Hi Julie,
excellent topic I must say! by a matter of fact, hold an interview for a job is obviously not the same than for a place at the university or for a training. Moreover Germany is the land of rules, so...
RULE NUMBER 1: take it seriously!
Provided that you sent a well-formed appliance (which is an absolute challenge in Germany by the way, to be discussed in another topic?), you will have to pass an interview.
Big companies will typically drop you a mail 3 weeks after an initial receipt, whereas smaller ones will directly call you quite soon. The first contact generally allows you one chance and not more.
RULE NUMBER 2: be available!
There are normally three rounds in the total:
- Typically a phone interview lead by the human resource department, with the aim to filter all those who are not really available, not really motivated or not really skilled.
- The determining invitation, we'll go further into details...
- The negotiation (won't be discussed here)
One week before, collect as much information as you can about the job and the company:
- Opportunity: what are the expectations?
- Business: which market branch and activities?
- Structure: who do they belong to and since when?
- Organization: how much turnover and employees, how many locations?
- Strategy: what do they want and what do they need?
Finding out the company's strengths and weaknesses will definitely help you a lot.
RULE NUMBER 3: investigate!
Some days before you should verify the address, the time, the name of your contact... in some situations you won't make it without asking for more informations by telephone, like for example do they cover your travel costs?
You also have to prepare a plan and rehearse it, especially if you don't govern the language. In this plan don't forget the objectives, both parties are there to:
get to know each other and their introduction should be practiced
exchange some evidences, concepts and explanations
find out if they would be able to work nicely and efficiently together
Of course you need to be punctual, clean, cool and polite.
RULE NUMBER 4: be one time!
You introduction shouldn't last more than 5 min unless you are asked for more details. Concentrate yourself on your global personal development taking out logical positive items and bringing you here. You should never go the emotional way of criticizing your former employer or deplore any past unlucky situation. If applicable you should give a good reason for quiting your past job :-)
RULE NUMBER 4: make it obvious!
You can already anticipate the questions that you may have to answer and the ones that you may have to ask. Not only the stupid ones from the human resource manager (could you give me 3 strengths and 3 weaknesses of yours?) but also those related to your concerns and perspectives. In case you really don't know what to ask them in return, just point out their clever work methods, prestigious customers or success stories (they love to be praised).
An then it comes to the conclusion. Don't forget to say thanks for the invitation, show your enthusiasm and arrange next steps. There again you should always content your emotions at any case. Never pretend that it's lost or won, first you never know, second you have enough time afterwards to think about. Unless this is your only opportunity since 3 months, take a time to compare your different options. It's better to decline than to add a bad 3-months item to your CV.
RULE NUMBER 5: be patient!
