Informational Interviews: What not to ask.

Informational Interviews: What not to ask.

Do not ask for a job. Do not produce your resume (which is just another way of asking for a job)

Your goal is to find out where the jobs are so you can then apply in the usual, recognized manner, probably through a human resources department.

If you are doing the information interview with the person you should be doing it with, namely someone in the job you want, or their immediate supervisor, they will not be in a position to hire you anyway, unless you are applying to work in human resources.

The informational interview is to uncover unadvertised jobs, or jobs which are coming up soon but as yet are not advertised.

So do not in any way shape or form ask for a job. Just ask if they person knows of any possibilities either in this company or any other company where someone with your skills & experience might find work.

That's it. That's the information you are seeking.

When you hear of a job, phone up human resources and ask how to apply - this is not an information interview. It is you actively following up on a job lead.

More help in finding that great job.

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Informational interviews: who should the job seeker contact?

Informational interviews: who should the job seeker contact?

Answer: someone who is in the job you want, or their immediate supervisor.

Informational interviews do not include asking for a job, so you don't need someone who has the power to hire you.

People in the job you want, will know if their company is hiring, and they may well know if any other companies are hiring. There's a good chance some of them will know people who do similar work in other companies.

The goal of your interview is to find that out.

More help to find that great job.

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What is an Informational Interview?

What is an Informational Interview?

Well, yes, obviously it's an interview where you get information.

But how, where, when and why do you do informational interviews?

You can do them for any of three reasons.

If you want to decide what training or education to get.
If you want to know if a particular job is for you.
If you want to find a job.

An informational interview involves talking to the person who already knows what you want to know and asking them the questions to which you want answers.

How do you set up an informational interview?
You just phone, or e-mail and ask if the person could spare 10 -15 minutes to speak to you, and tell them what you want to speak about.

More detail in exactly how to go about this on other upcoming posts, but for now, just be working out who knows the information you want. Make a list and you're ready for the next step.

Need more help to find that ideal job?

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