Second Interview Advice
 

Been working for myself for a few years now as semi retired and have decided to go back to where I came from, the retail bike biz. Honestly, I am slightly bored. Get to ride as much as I want, but feel a lack of purpose to it all. Even doing the computer support from home is becoming mundane.

Interviewing for a largish retailer for position of inventory manager. Looking for advice as to how to demonstrate I can do the job for them and get an offer on the spot! Allows me to marry my computer skills with bike biz experience.

I was on the interviewers side for so many years that I forgot what it was like to be the interviewee!

Think about what you were looking for in a candidate. Just be yourself and talk up your strong points.

Piece of cake.....really.


Good luck,

John S

You said it yourself!

I think most second interviews are mostly about making sure you mesh well with the other employees. Be flexible and friendly, and you're probably in.

Nothing sells like enthusiasm.

do not ask them if they want to go smoke a bowl .......................what im just saying :)

If you're posting here it means you're over 50.

The objection employers cite for not hiring people in our age bracket is we're too over confident when we answer their questions.

Good luck with your interview.

I am now two weeks into a new position and three months past 65. Okay, it isn't bike-related so the skill set required is different, but the interview process was probably similar. (And I really really wanted a new position.) Be focused. Answer questions accurately and with enthusiasm. Above all else, demonstrate competence, or at least lead them to believe you are competent. Good employers considering a senior person aren't looking for youthful enthusiasm, they are looking for your experience and competence. Show the maturity that you are willing to admit when you don't know something and that you are capable of learning it.

Good luck! Be grateful that a position is available.

The thread title says "second interview advice". So this is the second interview?

The second interview is ordinarily not about competence. Your resume, the first interview, and any reference checks have already established that. The second interview is about "soft skills", mainly personality and fit.

It's not about you the job candidate, but about you the person, fitting in. Work flow and work ethic may come into play, but it's mainly about do they think they can work with you? Will you be a pleasure to work with? Or a pain?

That's the only part of the hiring process I'm involved with. Competence has already been established and we're looking for someone who isn't a pain to work with all day every day. One librarian we hired floated to the top because she also does improv comedy. We saw her as someone who can not only roll with the punches, but can get to the heart of the matter quickly, and is enjoyable to work with. She's been a perfect fit.

A funny story. My wife went to a interview for a job she did not really want, and when she came home i said to her how did it go and she said i won't get that job i did everything except put my feet on her desk.....she has been their 6 years now.

That's why you are interviewer and I am not.

Sincerity is the key to success. Once you can fake that, you've got it made. That, and don't lie about the price of the bike.

Second interview, so down to a short list. It's all about them looking for the best match to their company's style and methods.

The first interview and your research should have given you some ideas about the company's aims and what they were looking for so you should use the time before the second interview to think of things you have done, successes you have had, in your life that will benefit them. Not just perceived strengths, which can be subjective, but actual achievements that show those strengths.

You've got skills and experience; demonstrate reliability, enthusiasm and some ideas of your own.

Good luck.

Ride your bike to the interview and wear your usual kit during the interview. :beer:
Good luck.

Thanks, gang! Forgot to go back to the basics of the interview process. Second interviews are almost always a test for "fit" with the company. We used it for introductions to other key management people and received input after the "interview" was over.
They know I have the skill set as evidenced in the resume and during the interview. I have already drafted the first 4 week itinerary. Running your own biz is fun and exciting, but helping another business person steer their ship when they are lost is a different kind of reward, more gratifying.

Hope it goes well tomorrow.

I think TSL is right. This is about fit. Keep in mid that the fit has to be right for you too. I've recently appreciated the first opening line of a woman who was interviewing with us for the second time. First words out of her mouth set the tone..."I really appreciate this additional opportunity to see if we're a match for each other. It does no one any good if we're not."

Good luck.

Hair coloring for men? While you're at it, teeth whitening might help.

How about, "be yourself" ? If they go for that, great. If not, you probably don't want to be there anyway.

"Good employers considering a senior person aren't looking for youthful enthusiasm, they are looking for your experience and competence. Show the maturity..."

Very solid advice.

This is the best simplest way to state it!

You've already made it through the hard part, getting the interview.

First interview is to rule out applicants.

I say the most important thing to do is be yourself. Don't try to be someone/something you're not. You want to know if you are a good fit for the job and the people, so being yourself allows the business to know if you are a good fit for them. If they like who they think you are and you are true to yourself, your new job should be a pleasurable fit.

jimmuller, I owe you a steak dinner. What you said about older employees had me change the entire presentation to focus on my experience and the outline of hitting the ground running.

Got the position and they want me to start this very day. As expected, the company I am contracted with said to pack my bag immediately. Being in IT and working with valuable and personal info I knew the protocol would be just that.

Now I just need to make it to 70, then I will retire, promise. Well, maybe...

:thumb: :beer: :thumb:

TiHabanero, there's normally articles on job interviewing at the Business Insider website.

Missed the post where you got the position Ti, good for you, now it is back to the bicycle industry for you. Glad that Jim's advice did the trick for you, but I think that your experience and skills probably shined through, too.

Bill

Yea, baby. :thumb:

I dunno how I missed this the first time, but this is sage advice:

Nothing is more dangerous than an employee who's afraid to ask questions or thinks they know everything. Back in my middle management days, I'd pelt candidates with questions until they admitted they didn't know the answer. The ones that refused to go there weren't hired.

Update on the job. Remember to interview them, too. Ask appropriate, deep questions to understand what they are asking you to do. Do not count on the job title to define the job. Research the people you will be working with, just like they have researched you before the interview. If you fail to do your part of the interview...you will find what I found, and it is too late.

Before I even opened this post, the same thought cross my mind. We often are so keen to move on from our previous employment that we forget that there are two parts of the equation we are heading into -- and the new employer is the other part. That bit about being the right fit applies just as much about the business as it does you. I consider I dodged several bullets in my job hunting late last year, based almost entirely on the lack of professionalism in how my application and other aspects were handled, and follow-up observation.

Some basic research beforehand also can be useful. I checked out a couple of businesses that seemed to have attractive tourism industry jobs, but the feedback from customers was not particularly good. Interestingly, one business seemed to have a high turnover in the position as it was advertised about two months later again.

So, without giving too much away that may put your new position at risk, what are the issues that concern you?

Congrats and well done, sir!

Back when I was hiring people in technology the biggest question I had for older people (and not phrased as a direct question) - are you retired on the job? What I mean is, have you lost the will to learn and improve, and just are counting the days till you can no longer work.

In technology, due to the speed of turnover, you didn't worry too much about someone being 50, or even 60, most people move around anyway. What you worried about was someone who didn't want to keep learning, because it is all about learning in tech.

And definitely, interview the company - it impresses them that other people might be wanting you, since you aren't just acting like you will take the first job offered. :rolleyes:

Rowan, the issues I have found once on the job have to do with direction and communications. The team of horses sometimes have a driver, sometimes not. When it does, not all the horses are being told the same message through the reins.
Very surprised the big T allows this level of disorganization to go on in one of their dealers.