Instead, when it comes to the latter situation it makes sense to ask folks who do have devices about their opinions.In either circumstance, the key to second round interview success is to know as much as possible about what the company is selling and I’ll take this point further to say that this matters regardless of whether you’ll be touching the product directly for example as the GM of the business or along its peripherals as the strategic HR leader for a business unit.Tweak:The way to leverage your findings during any interview is by preparing y our findings given your experimentation with a product or service. It’s absolutely appropriate to take the initiative and mention that you tried out a Bloomberg terminal, interviewed  current pacemaker recipients, called customer service to learn more about Google business solutions, or searched for their products on store shelves. Side note: its okay to remain anonymous when you conduct your experiment.Next Steps:If you are vying for a spot in a firm that has a product or service within your reach then try it and think about ways you’d improve the user experience, support offerings, actual product, and delivery mechanisms â€" you name it. On the other hand, if you are trying to land a desirable role in a firm where the product or service may not be easily purchased or tested then find its beneficiaries and ask them questions to inform your recommendations. In all cases, the recruitment process is costly and today firms are savvier than ever…they want to gather insights during the interview process and they will appreciate any job hunter who conducts this meaningful due diligence and serves them an action-oriented interpretation of their findings on a silver platter.My Pitch: How to Stand Out During a Second Interview The best interviewers not only research a company as well as their interviewers (the latter whenever possible) but they also try out the product or service that they’ll be selling or improving if hired for the job.Explanation:Whenever I coach a client I encourage them to get firsthand experience with the product or service that they will be supporting once hired for the job â€" within limits of course. For example, if you are vying for a job at PayPal then consider transferring money using the tool before going in for an interview. However, if you are going for a job at a heart device company I’m not suggesting using yourself as a guinea pig. Instead, when it comes to the latter situation it makes sense to ask folks who do have devices about their opinions.In either circumstance, the key to second round interview success is to know as much as possible about what the company is selling and I’ll take this point further to say that this m atters regardless of whether you’ll be touching the product directly for example as the GM of the business or along its peripherals as the strategic HR leader for a business unit.Tweak:The way to leverage your findings during any interview is by preparing your findings given your experimentation with a product or service. It’s absolutely appropriate to take the initiative and mention that you tried out a Bloomberg terminal, interviewed  current pacemaker recipients, called customer service to learn more about Google business solutions, or searched for their products on store shelves. Side note: its okay to remain anonymous when you conduct your experiment.Next Steps:If you are vying for a spot in a firm that has a product or service within your reach then try it and think about ways you’d improve the user experience, support offerings, actual product, and delivery mechanisms â€" you name it. On the other hand, if you are trying to land a desirable role in a firm where the prod uct or service may not be easily purchased or tested then find its beneficiaries and ask them questions to inform your recommendations. In all cases, the recruitment process is costly and today firms are savvier than ever…they want to gather insights during the interview process and they will appreciate any job hunter who conducts this meaningful due diligence and serves them an action-oriented interpretation of their findings on a silver platter.My Pitch:If you are preparing for a second interview then youve managed to endear HR professional (s) during your first round. If you’ve made it to this stage then I’m going assume that your marketing materials reflect your prospective contributions to your target organization. However, if you are reading this tip then I imagine that you are trying to brush up on your interviewing skills alone. You’ll likely google “sample interview answers” and try your best to tailor your answers based on the insights you stumble upon.  These strategies work if you’ve successfully interviewed for similar roles in recent years.Alternatively, if it’s been a while since youve interviewed successfully, if you are trying to secure a stretch role, switch industries, or relaunch your career then I want to offer you an alternative that has provided tailored guidance to senior business professionals around the world.I’ve carefully curated a one-on-one virtual program to help any successful business leader quickly scale up his interviewing skills precisely in preparation for conversations with board of directors, prospective direct managers, peers, or direct reports.Email me (melissa@melissallarena.com) to schedule a time to discuss your options today.My goals are twofold:To help you take the guess work out of what you will be askedTo empower you with well-informed feedback so that your interview answers are compelling enough to land you the jobIm offering you a viable solution that will give you the confidence you need to articulate and convincingly project your unique value proposition.Happy to discuss further with anyone who is committed to improving his  interviewing skills.