BUSINESS
It has been announced that during the current pandemic, 175,134 people have been made redundant across the UK, with a total of 9,373,000 employees using the furlough scheme.
With many people now looking for jobs, positions will become increasingly harder to get and Zoom interviews will take over from the standard face-to-face interviews, in order to keep safe.
Searches for ‘what to wear for a virtual interview’ has risen by 467% when comparing June 2020 to June 2019, showing that these are still one of the preferred ways to interview since coming out of lockdown, and perhaps will be until coronavirus has completely gone.
Here are three recruiters who’ve experienced hosting Zoom interviews throughout lockdown on what they think an employee can do to make them stand out amongst the competition:
- Rebecca Martin, Recruitment Manager at Connect Assist:
“Make sure your CV is up to date and has all the relevant experience on it. Sign up to job boards – use CV templates if required and set up job alerts. Join recruitment agencies and utilise social networking platforms such as LinkedIn. This is the perfect platform to engage with companies, hiring managers and recruiters.
If the interview is remote, then preparation is KEY! Familiarise yourself with the video software, check the lighting and quality of video/audio, check for anything that could distract the interviewer/s and use a zoom backdrop if required. Keep composure and use visual aids in case you lose your train of thought. They can be kept just below eye level of the camera.
Do your homework. Review job description, company websites and write questions down that you can ask at the end of the interview. Dress appropriately as you would for a face to face interview and engage with the interviewers. Be aware of your body language, it will all be picked up by the interviewer/s. Most importantly, relax and be yourself- remember, interviews are a two-way street!”
- Scott Jones, Managing Director of Illustrate Digital:
“It’s really tempting to apply for as many jobs as possible to get your chances up, but it’ll probably go against you. Take your time to find the jobs you reckon you’d be really good at, or that would stretch and challenge you; then make sure you include a personal cover letter talking about why you would be a good fit for the company and the role they’re advertising.
If you’re inclined, you could even tweak your CV to make your skills and experience more relevant. Candidates who seem to specialise in the skill or industry that the company is looking to hire for will stand out far better from those who appear more general.
The best video interviews I’ve had are when the candidate has a two-way chat and genuinely cares how my day is, how I’m finding working life in the pandemic and seems genuinely happy to be there. It sounds bizarre, but you’d be surprised how you can come across when you’re nervous. You’re talking to a human, so be human about it. And if you can make them laugh, or smile, bonus!”
- Jade Thomas, Office Manager of Pure Commercial Finance:
“Ensure that you check your internet and the quality of your video call prior to a Zoom interview. Sometimes it can’t be helped, but a crackling microphone or a disconnection may make you as the interviewee more stressed and cause unnecessary worry
Take advantage of the fact that the interview is remote; if you like to have a few bullet points to guide you, you can easily stick them to your screen as prompts. It’s unlikely to be distracting, unless you are reading them word for word of course”
