The Career Blog

How to Research a Company Before an Interview

By: Alice Tutunjian | Published on: October 05, 2016 | 2 minute read

In a competitive job market, candidates need to always think about ways in which they can stand out.  One such way is being really knowledgeable about the company where you will be interviewing.  Why, you ask? Because you want to be prepared to answers questions such as “What do you know about our firm?” and you also want to impress the employer by positioning your responses so that they align with the company’s goals and values.  

 

By doing your research and conveying your knowledge to the interviewer, you are also illustrating that you cared enough and took the time to learn.  Based on your learning, you can also ask targeted and thoughtful questions during the interview process.  

 

Following are some resources for conducting your research: 

 

Company’s Website  

Learn about the firm, including its history, leadership as well as its services or product offerings.  More importantly, make sure that you are familiar with firm’s mission and vision as well as it’s challenges so that you can speak to these challenges and discuss ideas on how you can contribute in solving them. Don’t overlook the importance of reading other sections such as News, Blogs, Investor Relations, etc.  

 

Google/Explorer/Bing  

Conduct a general search to ascertain what kind of information you can find on the company. Takes notes on relevant issues and topics. 

 

LinkedIn 

Go to LinkedIn and see if any of your first connections are connected to anyone at the company where you will be interviewing. Ask them to introduce you to their contact. Once an introduction has been made, try to get tips on interviewing successfully and learning about the company culture. 

 

Also, if you know the name of the person you will be interviewing, look up their profile on LinkedIn.  

 

Social Media Channels 

Most companies have dedicated pages on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, etc. Review these channels and scan the postings. What kind of visibility do they have online? What kind of following? How is their brand represented? How do they engage with their audience? Use the information to expand your knowledge and better target your answers for interview questions. 

 

Google News  

Search the news section to see if the company is or was in the news recently. Look for interesting facts can you glean from the articles that will be useful for the interview.  If you want to follow a company in the news for an extended period of time, then set up a Google alert so that you can get news directly in your Inbox.

 

Annual Report (10-K) 

An often overlooked report which contains substantive information on a public firm is the annual 10-K report. This report is generally located on the firm’s website under Investor Relations. If you can’t find it, just do a general search by tying in the company name + 10-K annual report You will find information such as company financials, pending lawsuits, competitor and industry information as well as important management decisions. 

 

Job & Recruiting Sites 

Sites such as Glassdoor, Career Bliss, and Indeed offer company reviews by former and current employees, CEO ratings, interview questions and salary information.  

 

Free Resources at Local Library 

If you have membership to your local library, often you can access free on-line resources including Databases such as Hoover, Morningstar, ReferenceUSA, etc . The databases include information such as firm’s key personnel and e-mail addresses, revenue, industry profile, company size, list of competitors, historical data and other useful information. Caveat: As with most databases, the information may not be 100% accurate.  If you are a student, check out the campus library for free databases where you can obtain not only company but industry reports and other business databases. 

 

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About the Author - Alice Tutunjian

Alice Tutunjian is a consummate business leader with over 20 years’ experience developing people, establishing processes and enhancing services in high growth environments. She has developed and provided career advice to hundreds of professionals over the course of her career and created top performing teams. She owns a proven reputation as a career coach and job search strategist. Alice holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and MBA from the University of California Irvine. She also has a certificate in Human Resources Management. Her professional experience spans the Information Technology, Engineering, Environmental Consulting, Analytical Testing and Healthcare sectors.

 Tags: Careers

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