What should you research before a job interview?

This isn’t about doing more prep. It’s about doing the right prep.

You’ve landed a job interview. It’s a job you’re keen on. The company looks great.

What now?

Grab a pad, pen and your research cap. We’re going to dig into how to research a company before a job interview.

Many people research the wrong things

You’d think it would make sense to look at when the company was established, how many offices they have, and what the company values are.

All valid, but they won’t help you much in your interview.

Before you start digging, there are a few things worth understanding first. These are the areas that will shape how you talk about yourself, the examples you choose, and the questions you ask.

Instead, we’re going to look at the things that help you stand out as somebody who’s taken the time to understand the company, and help those interviewing you.  

Before your job interview, you're going to research:

• What the company does. Who its competitors are. Who its customers are.
• The types of challenges it faces in the current market.
• What the company does and how it makes money
• Where the company is heading (news, growth, priorities)
• The role requirements and key responsibilities
• Who is interviewing you
• The company’s culture and working style
• The market and competitors
• Employee insights and internal feedback

We’ll also share some common tools you can use to gather all this info.

Ready?

What Does The Company Do? 

A great starting point is understanding what the company does. Basically, why it exists.

Seek to understand its products, services, and markets.

You should also dig a little deeper to understand the types of companies it services, sells to, or works with. This can give you an idea of what makes them different (or not).

This information is valuable because it helps you position yourself better during the job interview. It also tells you what the business cares about

When you know how the company makes money and who they serve, you can frame your experience in a way that aligns.

It helps you focus on the right outcomes, whether that’s revenue, safety, speed, cost savings. Whatever drives their decisions can help you shape your interview questions.

Research tools: Google, company website (about us and company services/products pages), LinkedIn (recent posts). YouTube channel/page. TrustPilot (look for patterns and not just isolated reviews, and the average score).

Where Is The Company Heading?

Next, start looking into how the company is performing, and where they’re likely heading.

This level of info can tell you what problems they’re trying to solve, and where they’re mostly investing their time and money.

For example, if they’re expanding into new markets, that can signal that they’re serious about growth and they’re not keen on having their eggs in one basket.

And more growth could mean promotions and higher pay for you in the long run.

It can also highlight risks and opportunities, and any potential areas for development.

If career development is important to you, you can shape one of your interview questions around the company's growth and what their ambition might mean for yours.

Lastly, if they’re an ASX listed company, you can view their share price, leadership team (how steady they are) and previous performance, and download reports directly from the ASX website.

Research tools: Google News, company website (reports, media, news, blogs and investor pages), LinkedIn (recent company and leadership (CEO / GM) posts). If they have an app, download it. ASX website. 

How Do People Work At This Company?

This piece of research will help you understand the people behind the company, and how they work best.

You can pick up a lot of good data here. Look out for themes that tell you what behaviours are rewarded (or ignored). You can also get a feel for how decisions are made and whether people are trusted to make them or they’re given decisions top-down.

You’ll also get a feel for the day-to-day work, and how people interact. Most importantly, it can be a good way to measure the culture.

All of this research will help you confirm whether it’s an environment you can work in, and one you want to be in.

During your interview, you can align your working style with theirs and share examples of how you’ve previously worked with colleagues.

On the flip side, there’s no point presenting yourself as highly structured if they operate in constant change.

Research tools: Glassdoor, Indeed and SEEK reviews (Look for trends rather than isolated reviews. Also look at the interview tab to get a sense of what their hiring process is like). LinkedIn (employee posts, employee tenure and career paths at the company). LinkedIn company page (look for headcount growth). Company website (careers and values pages). YouTube channel or page.

What The Company Wants From The Role

You’ve got yourself in prime position with everything you need about the company. Now it’s time to turn your attention to the job you’re being interviewed for.

The most important thing to find out here is what problem the company is trying to fix by hiring you.

You should also get a feel for what success might be measured on and what’s essential versus nice-to-haves.

Research as much as you can about the problems the company is aiming to fix and how you might contribute. This helps you shape your interview by providing outcomes, results, basically your achievements.

You can then show them how you can fix their problems by proving how you’ve fixed them before.  

Research tools: Job description (make sure you request one). LinkedIn (look for similar roles and employees in them). Company careers page. Employees (if you know somebody who works there, get in touch with them to find out). 

Who You’ll Be Interviewing With

It’s always respectful to dig a little into who you’ll be meeting. By digging a little, keeping it professional, and not stalking folks on the socials.

Finding out what people are likely care about helps you form an instant connection. You can also look into how close they are to the problem you’d be solving.

You’ll also get a good feel for whether the interview will be technical or strategic.

It’s always good to ask what style the interview will be conducted in. There’s no harm asking this because it’s helping you prepare for the right audience and the right conversation.

Research tools: LinkedIn profile (a deeper dive into their background and experience. Also look for common patterns that they may talk about). Google and Google News. (Look for articles, news, press releases). You can also search for any documentation that they’ve appeared in by using a Filetype: search.

Example: Filetype: PDF “Person’s Name”

Of course, you’re welcome to research a bit more, but keep in mind that you don’t want to overwhelm yourself with too much information. Stick to the above research formats and the tools, and you’ll pull together some valuable info that’ll help you perform well in your job interview.

And remember, the goal of interview research is not to impress your interviewer. It’s to remove any uncertainty from both sides of the table.

Before a job interview, research helps you:

• Understand what the business cares about
• Focus your answers on relevant experience
• Adjust how you communicate in the interview
• Decide whether the role is right for you

We hope you found this article helpful. If you think it would help somebody else, please share it with them via the links above.

All that remains to be said now is, “Good luck.”

Need Further Job interview Advice?

The unique 7-step technique to stand out in a job interview

The most common job interview questions (and answers you can give)

 

If you’re not landing many job interviews, get in touch. We may have an opportunity we can speak with you about, and we’ll do our best to land you an interview.

You're most welcome to browse our latest jobs. 

 

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