Informational Interviews: Gain Insight and Expand Your Network

Informational interviews are a great way to not only learn about possible career fields, but to expand your professional network. It is a common assumption that informational interviews are conducted solely by students, however that is a myth. This form of interviewing has become a regular component of career exploration for all stages of one’s career. If you are considering a career change, looking to learn more about a given field or company, or just want to grow professionally, consider seeking out a fellow professional to interview. If you do not have a contact in your target industry to interview, search on LinkedIn. Join on-brand groups and discover the leaders in your industry of interest. Be sure to make your intention clear; you are not soliciting a job, just gathering information. We suggest preparing structured interview questions to maximize your time. Show up professionally dressed and organized. Though this is not a job interview, you still want to put your best foot forward. As the interview is coming to an end, be sure to ask for the name and contact information of two other people in the industry that may be helpful for you to contact. This will help grow your professional network in a new field and gain a slightly different perspective.


Steps to a successful informational interview:

1. Identify a professional in your field of interest and contact them, clearly stating your intention.

2. Arrange a meeting (in person, over the phone, or via email.)

3. Arrive early with structured interview questions.

4. Express your appreciation, get a business card, and leave.

5. Follow up with a thank you note.

- Posted by Kelly Higgins

Interviewing Advice From Recruiters

We recently surveyed some regional recruiters and gained their perspective on interview questions. First, we wondered if there were any particular questions that candidates had trouble answering. We also were curious if they had weed out questions. Here were some of the responses.

Daniel Bergmann with Total Quality Logistics shared the following:
- Believe it or not, I’ve found many candidates still struggle with what I would consider to be questions they should know they’re going to be asked. “What do you know about our company? Why are you interested in TQL? Why are you interested in sales?” Too many times I’ll get poorly thought-out responses (e.g. “I’m not really sure what your company does”) or canned answers (e.g. “I like working with people”). A little research and self-reflection can go a long way.

-My favorite weed out question is “what other positions have you been applying to?” If we’re the only sales job, I can safely bet that the candidate isn’t truly passionate about sales, and if they’re all over the map, I can safely bet that they have little idea what they want. Part of my job is identifying whether or not they truly want this job and not just a job.

Molley Ricketts, Recruiting Team Leader with Yoh for GE, Home and Business Solutions, shared the following:
-My favorite question; If you were able to write your ideal job description, how would it read? I find that this is not a 'typical' interview question and candidates don't have a rehearsed response. This allows me to truly get a clear understanding of their communciation skills AND if they don't have a good response, it also weeds them out.