Today we have a special guest, Carol, who is a recruiter in Berlin. She shares her tips for your job hunt and interview preparation so you can have more success getting hired abroad.
Enjoy the video interview and read her tips below:
Carol is from Brazil, from a city called Porto Alegre in the south. With a Bachelor Degree in Psychology and seven years a technical recruiter. Worked as a Talent Scout at ThoughtWorks Brazil and now as a Talent Business Partner in Berlin.
What are the 3 biggest differences between interviews in other countries and Europe or Canada
- Informal vs Professional approach: Due to the cultural influence, in Brazil recruiters tend to be more informal and friendly. In Germany, recruiters are more interested in the candidate’s professional background and technical skills, and less interested in sharing personal details.
- In Germany, it’s a two-way interview process: Because of the high demand for Talents, companies understand that hiring processes are also meant to help the candidate know the company more. Companies and recruiters here are more open to answer the candidate’s questions and share as much information as possible about the company. In other countries, many companies are still taking the traditional approach, where only the candidate is answering questions, but not getting anything in return.
- Detailed oriented recruiters:Here written communication should be spot on. Grammar mistakes in resumes or sloppy messages are not acceptable.
What are 2-3 key things people can do to prepare for interviews here?
- It’s obvious, but still many people are not doing it – RESEARCH ABOUT THE COMPANY!Try to learn as much as possible about the company you’re interviewing for: product, services, founders, industry, history and the current moment.
- Be aware of cultural differences: While you’re researching about the company, spend that extra time finding out about the cultural background of the employees, especially regarding your recruiter or the people who’ll interview you. This will help you prepare for cultural differences.
- Research about the city you want to move into: It’s important to understand the market, industry salaries, and cost of living of the city you’re moving into. You need to show your recruiter that you’re taking this “moving out of your home town thing” seriously!
What are the biggest mistakes people make during interviews?
- We can start even before: the biggest mistake is sending your resume to a position when you don’t fully fill the requirements.
- Not knowing about the company you’re applying for.
- Complain about your previous jobs and show an unprofessional attitude!
Anything else?
The IT market has a high demand for people at the moment, still, you need to be patience in finding a job in a new city abroad. You might need to interview with many companies before it works! Accept the rejections and take this as a learning time. At the end, I believe everyone can find a great job, but you will need to put that extra time and effort into the interview process to get there!