As fears of the recession fade, companies are hiring again and people are starting to think about making career moves. But more jobs means more competition amongst candidates, and many people turn to self-help career and interviewing books for help.
We’ve been looking at one of the latest to hit the shelves, 40 Interview Icebergs by Michael Heath.
One of the first things to notice about Michael’s book is that it’s comprised of 40 short, concise and valuable chapters, each one dealing with a very specific issue that could get in the way of your success at an interview. As in the title, Michael refers to these obstacles as ‘icebergs’, saying, “So many people go for interviews and sail along merrily before steering straight into the iceberg that sinks their application there and then.”
Michael’s approach, overall, is to say that, if you can prepare for some of the common mistakes that candidates make, you’ll stand a far better chance of getting the job of your dreams. After all, if a job is worth applying for, isn’t it worth making sure you put your best foot forward throughout the whole selection process?
Another point to note about this book is the perspective from which it’s written. So many books like this are written only by the ‘career expert’ who shares their advice with the reader. The danger of this style is that it can be one sided. After all, if you’re looking for a job, whose advice are you really looking for? A careers expert, or a recruiting manager?
Each of Michael’s 40 chapters features valuable advice from a professional recruiter or recruiting manager, many of them from ‘household name’ companies. They aren’t sharing theories, they’re telling you what they want to see and hear before they’ll hire someone in an interview.
To make the book easier to navigate (no pun intended!), Michael has grouped the 40 chapters into 8 ‘iceberg zones’, which follow the process that you’ll go through as you follow your career path. The 8 zones are:
- CVs
- Application forms
- Telephone interviews
- Interview preparation
- Interview style
- Interview questions
- Presentations and Assessment centres
- Post-Interview
Michael Heath has nearly 20 years’ experience of interviewing and recruitment. As well as running training workshops for both interviewers and interviewees, he offers a wealth of practical knowledge and advice to prepare people for the challenges they face when attending a recruitment interview.
