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    How To Nail The Virtual Interview At This Fortune 500 Company—According To A Recruiting Leader

    The COVID-19 crisis forced companies around the world to immediately adopt fully virtual interviewing processes. Whether you’re a fan or afraid of the on-screen interview, one thing’s for sure: virtual interviewing is here to stay.
    So, we’ve put together a guide to help you master interviewing in a virtual world. And we spoke with Adrienne Sullivan, a recruiting and global employer brand leader at Thermo Fisher Scientific—a Fortune 500 biotechnology company dedicated to making the world healthier, cleaner and safer—to get an insider’s view on how to put your best foot forward, digitally.
    Here’s what we learned.
    No Matter What Your Specialty Is, They’re Looking For These Three Traits
    Thermo Fisher’s mission is to enable their customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. Their products consist of everything from genetic forensics machines to climate change research tools all the way to classroom lab equipment.
    Even with all of the company’s different products, services and business functions, their 75,000+ employees are committed to fulfilling the company mission and pushing science a step beyond, regardless of their role. Adrienne says when interviewing candidates, “Thermo Fisher is really looking for three main competencies: putting the customer first, owning your results, and finding a better way every day.”
    1. Putting the customer first.
    This goes for everyone, from software engineers to sales to R&D researchers. You’ll need to demonstrate that you understand and value that there is an end-customer (and at times, patients) relying on us. “No matter our role, our customers depend on us. You may not have experience working directly with customers, but all our work contributes to supporting our customers” Adrienne explains.
    Understanding how your role contributes to the success of the company’s mission is key.  This is tied closely to the second principle:
    2. Owning your results.
    Results—good or bad—are the direct consequence of your work—and taking ownership of them is an essential part of being successful at Thermo Fisher. So, how can you show this trait in an interview?
    “This is about personal accountability,” Adrienne says. “We want to hear you take personal responsibility for something in your examples. It’s okay to highlight mistakes, as long as you’re able to show how you pivoted to fix it.”
    Taking stock of your work, adaptability and agility are the core of Thermo Fisher’s third principle, too.
    3. Finding a better way every day.
    “We want relentless curiosity and innovation,” Adrienne explains.
    That means when you take stock of your results, you’re looking at what worked and what didn’t to improve the way you do it next time around. It shouldn’t be too hard to think of an example of how you improved your work practices. And if you really want to go deep on your interview prep, you can study the specific improvement strategy leveraged at Thermo Fisher.
    “We follow lean practices for process improvement,” she says. “That’s how we work. We’re looking for people who strive to make themselves better every day.”
    Virtual Interviewing Has Its Disadvantages—Here’s How To Combat Them
    The good news: Virtual interviewing isn’t too different from its in-person counterpart. The tough thing is that the few challenges it does pose can be hard to overcome without practice.
    “Not everyone is used to seeing themselves on camera or working with video conferencing technology,” Adrienne says. “Don’t let it distract you. Set up some time to practice with a friend to make sure you’re comfortable with communicating virtually.”
    If you’re focusing too much on fixing your camera, figuring out how to unmute yourself, or changing your background, then you won’t have time to listen actively, which is another important part of any interview.
    When an interview is virtual, Adrienne warns, it can easily feel like a video that you’re just watching, but really, it’s a two-way conversation. Try to imagine how you would be seen in an office setting and give that same impression virtually.
    How To Take Advantage Of The Virtual Setting And Its Benefits
    There are also distinct benefits to interviewing virtually. Here’s how to take advantage of them.
    “It gives you an opportunity to be comfortable in your own environment,” Adrienne says. “You can feel secure and use that to your advantage. Speak confidently and focus on active listening.”
    Plus, with new technology comes new capabilities. A good way of showcasing your strengths and your savvy with technology is to use screen-sharing features to show off some work or skills. If you’re going to do this, though, make sure you’re well practiced.
    “Technology allows you to be more agile. You can quickly pull up a work sample or a document you’ve worked on that you’re particularly proud of. You’ll have everything at your fingertips,” she explains. “But if you’re going to do something like that, have it all prepared and ready. Don’t make your interviewer sit and wait.”
    No Matter What, Follow The Timeless Interview Rules: Do Your Homework And Be Yourself
    “Definitely do your research. Research the company, have a clear understanding of the role, and have questions prepared to clarify what you can’t find out on your own,” Adrienne says. “Read through the company’s career site to learn as much as you can in advance about what the company does and their culture. Learn about your interviewer by taking a look at their LinkedIn profile. You will feel more comfortable the more prepared you are!”
    But you must balance research and preparedness with authenticity, too. Be yourself and show them that you’re comfortable bringing your personality to a professional space.
    “It’s a conversation, so be your authentic self and don’t just read from notes,” Adrienne advises. “It’s hard. It takes practice. Interviewing really is a skill like any other—and our early-career recruiters understand that.”
    Turn this insider knowledge into a real job offer—check out open opportunities at Thermo Fisher Scientific at WayUp! More

