5 ways to research an employer before your interview

One key step to a successful interview is researching the employer before you face them. Beyond building your confidence, arming yourself with a familiarity of the company can also:

• portray you as an enthusiastic and pro-active candidate
• fill you in on the company’s culture and how you might fit in
• help you to think up relevant questions to ask during the interview

If all of the above sounds perfect, here are five ways you can research an employer before you interview with them.

Job application materials

These could include the job advert, job description, or the online application pages you filled out. The employer may have supplied an information sheet on the company too.
Delve into job application materials – whether physical or online – to see if they offer any information on the employer.

For instance, what type of language do they use? Is it formal, casual, or technical? How do they talk about the company itself? Do they approach the workforce as a community or team?

The information may not be obvious, but the clues are there if you look.

Company website

This may be the obvious source of information on an employer but don’t just look at the ‘about’ page. Make sure you visit:

• blog, news, and media/press pages for up-to-date information on company developments and the type of message the employer wants to convey to its audience
• meet the team pages for information on the company’s workforce and to discover if you’re a typical employee
• mission, values, and initiatives pages to find out if your own values and opinions are a match

Take note of any recurring themes or ideas that occur on multiple pages. What overall impression does the website provide of the employer? What does this say about the company culture?

Social media

Nowadays, most businesses have a social media presence. Depending on the employer, their industry, and the audience they want to reach, they may be active on LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or any of a multitude of social media channels.

LinkedIn is the obvious choice when researching employers. Companies use LinkedIn to reach both jobseekers and customers; it can also provide an arena for employee interaction, both with each other and to promote their employer. Beyond visiting a company’s official business page, it can be helpful to search for its employees on LinkedIn. What jobs do they do? Are they happy to share news about their employer? Have they progressed through increasingly senior positions with that company?

Whichever social media channels the employer promotes itself on, look out for the tone of voice used – formal, friendly, inclusive, for example – and the topics that are discussed regularly. An employer’s social media presence should reinforce the message and brand that is promoted on their website.

Professional organisation websites

A professional organisation is populated by and for the benefit of people engaged in a specific profession, for instance:

• Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
• Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD)
• Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE)
• Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM)
• Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS)

Visit the employer’s website to find out what professional organisations they belong to. Go to the relevant professional organisation’s website to search for the employer or Google “name of the professional organisation” and “name of the employer” in one search. You may find news about the employer or the related industry on the professional organisation’s website.

If it is your role, for example, accountant or HR manager, that is linked to a professional organisation, it still may be helpful to find out whether the employer has any connection.

For more helpful tips, read our guide on How to prepare for an interview.