Interview techniques and CV preparation

Overview

This half-day programme gives participants the skills they need to prepare a well-structured, concise and effective CV and the confidence to put themselves forward for interview (particularly interviews for internal roles).

In many instances people do not apply for internal vacancies because they lack confidence and/or the skills to put together or refresh their CV. They feel nervous and unduly conscious of the need to present themselves positively in an interview. Evidence suggests that this is particularly a concern for people when they are applying for vacancies within the organisation. They are aware of the organisation’s existing perception of them and the need to ‘perform’ at interview, particularly if they know the hiring manager. They see the risks of ‘failure’ in an internal interview process as being much greater than when applying for jobs externally. They fear making their position worse, not better.

For the organisation, however, there are real benefits to recruiting from within and it’s in their interests to encourage it. Internal recruitment ensures that people have the chance to fulfil their potential – and saves the organisation the much higher cost of external recruitment. Making the best use of your people is a commercial and moral imperative – and helping support them through the internal recruitment process therefore makes perfect sense and gives a great return on investment.

Learning objectives

This session helps participants:

  • Explore factors they fear may hold them back in the selection process
  • Improve their confidence and feel more ready for the application process
  • Understand how to build a strong covering letter and a CV that makes a real impact
  • Build skills that will improve confidence and maximise performance at interview

Audience

Anyone who might be considering applying for an internal vacancy, in any type of organisation – large or small; public, voluntary or private sector.

Format

This half-day programme is highly participative and uses group and individual exercises to help develop CV preparation and interview skills. Group discussions and feedback are used to develop learning points and to enable participants to enable participants to leave the session with greater confidence and a very clear idea as to how to improve their CV for maximum impact.

Special feature

This programme can be adapted, if required, to reflect an organisation’s internal recruitment and interview processes, preferred interview and presentation formats, etc, etc.

Expert trainer

Rachel is a highly regarded training and HR professional. Her background as an HR and L&D business partner gave her broad experience of formulating, advising and supporting on HR matters across all organisational levels. She spent ten years with Kodak before setting up her own consultancy some twenty-five years ago, working across a range of sectors including financial and professional services, sales, IT, research, manufacturing, education and government departments.

Feedback

The workshop was a very good combination of theory and practice.

Practical panel style interview skills which provides experience and the chance to improve and ask questions

Really good way to learn and build confidence in a safe environment.

Excellent, engaging learning session

Practical session, with really good feedback.

Great role play!

Active sessions to role play out the skills.

Workshop outline

1 Introduction

  • Workshop objectives
  • Sharing participants’ experience and confidence in this area
  • Personal objectives

2 The job application process

  • Understanding how it all fits together
  • How to maximise your input

3 Job descriptions and person specifications

  • Understanding what they are and what they are telling us
  • How you can use them to your advantage

4 Covering letter and CVs

  • The do’s and don’ts
  • The power of language
  • The layout and structure – knowing what to include and what to leave out
  • Putting it into practice – a template to start building a powerful CV

5 Interview techniques

  • How to bring your skills to life
  • Preparing for and handling competency-based questions
  • Getting ready – how to be at your best on the day
  • Creating a positive first impression
  • Feeling and appearing confident
  • Managing nerves

6 And finally…

  • Open forum – remaining questions or concerns
  • Action planning – identifying how participants will follow through with their individual action plans to refresh their CVs and revitalise their presentation skills at interview
  • Review and close

For a no-obligation discussion about running this programme for your organisation on an in-house basis, just give us a call on 01582 463462.