So you’ve handed in your Massive job application and received a positive response – we want to meet you for an interview! What should you do to prepare for it?
In this article, our recruiter Sandra Mondahl shares her best advice on how to ace your job interview and what you should expect during the interview process at Massive – from preparing for the first interview to the biggest no-no’s.
You open your inbox and see an email from Massive: we loved your job application and want to meet for an interview!
As a recruiter at Massive, I meet people every day for interviews – and it’s actually one of my favorite parts of the job. In this article, I share some of my best advice to make the interview process a great experience for you too.
Before the interview: come prepared
The first thing you should do when you get the call to the first interview is refresh your memory of Massive. What made you apply for the job in the first place, and what about Massive attracted you? It’s also important to remind yourself of the projects and games we work on – it’s quite disheartening to meet with someone who thinks we work on a competitor’s game!
I recommend that you check out our website, social media channels, blog, and vlog to get an understanding of how life at Massive is actually like. It’s important to have a good feeling about any company you apply for a job at, but even if you don’t feel 100 percent sure about it, I believe every interview is good experience.
So, unless you feel that there is some huge obstacle in the way – like moving to Malmö for example – I would never recommend turning down an interview. Give yourself the chance to get to know us and what we can offer you!
Also, if we are doing the interview over Skype, make sure to check that your camera and microphone is working and try to join the meeting a little bit before to see that everything works.
The first interview: be yourself!
At Massive, the first interview is all about getting to know each other – either in person if you are in the Malmö region or on Skype if you’re somewhere else in the world!
What we are looking for during this first meeting is to understand who you are. We see it as a conversation, not an interrogation.
I know it’s a cliché, but it’s so important for not just us, but also you, to be true to yourself.
Sometimes, people are so eager to join us that they are not truthful about themselves or their skills, which can be disastrous and lead to heartache for everyone involved. We don’t want you to be miserable here, and we don’t want to hire you for the wrong reasons.
The best advice I can give you here is to be honest and well prepared. We don’t want to tell you who you’re supposed to be – if you’re a goof with creative ideas – show us that! It will make us remember you.
After the interview: the waiting game
So, the first interview is done – what happens now? Should you send an email to thank for the interview?
Some companies love it when you send a thank-you email afterwards, but when you’ve been to an interview at Massive, you usually don’t have our email addresses since your main point of contact is the recruitment coordinators. Sometimes, we get these long, lovely emails – which is fine if the interview’s gone well. But, if you feel that it maybe didn’t go so well, sending one of those puts us – and yourself – in a really awkward position.
My advice is to give it some time.
You can always expect an answer, and we usually get back to you in a couple of weeks. As we’re looking for the best talent, we need to take our time with the process to make sure it’s the best fit for you – and us! – in the long term.
So please don’t push us for an answer unless you have a deadline (for example if you’ve received another offer or are in another process). If that’s the case, let us know and we can let you know if you’re the one we’ve been looking for!
If you feel insecure about the waiting time, don’t hesitate to ask us about it during the interview. Just asking “what’s the next step?” in the end of the interview will help you eliminate some of your concerns, and show us that you’re interested and curious, which is great!
A second interview: WELCOME TO MASSIVE
When we ask you to come back for a second interview, we are pretty sure that we want to hire you. That’s why this interview always takes place at the studio in Malmö – no matter where in the world you are located.
We believe it’s important to meet face to face, and also that you get a feel of the Massive vibe and experience first-hand what the studio culture is actually like.
Also, it’s a way for you to explore Malmö a bit, which we think is super important if you are going to relocate. Moving to another city or country is a big step, and we want you to be sure that you can see yourself living here.
The onsite interview is a big investment for both us and you, which is why we won’t invite you to it unless we know we could be a great match!
Biggest no-no?
One of the biggest mistakes you can do in an interview is not answering the question.
Silence or aimless rambling about something that doesn’t actually answer what we want to know can unfortunately make you seem insincere.
If you don’t know what to answer, just tell us that you’re not sure. If you start to ramble, it’s a sign for us that you didn’t understand the question, which can look pretty bad. We of course understand that some people ramble when they are nervous, but if you’re feeling anxious or nervous – please let us know! We don’t want it to be an interrogation, we want it to be a conversation and a dialogue with you.
Don’t be afraid to ask us things during the interview either. Some things we can’t answer due to confidentiality, but questions about life at Massive, what we thought of your portfolio, and what the next steps are all great ways of steering the conversation – which we encourage you to do!
And some final advice
Lastly, we do many interviews. Make it worth our while, and make it memorable – remember, we are people too!
But in the end, the most important thing is that you have a good time.
We are looking for people we actually like – and who likes us back! Show us your passion, take control of the conversation, and show us that you’re interested in working with us!
And if you’re honest with not just us, but also yourself, it will be much easier to find the perfect spot for you at Massive.
- Want to learn how to write a kick-ass job application? Check out Sandra’s top tips!
- Check out our career page for open positions.
