6 Tips For A Successful Virtual Job Interview
Publié le 25 November 2020
With many Canadians searching for work opportunities and applying for in-demand jobs despite the ongoing pandemic, virtual job interviews are increasingly becoming a normal part of the hiring process. If you are about to turn on the webcam and speak to a hiring manager or recruiter for the first time, prepare with 6 tips for a successful virtual job interview.
6 Tips for a Successful Virtual Job Interview:
- Make sure you have strong WIFI
- Dress professionally (to a point)
- Update your apps
- Be on time
- Avoid distractions
- Be prepared for standard questions
Make Sure You Have Strong WIFI
It may seem obvious, but without a strong WIFI connection, your virtual interview will have trouble even starting. There are several steps you can take to help boost your WIFI signal strength, and ensure a good connection. If your virtual job interview is for a remote position, this interview will be a semi-accurate test of how communication and collaboration with the team will occur. If you know that your connection can sometimes be spotty or you live in an area with poor quality WIFI – a reality for far too many people as has been made clear by the COVID-10 pandemic – you should take any steps you can to make sure it goes smoothly.
Don’t have anything running or streaming in the background, and depending on the video chatting app you will be using for your virtual job interview, you can check and modify the settings beforehand. If you lower the video and audio quality slightly, it may make for a smoother connection, without making you look like a 90’s video game.
Dress Professionally (To A Point)
Dressing up when you don’t have to leave your house may seem unnecessary, but it can help you ace your virtual job interview. The rise of business casual attire has made it the norm for many interviews, while there are still companies that expect strict business wear. With a virtual job interview, however, the rules are a little less clear. In all likelihood, the hiring manager will not expect you to log in for your virtual job interview in your finest suit, blouse or other business wear. That being said, just because you can roll out of bed into your virtual job interview it doesn’t mean that you should. Right or wrong, first impressions can still count for quite a lot, so wear clothes that will help you make the type of impression you intend.
There is a link between the clothes you wear and your mood. If what you are wearing makes you feel confident in yourself and your abilities, this confidence and self-belief will be perceptible to hiring managers and recruiters. The best choice for your virtual job interview is to wear what you would wear on the job in-person, but if you want to keep on your lucky pair of sweatpants, we certainly won’t tell.
Update Your Apps
With the necessary increase of work-from-home job positions over the course of 2020, video-call apps and programs have experienced a dramatic surge in use and popularity. Zoom, Google Meets, Skype, FaceTime, Bluejeans and other programs have allowed people to stay in touch, and continue to collaborate with one another even when not sharing the same physical office. These programs will also most likely be used to conduct a virtual job interview.
These programs have been continuously updated and refined to fix bugs and increase their performance, so before your virtual job interview make sure that you are using the latest version of the video-call program. When scheduling your interview with a hiring manager or recruiter, be sure to clarify exactly which program you will be using. This will give you the time to download and practice using it, which should help prevent issues that could interfere with your virtual job interview or make you late as you frantically install the correct app.
Be On Time
It may seem almost impossible to be late for a virtual interview – after all there’s no traffic to get stuck in or subway delays to keep you stranded – but it does happen. Being late for a job interview is a huge red flag for recruiters and hiring managers, and for good reason. Lateness is a major problem for businesses, with 29% of employees acknowledging being late at least once a month, which quickly adds up to billions of dollars in terms of lost time and productivity across all companies. Not only does it affect the bottom line, chronic lateness is seen by management as a major sign of a poor work attitude.
Virtual job interviews and remote work positions also means that job seekers could potentially work for companies based in a different part of the country, or even another country all together. This presents a challenge many workplaces have not faced before: different time zones. While offices are learning how to manage employees working in different time zones, it can still easily lead to confusion for hiring managers and job seekers still new to the idea. If you have a virtual job interview scheduled for 10:00 AM, that is also 10:00 AM in your time zone. Once confirmed, set an alarm before your virtual job interview, and then set another one just to be sure. Being on time is a simple way to make a solid first impression with a hiring manager, and make sure your virtual job interview gets off on the right foot.
Avoid Distractions
Even though a virtual job interview can be very convenient, it can present some unique challenges. For job seekers at home, many share space with family and roommates. It may be necessary to make sure that everyone is aware that a job interview will be taking place, and request that they be respectful regarding noise and interruptions.
Job seekers should select a spot in their home that has limited distractions, and is preferably quiet and private with a strong WIFI internet connection, as previously mentioned. Don’t be afraid to use headphones to ensure that everything is clearly heard and understood, and turn off anything that could cause additional noise or distraction. If possible, clean and organize the space where your virtual job interview will be taking place as it can help to make a strong professional impression.
Be Prepared For Standard Questions
Even though a virtual job interview will be a new experience for many, it is still a job interview. It will likely still include somewhat familiar interview questions regarding your professional history and work experience. It’s important to still take the time to consider possible unconventional interview questions and formulate possible answers that promote your accomplishments and skills. Be prepared with your resume, cover letter and the initial job description, as this will allow you to easily refer to any part of it that the hiring manager might bring up during the interview.
With the nature of many job roles now altered due the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, be prepared with any questions that you have for the hiring manager regarding the current work situation. Don’t hesitate to ask for their current positions regarding work-from-home, expectations for a return to the office, and any additional information you want to have regarding their plans. Employers and workers are adapting to these fluctuating circumstances as best as possible, and honest communication is the best way to understand exactly what you are commiting to should you accept an employment offer after your virtual job interview.
With the rise of remote work positions, virtual job interviews are quickly becoming just another part of the hiring process. By following a few tips for a successful virtual job interview, you will impress a hiring manager, prove your abilities and put yourself in a position to get a job offer, all from the comfort of your own home.
