Situation
Andy was an emergency referral for our Bee Work Ready employability support. He had been out of employment for over a year due to an industrial eye injury. As well as this impacting on his general health, his confidence had also suffered, and he had not had a job interview for several years. Andy was now ready to return to work and had been applying for roles that would be enjoyable, fulfilling and physically suitable. The referral had been made on an afternoon, with the information that he had been invited for interview on the afternoon of the following day.
Task
It was important to make a quick connection and determine how interview ready he was. On discussion, it was apparent that he was anxious and unsure of the questions that may be asked. Additionally, he was apprehensive about how to respond to any competency-based questions that may be occur during the interview.
Andy also lacked confidence and knowledge around disclosing his eye injury, including having to attend any upcoming appointments.
Action
We organised a video call for that evening, during which we looked closely at the job description and considered some of the questions we felt would be asked. The STAR method of answering these questions was introduced and Andy was tasked with using this as part of his interview preparation following the call. We also discussed his rights and responsibilities around disclosing his eye injury, including how he could confidently reassure others that the job was within his physical demands.
A further video call was arranged for the following morning, during which we were able to discuss how his answers followed the STAR method. In addition to this we discussed how he would be able to introduce himself when asked, explaining his experience, skills and potential in greater detail than in the CV he had sent to them. Additionally, he was able to prepare some questions to ask them about the role.
Result
Andy was offered the role and commenced work soon after. The role was likely to be for a maximum of 6 months due to the nature of the contract, a timeframe that suited him due some upcoming further treatment. The role had rebuilt his confidence, helped him to better understand his physical capabilities and brought his CV up to date. On completion of further medical treatments, we recommenced the next stage of his support, which was looking at more longer-term roles and goals.