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    Change, Community, And Career Acceleration: Thermo Fisher Scientific’s Approach To Fostering Diversity

    If you’re like most people coming out of school right now—aka 77 percent of Gen Z students and recent grads—then you’re looking for a company that values diversity and inclusion (D&I). But what does that really mean? Is it as simple as joining a diverse team? What else should you be looking for in a company?
    These are big questions for anyone to be asking, but the team at Thermo Fisher Scientific—a Fortune 200 science company dedicated to making the world healthier, cleaner, and safer—have come up with a few answers. One of the most important is their multiple diverse, global Employee Resource Groups (ERGs).
    So, What Are Employee Resource Groups? How Are They Different At Thermo Fisher?
    If you’ve done a corporate internship or been on the job hunt lately, then maybe you’ve heard about ERGs. They exist to provide additional community and support to specific groups and identities at large companies. For example, a company might have a group based around African Heritage identity or one for employees who served in the military.
    Almost all of these groups put together events like volunteering in the local community and networking sessions, but at Thermo Fisher they take it a step beyond to fully support and foster inclusion amongst all of their colleagues. Their ERGs draw colleagues together around common characteristics and provide a voice of diverse thinking. ERGs positively impact the company’s growth and development, and assist in providing thought leadership for:
    Recruitment and retention
    Education and training
    Professional development
    Community involvement
    Support and recognition
    Business development
    Activities that support a diverse and inclusive work culture
    One way they are supported is through active involvement at the C-level. “At Thermo Fisher we have senior-level leaders at our organization who sponsor and help promote the ERGs,” says Cheryl, a Talent Acquisition D&I leader at Thermo Fisher. “They’re a direct line to executives on how to build more diverse teams and more welcoming communities for everyone.”
    This means when someone has an idea that can help Thermo Fisher be a more inclusive community or build a more diverse team, they can assist and offer their support to make it happen.
    Perhaps someone in the Women’s ERG knows about Women in STEM groups at colleges that could help bring in more female tech talent. Or maybe someone noticed that a cultural event or holiday was going unrecognized by the company. These ERGs give people a platform to not only share their perspectives, but also to have them be heard and acted on.
    Finding Your Community, Bringing Your Whole Self To Work
    The truth about inclusion is that it’s not just a set of policies or practices. It’s about making sure everyone can find community at work so that they feel comfortable enough to be themselves. Besides the obvious benefits for morale and mental health, when people with diverse perspectives feel comfortable bringing their unique ideas to their work, it has a proven, positive impact on the quality of business decision-making.
    “If someone doesn’t feel a sense of inclusion or belonging they may not bring as much of themselves to work,” Cheryl explains. “And we work hard to build a diverse team because we want their unique perspectives.”
    These groups, by creating a community for everyone at Thermo Fisher, can bring out all of those positive benefits, both for the employees and the business. That’s also why the groups aren’t limited to just the traditional understanding of diversity, like ethnicity and gender.
    “Our groups cover a broad spectrum of interests and identities from ethnicity and gender to early talent, sustainability, working parents, and community action,” Cheryl explains. “Our colleagues have formed 10 different ERG groups, with more opportunities to come.”
    All That, Plus They Can Help Accelerate Your Career
    At Thermo Fisher, D&I is a team effort. And that effort can mean opportunities for people at all stages of their career to take on new types of challenges. Plus, thanks to the buy-in from leaders at the company, you’ll be supported in balancing the work of your primary role and your assistance in groups like this.
    That’s why getting involved with ERGs at Thermo Fisher is a win-win. The company benefits from your perspective and action, and you benefit from a more developed network and unique career opportunities.
    One member of the university recruiting team, Emily, noted that, “interns who have been heavily involved in ERGs during their internship are much more likely to receive full-time offers because of all the connections they made during the summer”
    One such success story is Sophia, an emerging leader in the company’s IT Development Program. Her involvement with the Asian and Women’s ERGs as an intern led to leadership opportunities in those groups when she joined back with the company full time.
    “I joined these ERGs as a way to be more engaged and involved in the community,” Sophia says. But when she took on leadership roles in the ERGs, she got way more than just that.
    “This is different from my day job and it exposes me to other functions, too,” Sophia says. ‘It has also been a great way to get my voice heard and network with executive leaders.”
    This type of company-wide idea sharing and collaboration isn’t just what makes D&I initiatives work at Thermo Fisher—it’s what drives the whole business.
    Want to learn more about this uniquely diverse team? Check out open opportunities at Thermo Fisher on WayUp!
    You can also learn about Thermo Fisher Scientific’s ERGs on their website. More