Waiting until the interview’s day to know the company location is one of the deadliest mistakes ever.
Some candidates do not ask about the interview location and pretend to know it or look for it on the Net. This results in not knowing the place in time, which leads to attending late and therefore losing the opportunity. This happens especially when the company has more than one facility in the same city.
Once you receive the call from the HR, you need to ask them to give you the:
- Exact address,
- Company phone number,
- Name of an important sign close to it, in case the office is small and in a big building,
- Website
- Email address.
Good! You got the information! Nice! