Closing Your Interview

In this article for ex-military jobseekers we are going to look at a technique to close your interview. Note this is just one technique and no two interviews are the same but what is important is that you leave the interview having made a good impression, confident that you have done yourself proud.

You will be surprised how many employers only interview candidates once before making their final decision, even for technical roles. Therefore this is possibly your one and only opportunity to impress against other candidates being interviewed for the same position.

With this closing interview technique we are going to try and achieve three important aims:

• Thank your new employer for the interview (I did originally type ‘potential’ employer but let us remain very positive; your ‘new’ employer).
• Confirm to your interviewer some important aspects to your suitability.
• Ask the interviewer(s) if they have any concerns or reservations regarding your suitability.

In practice you will know that the flow of the interview is coming to a close. Normally an opportunity has been offered for you to ask questions, more on this later, and now you know that very shortly there will be some ‘firm’ handshakes and then you are out of the door heading home.

Now is the time for you to close, remain calm, smile and take control of the interview closure. This is not a script for you to memorise but an example that can be adapted to your specific interview situation. Here we go with the three aims:

Thank your potential employer for the interview:

“Thank you for inviting me along this morning. I have really enjoyed meeting you, hearing more about your business and the role…”

Confirm that you want the job and reasons why:

“I know I can do this job and I know I can bring a lot to your company. I live within easy commuting distance. I have worked on this equipment before. I can start work immediately and I would not let you down.”

Ask the interviewer for their concerns:

“I am obviously hoping you will offer me the job, now that you have met me do you have any concerns about my ability to do the job?”

This final question may throw up some concerns from your potential new employer but gives you a great opportunity to put those concerns to bed. Remember to acknowledge concerns and then answer them, such as:

“Yes I know I may lack commercial experience and the equipment you use is not familiar to me but what I can say is that throughout my military career I have had to be very adaptable, I am not slow in picking up new skills quickly and I can assure you that you would not be disappointed if you offered me the job.”

So in summary the above offers just one suggestion on how to close your interview to maximise your chance of being offered the role.

As a closing comment REMEMBER people employ people and quite often the most suited candidate may not be offered the job simply as it is perceived he/she would not fit into their business. Be yourself, remain positive and have confidence in your ability to secure that job!