Three Tips for Your Interview

Have you been invited to an interview for a consulting assignment? Congratulations! To increase your chances of landing the assignment, there are a few things to keep in mind. Here, Michael Hellman, Skill Practice Lead, shares some simple tips to help you prepare. 

Being called to an interview for a consulting assignment is similar to being invited to a job interview. The biggest difference is that the assignment is time-limited and often requires a more specialized skill set. Another significant difference is that, in some cases, you may not know which company the assignment is for when you apply. 

Michael Hellman is Skill Practice Lead at Ework and has helped hundreds of candidates on their path to securing their dream assignments. We asked him for advice on how to best prepare. 

“First of all, I want to say that you’ll always know which company it is before the interview. So, you don’t need to worry about walking into a meeting with an unknown company,” Michael laughs and continues: 

“After that, I’d say you should approach it just like any other job interview. Be prepared, research the company, and check your network to see if anyone you know has worked with the team manager or has been interviewed by them before.” 

Can Ework help with preparation? 

“Of course we can! We’ve often worked with the company for a long time and know what’s important to them. So, we can—and do—always try to help with preparation. In general, I’d say it’s important to take the time to thoroughly review the required skills and think about how you can demonstrate that you meet the criteria. Consider preparing specific examples from your own experience to illustrate your competencies.” 

Three Concrete Tips for Interview Preparation 

1. Be prepared: Research the company and what they do. 
   
   
2. Think through your responses: Prepare answers about the skills you have that match the assignment’s requirements and how you’ve used them in previous roles. 
   
   
3. Have questions ready: Prepare a few questions that are important for you to have answered, such as how the company’s processes work or other key aspects for you. It’s also important to show genuine interest and curiosity about the assignment if you are interested in the assignment. 

“Beyond that, it’s just general advice like showing up on time, dressing appropriately, and being polite and friendly.” 

Are interviews for assignments digital or in-person? 

“It varies. Before the pandemic, interviews were almost exclusively in-person. Then, for a period, everything shifted to digital. Now, many have returned to in-person interviews, so be prepared for it to vary depending on the company.”