Are you looking for original ideas to integrate a particular company? Informational interviews could be the solution to help you land a job.
There’s a strategy some savvy job seekers use to help land a new remote or work-from-home job that many people never take advantage of. This strategy involves requesting and participating in an informational interview, ideally with someone who works for a specific company you would like to work for.
For the uninitiated, an informational interview is often an informal conversation intended to gather information and ideas, not specifically to apply for a job or internship, depending on the Career Development Center at Princeton University.
While some people may view this as an unnecessary barrier to work since it’s not a real job interview, some career coaches say these types of conversations are incredibly helpful for learning more about specific careers as well as building a broader network of professional resources.
As Princeton career data indicates, informational interviews may not lead directly to a job, but honest exchanges with an interviewee can help job seekers develop stronger connections that could prove valuable in the future. After all, the only way to truly know if you might be a good fit for a certain role is to gather details about the job from the people who actually do it.
Informational interviews, Indeed.com notes, can be conducted in person, via phone call or video chat. For those who ask the right questions, they provide the opportunity to gain an insider’s perspective on specific work environments, understand decision-making responsibilities, and learn how to best prepare for similar roles.
If you’re looking for a new remote role and have never participated in one of these informal conversations, consider this your opportunity to learn more about how they can help you land your next exciting role.
Provide first-hand advice on a specific job
There is a saying that you have to put yourself in someone else’s shoes before you can truly understand their point of view. In the same way, job seekers may use an informational interview to obtain relevant and direct information about the realities of working in a particular field, organization, industry, or position.
Here’s the problem: this type of inside information isn’t always available online, depending on the University of California, Berkeley. So one of the best ways to do this is to seek out those who are already working in this area. While you could also potentially do this at a career fair, a one-on-one interview will likely result in more details being shared to help guide your job search.
Detail career paths you didn’t know existed
Another advantage of participating in a informational interview is the opportunity to receive advice and other insider knowledge on how to prepare for and land a position, according to Keene State College.
Depending on the willingness of the person you are seeking to interview, you have the potential to initiate a valuable professional relationship and expand your network of contacts in a specific career field, as well as meet people who may offer you job offers in the future.
They can also provide insight into potential jobs that might open up in their field or at their current company before those positions are posted. Besides, you don’t know what you don’t know. There may be roles linked to a career path that you discover during an informational interview which opens up even more opportunities for you.
Gain insider knowledge about the role and company
According to Indeed, informational interviews also allow you to see first-hand what a job or company is really like, including the typical culture, duties and expectations, information that job postings often don’t – and can’t really – include.
This type of information can help you tailor job applications to better fit a specific remote role.
For example, you may discover during an informational interview that a specific role requires a certain level of proficiency with a particular brand of software. With this in mind, you can make sure to indicate your comfort level with the software, if applicable. You may also use this inside information to take classes or tutorials to develop the desired skills if necessary.
Find out what employers are really looking for
When you’re considering changing career fields or looking for your first job, it’s difficult to know everything you need to know about potential positions at companies you’re unfamiliar with. This is another way informational interviews can help you, according to data on LinkedIn.
By asking professionals which skills and experiences matter most, you can better highlight key data in your resume and cover letter, which can be especially important for remote jobs where communication and self-management skills are often in high demand.
Access the hidden job market
While the immediate goal of an informational interview should not be to directly ask the person you are speaking with for a job or recommendation, such an interview may have a potential benefit if a professional decides to share with you unadvertised opportunities or upcoming openings – potentially giving you a competitive advantage before positions are listed, depending on Macildowie Recruitment and Retention.
Because of the potential for access to hidden jobs, it’s a good idea to dress for the role, wearing professional attire even if you meet via Zoom or another video conferencing platform.
Develop a Better Job Search Strategy
The conversations you have during informational interviews can also help you personalize your job search, as you better understand which specific roles may best match your interests, which companies are hiring remotely, and how to approach applications, notes. Career Countess.
Improve your confidence and communication skills
One of the best ways to get better at something is to practice. So it’s great that one of the benefits of informational interviews is that they can help you build your confidence and communication skills. And because informational interviews are informal, they provide a low-pressure way to practice honing networking and interviewing prowess, which again are skills you’ll need to use later in formal remote job interviews, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Conclusion of the information interviews
Although they are not designed to find you a job immediatelyInformational interviews can be a key strategy for learning more about specific roles within an industry, as well as the culture and expectations of certain companies, depending on career coaches and job recruiters.
To get the most out of these interviews, it is a good idea to prepare in advance by bringing a list of questions and do some research on the person you want to talk to. This shows that you value the person’s time, because you are potentially creating a valuable new connection in your job search.
