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​Mastering the job interview process is a tricky balance between expertise, preparation and having the skills your interviewer is searching for. How do you increase your opportunities? We reveal the top industry advice from our recruiters.

You have had years of experience, attended networking events, long office days and countless meetings, now you’ve secured an interview for a new position. But first, the interview… Now is your time to shine!

So what can you do to ensure you give yourself the best chance of securing a new position? We’ve compiled some of our top tips to give you an upper edge and be better prepared for your next interview.

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Honesty rules

• Be open, but not to your detriment.

• Show openness to learn new skills and share work

Honesty during an interview demonstrates that you are trustworthy and gives your potential employer a more rounded view of your experience. If there are things you don’t know or can’t do, it’s not the end of your application. Clients like a variety of skills in their SAP teams and want to know who can do what in order to share the load.

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Dress for Success

• Always wear a suit or corporate attire

First impressions count, so ensure you’re dressed neatly and in appropriate corporate attire. Even if you won’t be wearing a suit every day in the position, it shows a level of respect for the job and interviewing company.

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The Earlybird

• Give yourself time to prepare

• Be respectfully early

Much like your appearance, being punctual for your interview is vital to your first impression. Try to arrive at your destination with enough time to have a coffee, go through your notes and mentally prepare. This will allow you time to walk into your meeting confident and calm. Try to arrive at your interview around 15 minutes early. Remember, punctuality is respectful and being too early can be a hindrance.

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Prepare for anything

• Preparation creates confidence

• Research the company, the people and the position

Make sure you research the company you are interviewing with and, if possible, the interviewers too. Use Linkedin to find any mutual experience that you can draw upon during your meeting. Prepare at least 3 to 4 questions about the company and position before you meet.

Revisit your own history and revisit all the skills you have picked up in each job, the systems you have used and the time spent at each company. You will want to recall these with ease during the interview.

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Be Crystal Clear

• Don’t be ashamed to ask for clarification

If you are confused or don’t understand something mentioned during the interview, be confident in asking for clarification. Different companies use different terminology so it’s not uncommon to misunderstand certain IT terms.

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Question time

• Prepare questions specific to the role

The more information you have about the position, the more you can be sure if it will be a good fit for both you and the company hiring. If all your questions have been answered during the interview, ask your interviewer if they have any further questions about your experience.

At the end of the interview, if you are feeling brave, you can also ask if they have any reservations or concerns you can clarify for them. This may make the difference in securing an offer.

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Things to avoid

While our advice above is what we recommend doing in an interview, we have pulled together a list of ultimate things NOT to do based on real life feedback from our clients.

• Walk into an interview with a coffee in hand

• Arrive late

• Wear sunglasses

• Lean casually back in the chair, resting your arm on the back of the chair

• Correct the interviewers or question their processes

• Swear during the interview or at the interviewers

All in all, the interview is a chance to be yourself, show your strengths, your attributes and the value you can bring to a company. Skills, personality, energy and drive are all taken into account in an interview, so think about how you interact and the kind of culture you would bring to your potential employer. Skills aren’t the be all and end all. Personality and motivation are just as important; so own your unique personality and skillset. There’s nobody else out there the same as you.