Building a foundation for the interview: your research work

The importance of doing thorough research work when looking for a new job cannot be overstated. You will need to find out as much about a prospective employer as possible so you can prepare questions to ask in the interview. Remember, you will be evaluating the employer, just like the employer will be evaluating you.

Many candidates who make it past the initial screening stage will have similar qualifications or skills. However, an employer is not only concerned about whether or not you have these skills, but also how motivated, business-saavy, and smart an employee you would be. Do your research properly and prepare to use this information in the interview, and you will put yourself ahead of many, if not most, of the people competing with you for jobs. It's that simple.

What you should look for:

Name and title of the person you'll be contacting.
Name of the President and the hiring manager, if different from the primary contact.
Headquarters location.
As much of the company's marketing materials as possible.
All products and services offered.
Articles and/or books in which the company has been mentioned.
Information about major competitors including products/services and market share.
Industry information including recent history and current issues.
The company's annual report (if this is public information).
The company's financial standing. Are they stabilized or growing?
The size of the company.
The salary range for the type of job you're seeking.
Some of this information is basic and could even appear on the job advertisement, but most of it will require some digging. It is important that you get as much information about a company, its personnel who may play a part in your hiring decision, and its industry as possible. Always have a general idea of what you're looking for, keep your notes simple, and stay organized. Getting and trying to remember too much information can be counter-productive.

Do as much of your research work on-line as possible; obviously, the amount of information available here is mind-staggering. You may be able to buy copies of important articles on-line that can no longer be conveniently found elsewhere. You can also find useful resource materials at the library.

Good sources for information include:

General business publications. It always helps to have a reasonably good grasp of current business trends and transactions.
Newspapers, especially business-oriented publications.
Trade publications. Almost every industry will have at least one, but they can be hard to find. As with other potentially hard-to-research items, persistence pays.
Other business reference directories.
Your networking contacts.
Networking

A valuable contact is anyone who can provide you with key career, company, or industry information. The people you know, and the people that they know, can be very helpful to you. At a minimum they can offer moral support and general advice. It is also very possible that some contacts could work for a company you're interested in, or know somebody who does. Always look for and pursue these highly advantageous leads.