If you already work for an organisation and you are applying for an internal position, this post is for you. This is particularly important if you work in a government organisation where merit and equity principles are applied to all roles and where your job interview plays a major part in the decision of who to appoint to a role, and essentially you’re competing on an even footing with external candidates.
As an internal candidate, you are often in the best position to win a role. However, some of the most disappointing interviews I have conducted have been internal people who have applied for internal roles. People in this situation traditionally undersell themselves and the interview panel is often disappointed. The interviewee assumes the panel already knows of their achievements and fails to describe their achievements throughout the interview.
My key pieces of advice here are:
Assume the panel have never met you—and don’t be afraid to talk yourself up. Use the word ‘I’ to describe your personal contributions to key projects. Internal candidates tend to use the word ‘we’ as their manager is often on the panel and the interviewee is afraid to take credit for joint projects. Yet, the interview panel is then confused about what role the candidate played in the project. So, make sure you use the word ‘I’ and describe your personal work.
Another useful trick is to answer the questions by directing them to the people on the panel who do not know your work. Your manager is probably already ‘barracking’ for you—so use the interview as an opportunity to promote yourself to members of the organisation who are not already familiar with you.
As an internal candidate, you are likely in the best position to win a role—keep this in mind and use these tips to secure your new role or promotion.
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