Category: Job Seeker

Throughout your job search, it can be easy to rely solely on sites like GlassDoor or Great Place To Work to spot a great company to work for. However, many job seekers forget to focus on identifying whether the person they’d be reporting to would actually be a good manager.

Since your relationship with your supervisor can be just as, if not more, impactful on your overall experience with the company than the culture, it’s important to ask smarter questions during your interviews. Doing so will not only give you a better sense of the company and your role within it, but can also help you determine if you would work well with your prospective manager.

Here are a number of topics and questions you can focus on throughout your interviews to better evaluate if your prospective manager would be the best fit for you:

Questions about company culture

It’s no secret that company culture can make or break your decision to accept an offer. As a result, learning about the company culture through the eyes of your prospective manager is one way to get a feel for whether or not your personalities would mesh well together. Ask:

• How would you describe your company culture in a few words?
• What are some career development opportunities offered to employees?
• What do you personally enjoy most about working here?

Questions about management and leadership

To determine whether the person you’re meeting with will be a good manager, it’s important to be aware of how different management styles can impact your performance at work. Getting a feel for the management style of your prospective supervisor can give you an idea of what a working relationship could look like. Ask:

• How would you define your management style as it relates to your team?
• How often do you check in with your team either individually and/or as a department?
• Tell me about a time when you had to deal with an underperformer? What did you do?

Questions about team dynamics

Having a general idea of the qualities that make up your team will help you determine where your skills might be utilized and how your role fits in to the bigger picture. Be sure to pay close attention to your interviewer’s response time, as a good manager who has a strong relationship with their team should easily be able to provide answers to these questions. Ask:

• What is one habit your best team member(s) practice that you expect in new hires?
• What was the last team achievement that was celebrated?
• How do you envision a new hire contributing to the team?

Questions about work ethic

Learning about your manager’s work ethic can give you the chance to gauge how your work will be evaluated if you were to be hired. These questions are especially important as they provide you with a clear picture of what will be expected of you as a new team member. Ask:

• How do you measure individual performance? How are those metrics determined?
• What does a typical workday/week look like for someone in this role?
• What will I be expected to accomplish within my first six months in this role?

You’ve landed the interview, but now the real work begins! While you may be thinking about all the ways you need to get ready, it’s important to consider the things you shouldn’t do. Of course, some job interview mistakes, like not asking the right questions or bashing past employers, may seem obvious. But even the most prepared and polished candidates can make mistakes without realizing it. Here are a few different ways you could subtly be sabotaging your chances of landing the job: 

Winging it

 When it comes to interview prep, many people can successfully cross these simple steps off their list: company research, reading the interview instructions, picking out the right outfit, etc. Full of confidence, few go into the interview with a deeper level of preparation. However, winging it is not an effective interview strategy.

Taking the time to practice and prepare your answers to common (and difficult) questions can help lay the foundation for making a strong impression. If you are participating in a video interview, the proper prep is even more important! Wing it, and you risk technical glitches and distracting background noises.

Negative body language

Negative body language is one of the most subtle job interview mistakes you could be making. Silent signals such as a lack of eye contact, fidgeting, and slumping can inadvertently make you come across as nervous or disengaged. On the other hand, furrowed brows, too firm of a handshake, and crossing your arms might imply you are overly confident or unapproachable. Infographic: Common Nonverbal Mistakes People Make During Job Interviews

Forgetting why you applied to the role

If you are itching to make a change or hustling to find a job, it’s easy to forget about what specific roles and companies you applied to. When an interview comes as a surprise, it’s important to re-familiarize yourself with these details to ensure you understand how you are qualified for the role and why you were interested in the first place. Without this insight, the interview may not end well for you. Avoid making major job interview mistakes like this by staying organized throughout the application process.

Rehashing the skills on your resume without telling a story

All too often, exceptional candidates risk missing out on opportunities because they don’t use their interview time wisely. Instead of leaving a lasting impression by clearly articulating what about their background specifically makes them the best candidate, they rehash the skills and experience already listed on their resume. Painting a picture with a story can help you avoid this job interview mistake in a number of ways: it gives the interviewer insight into your career and work ethic; provides you an opportunity to show confidence, communication skills, and creativity; and demonstrates your ability to prioritize and get to the point.

What is a resume headline?

A strong resume headline is a short statement at the top of your resume that proves your value proposition.

With only a few words, these one-liners communicate who you are as a candidate and what you bring to the table.

When written effectively, they help recruiters and potential employers quickly decide whether you are a strong candidate.

Importance of an effective resume headline

A well-crafted and targeted resume headline can impact your chances of getting hired.

Here are some more reasons why you should include one on your resume.

How to write a resume headline

No need to overcomplicate things! Resume headlines that pack a punch are easy to write.

Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to do it:

Step 1. Read the job description

First things first. You need to read the job posting and understand what the job requires. Then, you can draw on your skills, qualifications, and accomplishments and see how they match what the job needs.

Here’s an example of a job posting for a Senior Auditor:

Tailoring your resume headline to the job description is crucial to your job application. Doing this proves to recruiters that you are proactive and that you are the best candidate for the role.

Step 2. Mark the keywords in the job description

Keywords can be:

When you submit your resume, it usually goes through the ATS. Recruiters will then look for the best candidates to interview by searching for specific keywords. Only those who match the keywords will be seen by the recruiters.

Therefore, incorporating these keywords into your resume headline will increase your visibility.

How to spot keywords

Here’s how to easily find the right keywords:

1. Check for technical skills, specialization, software, or industry jargon mentioned in the job description.
2. Note the soft skills required for the job.
3. Keep an eye out for keywords that are repeated frequently. This is a telling sign that the word is important and that recruiters will look for it in a candidate.

Once you have these keywords, you need to narrow them down and strategically incorporate the top keywords in your resume headline.

or example, if you are applying as a Content Writer and the job description mentions “Search Engine Optimization,” make sure to use the full term instead of just “SEO” in your headline.

To save you time and ensure that you have the right keywords in your headline, you can scan your resume with Jobscan’s resume scanner.

All you have to do is upload your resume into the tool and add the job description of the role you are applying for.

Jobscan will then give you a match score that shows how optimized your resume is for the job. It also outlines key improvement suggestions and gives you a list of keywords you need to include.

Here’s what the keywords section of the report looks like: