英文履歴書の書き方 No. 15
LANDING THE JOB
Know the job and the organization
15th in a series
By ROCHELLE KOPP
You can divide skills into two categories -- technical and generic. Technical skills are the skills required to do a specific job. For a financial analyst, technical skills might include the ability to use Excel spreadsheets, SAP databases, and forecasting tools. For a lawyer, technical skills include knowledge of local taxation laws, contract law and litigation procedures.
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Researching and writing a paper for a course demonstrates written communication skills. Team sports or group projects are a good way to develop the skills required of a team player and leader. Don't overlook any abilities you may have.
Consider the answers to other questions such as:
* How have I demonstrated the skills required in this position?
* What are my strong points and weak points?
* What are my short term and long term goals?
* What can I offer this particular employer?
* What kind of work environment do I like? (i.e. How do I like to be supervised? Do I like a fast pace?)
* What type of work do I like doing? Do I prefer project work or scheduled work?
* Apart from my skills and experience, what can I bring to this job?
Know the occupation
The second step in preparing for an interview is to learn everything you can about the type of job or occupation. You should have already done this in the process of creating your resume, but it is necessary to go through this again.In order to convince the interviewer that you have the experience and skills required for the job, you need to know what those requirements and duties are.
Once this information is clear, you can then match the skills you have with the skills you know people in that occupational field need. The resulting list is what you need to emphasize during the interview. It is also helpful to identify the approximate salary range for that position, or those similar.
Below are suggestions for finding out about the occupation.
* Get a copy of the job description from the recruiter. If you are responding to an advertisement, this may also supply some details.
* If you belong to a professional association related to the occupation, use its resources. These associations often publish informative newsletters and sponsor seminars. It is also a good way to meet people working in the field.
* Conduct informational interviews with people working in the field.
* Read articles about people in the occupation, and articles written by people in the occupation. Sources include newspapers, magazines and the Internet.
* Internet searches
Know the organization
The more you know about an organization, the better prepared you will be to discuss how you can meet its needs. Some of the characteristics that you should know about an organization are:* Where is the headquarters located? Where are the branch offices? Complete name of the organization, address of the office conducting the job search, telephone number with area code.
* How big is the company? Some employers are evaluated on the number of locations, number of employees, sales volume, assets, etc. Select one or more measures to indicate if this is a small, medium or large organization relative to others in its field.
* What are its products and who are its customers? Especially note the areas of activity of the location conducting the interview.
* Who are the company's main competitors? Are any of them in the news?
* How is the organization structured?
* What is its history? How long has the company been around?
* Have there been any recent changes, new developments?
* What is its relationship with the local community?
There are a number of ways in which you can access this information. Most medium- to large-size organizations publish information about themselves. Publicly traded companies produce annual reports that can be obtained online or from the business research section of a public library. Many companies have Internet home pages which you can locate by searching by industry and company name.
Finally, you can visit or phone the organization and request some information on their products, services or areas of research.
