One of the most essential parts of the application process is the interview. Regardless of your qualifications or your resume, if you don’t ace the interview, you won’t be able to land a job. In 2024, we have so many resources at our fingertips to help you prepare for your job interview! AI is a big piece of that.
When you prepare for your job interview, ideally, you’ll be:
- Conducting your own research on the company while applying
- Asking questions to people who work at the company (if you have the opportunity to do so)
- Utilizing the knowledge of your recruiter (if you’re working with one)
Additionally, when you go to prepare for your job interview, there are ways to leverage AI to help you maximize your time and efficiency. I recently saw a post on LinkedIn that had some great tips on how to prepare. I’ve compiled some key takeaways to elevate your LinkedIn prep. Here are four ways to prepare for your job interview in 2024.
“Generate a list of common interview questions for a [job position] role within the [industry] industry.”
This is a great way to get targeted questions for this specific job you’re interviewing for. While there are a lot of resources out there on common interview questions (see here and here for examples), this prompt helps you gain insight on interview questions specific to the industry and job title you’re interviewing for. There may be industry specific nuances that the general interview prep questions miss. This is where leveraging AI may provide additional support when conducting your interview prep.
“Create a set of behavioral interview questions relevant to the [job position] role at [company]. Include a brief guide on how to structure responses using the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) method, tailored to my experiences.”
Behavioral interview questions help the interviewer assess how you react in certain challenging workplace situations. Behavioral interview questions typically come in two forms—a question about a real event and how you handled it, or a hypothetical situation that could occur in the future.
You’ll recognize these as:
“Tell me about a time when…”
OR
“How would you respond if…”
Much like the prompt above, this AI prompt helps provide insight to industry specific interview questions. Additionally, this prompt will give you some advice on how to structure your answers.
I’ve talked a lot about STAR stories and why they are beneficial. By breaking each answer/story into Situation, Task, Action, and Result sections, you’re able to give the interviewer everything they need to know including the context of the story, what was required of you, the specific steps you took, and the result of your actions. It is essential to include results in an interview to ensure that you are effectively articulating your accomplishments.
“I have an interview with [company] for the position of [job position]. Please summarize the company’s mission, core products or services, and recent news or achievements by analyzing their website [insert website link] and any recent press releases.”
This prompt can help ensure that you’re aware of news and events going on at the company you’re interviewing for. One of the biggest mistakes people make when preparing for a job interview is being under researched and unaware of big events at the company. Has the company announced a new product or partnership? That is important to know, because it might directly or indirectly impact your contributions to the team if you are hired.
“For the position of [job position] at [company], what are some industry-specific challenges or trends I should be aware of? How can I demonstrate my understanding or propose potential solutions during the interview?”
Once again, we are piggy backing off of the prior prompt in order to get some additional details that can further influence your answers and increase your overall preparedness for your interview. This prompt will help you ensure that you have a good picture of the market when you prepare for your interview. Being abreast of industry challenges or trends will help you articulate your situational awareness and industry prowess in order to provide compelling answers.
_________
In addition to leveraging AI, conducting research on the company, and practicing your answers, remember that you’re having a conversation with another human. During an interview, try to establish a connection, ask compelling questions, and do your best to get a good feel for the company culture. Ultimately, if you’re able to establish good rapport and create a good connection with the interviewer, you’ll be putting yourself in a good position. You can always train someone to learn new skills, but you cannot change someone’s personality. If there’s good chemistry between the interviewer and the candidate, it’s a good indicator that it may lead to a great working relationship.