Getting an interview is hard. Passing one shouldn't be left to chance. We interviewed 100 hiring managers across tech, finance, and healthcare to understand exactly what makes candidates stand out—and what causes instant rejection.
The Preparation Gap
The biggest finding from our research: there's a massive gap between how candidates think they've prepared and what hiring managers consider adequate preparation.
Most candidates spend their prep time rehearsing answers to common questions. Top candidates spend it researching the company, the team, and the specific challenges they'd be solving.
82% of hiring managers can tell within 10 minutes whether a candidate has done real research or just skimmed the company's About page.
What Top Candidates Research
- Recent company news, product launches, and strategic initiatives
- The interviewer's background, projects, and published work
- Team structure and how the role fits within the organization
- Competitors and industry trends affecting the company
- Specific challenges mentioned in the job description and how they'd address them
The STAR Method: Necessary But Not Sufficient
Every career guide tells you to use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) for behavioral questions. It's good advice—but top candidates go further. They use what we call STAR+I: adding Impact.
After describing the result, explain the broader impact on the team, company, or customers. This transforms a good answer into a memorable one.
"I interview 5-10 candidates per week. The ones I remember are those who connect their experiences to the bigger picture—not just what they did, but why it mattered."
Questions That Impress
The questions you ask reveal more about you than the answers you give. Here are categories of questions that hiring managers said consistently impressed them:
Strategic Questions
'I noticed the company recently launched X. How does this role contribute to that initiative?' Shows you understand the business context.
Team-Focused Questions
'What does success look like for this role in the first 90 days?' Shows you're thinking about impact, not just getting hired.
Growth Questions
'How do you approach professional development for team members?' Shows you're thinking long-term and care about growth.
Common Mistakes That Kill Candidacies
- Speaking negatively about previous employers (instant red flag for 94% of managers)
- Not having specific examples ready for behavioral questions
- Failing to ask questions at the end of the interview
- Being unable to explain why you want this specific role at this specific company
- Arriving late or having technical issues in virtual interviews
Gilji's Momentum Coach helps you prepare for interviews with company-specific research and practice questions tailored to the role.
The Follow-Up Formula
What you do after the interview matters more than most candidates realize. Our data shows:
- Sending a thank-you email within 24 hours increases callback rate by 22%
- Personalized notes (referencing specific conversation topics) perform 3x better than generic ones
- Including one new insight or resource related to your discussion stands out
- Following up once after a week of silence is acceptable; more than that hurts your chances
Conclusion
Interviewing is a skill, and like any skill, it improves with deliberate practice and the right approach. The candidates who consistently succeed aren't just talented—they're prepared, curious, and thoughtful in ways that less prepared candidates simply aren't.
Put in the work before the interview, and you'll stand out from the crowd.
