Interview preparation for internal movement

Preparation in advance is key...

Just like with external interviews, one need to prepare for internal interviews as well. In this article I will only talk about why Preparations should start way before the advert goes out and how you can tackle this.

What I mean about this is that, as soon as you get that burning desire that you are now ready for a promotion or you just want to test the waters; you need to start preparing yourself. You need to prepare yourself mentally in how you see yourself in the other role you are eyeing, by starting to think at that level. Once you start thinking at that level, it will be easier to start acting like someone who is at that level. The conversation at the interview will also flow.

Just like with the preparation for external candidates, also start learning a bit about the role you are eyeing. Who knows, you might just change your mind once you start understanding what the role is all about and decide not to pursue it anymore of you can be even more excited. You could chat to the people who are in the same position, same department or even line manager of that department or section. Make notes and compare the notes with what you already know then put together a Development Plan for the identified gaps. A development plan can include asking for an opportunity to relieve in the position or just going to shadow the person who does the job.

Going through the job profile will also give you an idea of what the role is all about. Once you understand what is on the job profile, you need to tick off the outputs that you believe you already know and those that you don't know. If there is time, the gaps identified can also be part of your development plan. If there is an opportunity to request for psychometric assessments, you could also go for that so that you can see what the scientific tools have to say about you. After that you work on closing the gaps.

In my experience, people who go through the above recommendations tends to do better during interviews. This is because they would have given themselves enough time to prepare for the interview and they would have built the confidence in the process. Going through this process with a department that you are not working at also gives you a better chance to, sort of level the playfields with the people who are already in the department.

Preparing for an interview can be stressful, doing it at the last moment is even more stressful. Whatever you do, stay calm and leverage on what you already know or your strengths so that you shine when it comes to that. at the least, it will give the interviewers an indication of where they can apply you better in the position. Your strengths might just be that one thing they have been looking for.

Good luck with the search!