You’ve seen the advice all over the internet, in career development sessions, and in blog posts everywhere. But do you really know what it means to research a company?
Research doesn’t have to be tough.
Now, I’m not talking about diving into their sales figures or pulling up their annual reports though there is useful information in there. What I am talking about is making sure you find out some key points that are important to see whether or not you really want the job, to have things to discuss during the interview, and to make sure you’re knowledgeable of the biggest interests and important things to the company.
Keep these things in mind and the interview goes a whole lot smoother and you look like a motivated and interested candidate. Let’s jump into those points now.
Best Way # 1: Do Research For You
Create a spreadsheet of your top seven or ten qualities that you’re looking for and make sure that whatever you’re applying for meets all of those qualities. So, if you know you need to work a 40-hour set schedule to have time with your family, make sure you look for that.
If you know you need a 401(k), look for that. If you know you need three weeks of vacation, look for that. If you know you need company-sponsored benefits, look for that. Some of this stuff won’t be in the job posting.
You may have to go over to a person on LinkedIn or call up and ask, but these are important things that will make a gigantic impact in your life for probably the next couple of years. It’s worth a couple of hours of research to make sure that this move is right for you, not just the company.
Best Way # 2: Research For Discussion
Check out their about page. Check out some of their YouTube videos. Check out their Twitter feed. Check out the latest news on the company. See what it is that’s interesting to you, but relevant to company goals, that you can discuss during the interview.
The interviewer will always ask, “Do you have a couple questions for me?” or “Is there something you want to know more about the company that we can discuss?” or some similar question. It’s best to actually have something that interests you to bring up at these times.
You know it’s always going to be there. You might as well prepare and make it interesting for what you want out of the position while tailoring your answer to what they want out of you.
Best Way # 3: Do Research On The Biggest Issues
This is where you might dive into that annual report to get the nuggets of information that are most important to the company. I don’t recommend going to that level because it’s probably a little bit more work than what’s necessary for most regular competition positions.
What you can do is hop over to, for instance Google Finance, and look at the news graph over the last five years or so and look for the highlighted points along that time frame. Chances are, this is a combination of good and bad things that have happened that are significant for that company’s health.
Pick the top two or three that seem to be huge and maybe aren’t completely addressed yet and tailor not only your resume, but the things you discuss at an interview to address those things.
I think there’s no better way to impress an interviewer or anyone interested in bringing in a candidate, than to show that you already have a plan to solve or work on the things that matter most to that company’s growth. That’s a great plan. Work it into what you have.
Research Your Companies With Efficiency In Mind
Researching a company that you’re applying for is one of the best steps that you can do to prove that you’re motivated, dedicated, and really interested in the position that they have available.
If you’ll do research to show whether or not this is the right move for you, research to show what you can discuss during the interview, and research to uncover and address the biggest issues that are relevant for the company, then you’re on your way to a great start of a conversation and proving that you are a good candidate.
Keep these things in mind. Work up your resume and cover letter and supporting documentation to incorporate the things you’ve learned here. Do this and your next interview is a breeze. Hopefully it helps you get that job you’re going for. Have a great day.
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