Page 159 - Oscar Adler - Sell Yourself in Any Interview_ Use Proven Sales Techniques to Land Your Dream Job (2008)

THE INTERVIEW—BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER

Researching the Company
That’s Interviewing You Is Critical
Knowing that you don’t know is knowing. When you recog-
nize that you don’t know everything, you can

❏ Do your homework before the interview.

❏ Work on becoming a good listener during the interview.

❏ Ask good questions.

Chapter 3 discussed the importance of doing research on the
company and interviewer(s) before you meet. But why do
you need to do research? Aren’t they supposed to be learning
about you? If you still believe this, go directly to the begin-
ning of this book and begin again—do not pass GO; do not
collect $200.
Researching the company provides you with specific
information that you can use during an interview to talk
about how you will be a benefit to the organization. For exam-
ple, if you know the company’s rank within the industry, you
can tell how your experience will allow you to maintain or
improve that rank. You will impress the interviewer with
your industry knowledge, as well as with how you, person-
ally, will be an asset to the company. If you know about a par-
ticular success that the interviewer has achieved, the
interviewer will be flattered by your knowledge of him or her,
and you will be able to show how your experience will be a
benefit to the specific business interests that are important to
him or her. Research allows you to be confident and specific.
For example:

“I read that you recently received the Wilks
Memorial Award from the American Statistical Asso-
ciation. That is quite an honor. I joined the student

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