It’s no secret that looking for a new job begins well before the interview. Here’s a short to-do list that will set you up for success as you move through the interview process.
1. Prepare. Our recruiters agree; preparation is key. Remember, the more prepared you are for an interview, the more focused you’ll be on the conversation rather than your nerves.
As such, take an hour to research the most relevant information to discuss on gartner.com. Also, make sure that you fully understand the position that you’re interviewing for and can articulate how your past experiences will help you succeed.
Pro tip: Check out jobs.gartner.com and follow us on Instagram for a peek into our people and culture.
2. Limit the pages of your resume/CV. To set yourself up for success, limit resumes/CVs to one page. Exceptions include international CVs, which should be no longer than three pages.
Like you, recruiters are busy, and while they want to understand your professional background better, you can help by making your work history as succinct as possible.
3. Customize your resume accordingly. One of the biggest red flags among our recruiters is candidates whose backgrounds don’t align with the role they’re applying for. Make sure that you understand the position before applying, and highlight how your past experiences correlate to the job description.
4. Leverage LinkedIn. Take it from us: If you’re not on LinkedIn, you’re missing out on opportunities. It’s the first place our recruiters look after reading your resume, so keep your profile up-to-date. Endorsements, recommendations, and a descriptive bio and headline can help your profile stand out.
5. Network. With LinkedIn, it’s possible that someone in your network works for Gartner or knows someone who does. Use those connections to get an insider’s view of the organization.
If you aren’t connected with anyone here, you can still reach out to someone you’ll potentially be working with. At Gartner, we value candidates who take the initiative to connect with us.
6. Be creative in showing your interest in the role. Our recruiters love personalized emails; it shows that you’re a human instead of just a resume, and also highlights your persistence and drive.
7. Get social with us. Nearly all our recruiters credit the research they did on Gartner outside of our career site as helping them during their own job interviews. Glassdoor and LinkedIn provide great supplemental information on our culture and interview process to help you best prepare for your own interviews.
And again: Check out jobs.gartner.com and follow us on Instagram for a peek into our people and culture.
8. Make time for your interviews. We get it: It’s hard to sneak away for an interview when you’re working a full-time job, but don’t let your actions be the reason you don’t make a great impression. For example:
Taking an interview during your daily commute — Red Flag
Constantly rescheduling interviews — Red Flag
Answering a phone call during an in-person interview — Red Flag
If you schedule an interview, please set aside proper time to prepare. It will make you seem more focused and confident.
9. Ask thoughtful questions. Want to demonstrate how prepared and curious you are? This is how to do it. As much as you want to be engaged in interviews, recruiters want to be challenged, too. They want to see initiative, that you took time to come up with questions showing interest in Gartner as well as the role.
10. Remain consistent throughout the interview process. As you move through the interview process, it’s common for our hiring team to provide you with feedback. Use this information to improve for the next round, like strengthening your stories to better correlate to the role.
At Gartner, we believe in the value of feedback. So don’t take this to mean you should change answers or even make up stories to fit a specific profile.