Interview checklist for IT contractors

Who doesn’t want to get hired for that new tech job or IT contract? Follow this checklist to maximise your chance of success at interview, whether over the phone or face-to-face.

1. Research

One of the best ways to ace your job interview is to study the current events of the client organisation. Knowing about the current happenings of the end-user, including its operations, market and rivals, is key to being able to ask pertinent questions as a prospective supplier. Don’t think that posing questions about the company and its culture is something that only permanent job candidates do. Doing so will also show the interviewer that you have done your homework, and also have a genuine interest in the company – whether you want to work there for 3 months or longer.

2. Study your CV and know it well

As a contract candidate, you should know your CV or resume like the back of your hand; arguably more so than a full-time candidate. In any job interview, anything on your resume is at the interviewer’s disposal so be ready to talk about any of the details you have put forward. Implementing this strategy will definitely make your job interview more comfortable. It is your responsibility to convince the interviewer that you can come in and 'hit the ground running.' Speaking concisely and intelligently about each of your previous contracts, if invited to, is one of the hallmarks of successful interviews for contract and temporary roles.

3. Know the contract and spec

After getting an interview, you need to study the job description to truly understand what the interviewer is looking for. Again, this isn’t a task just for full-time candidates. If you think it is, remind yourself of the contractor who attended an interview at BP, only to start talking about another contract he had in the pipeline at HSBC!

Look at the brief or spec of the role you will interview for. If the description calls for attentiveness to detail or other attributes, you will want to tailor the discussion accordingly. Knowing this, you can navigate the interview and discuss examples from previous contracts that will exemplify this trait. Do this for all significant traits or qualities that you identify in the job description, or for those which you know that the client, or interviewing agent, will expect to see. This is one of the most prominent but often overlooked ways to secure the contract.

4. Display your skills with concrete examples

The interviewer wants to know you are hard-working, but it will be tough for him or her to believe you unless you prove it. So tell a short story showing how you were hard-working, instead of just merely saying that you are! Don’t leave it up to the imagination of the interviewer to figure out how. Rather, explain with enough detail by giving a concise example to illustrate the trait or competency they’re after.

5. Pack an interview tool kit

Being prepared for your interview or pitch is the best way to ace it. Putting together your own ‘job interview kit or a ‘company pitch pack’ shows great preparation, whether you want interim, short or long-term roles. Not only should you have ample copies of your CV and any accompanying materials in your kit, including the odd testimonial, but you should also include practical items to show you’ve an eye for logistics or the bigger picture. So alongside your iPhone, you might have a map of the client office, a print out of their latest quarterly results, a bottle of water or even throat sweets if you’re feeling a little raspy! As long as these items don’t get in the way, there’s no harm quietly letting on to the interviewer that you’ve taken steps to address what a day off-contract, and interviewing for a professional role, might throw up.

6. Build rapport

You know the adage, “There’s never a second chance to make a first impression”? That holds very true in the case of job interviews, for permies and contractors alike. If you want to sail through your interview, you are going to need to know how to build rapport. Although this can be more difficult if interviewing over the phone, ensure you create a healthy setting for your interview from the outset. In person, make sure you greet the interviewer with a firm handshake and a pleasant smile. You can also start off with some light conversation (the weather is normally a safe subject) but look at your interviewer’s body language for his or her signal to end the pleasantries.

7. Make eye contact

Eye contact is one of the strongest forms of non-verbal communication and essential to build rapport with someone you’ve just met. Eye contact can show if a person is strong or weak. Direct eye contact shows communicates two key qualities that our clients look for in candidates – confidence and high self-esteem.

It remains very important in 2011 to make eye contact when you greet your interviewer and shake his or her hand. Throughout the interview, make a point to have direct eye contact in order to create a connection and exude confidence.

8. Body language

Body language is also key to building rapport through non-verbal communication. It will communicate whether you are confident, relaxed, nervous, or unsure of yourself. In order to ace your job interview, you must give off positive energy with your body language. Sit up straight and don’t slouch. Show that you are alert and listening carefully to everything your interviewer in saying.

9. Be yourself

No matter how badly you want the job, it you aren’t a good match, you aren’t a good match. Never try to be what you 'think' the job requires. Let your true self shine through and you’ll send off the positive energy you need at interview. If you aren’t being true to yourself, the interviewer will sense your lack of authenticity right away. Putting on a 'perfect' front can also give the impression you are deceitful or manipulative.

10. Follow up quickly

Immediately after the interview, send a hand-written 'thank you' note. A hand-written note is the best because it is more personal. If you don’t have the mailing address of the interview, either get it, or send an e-mail. Simply thank the interviewer for their time to meet with you. What’s most important though is that you get the note into the mail. Interviewers know exactly who sent them a note and who didn’t.

Interview checklist based on an Undercover Recruiter post, adapted for CUK by Michael Bennett, a director of ReThink Recruitment.

Editor's Note: Further Reading -
CUK's IT Contractor Interview Checklist
IT contractor guide to phone interviews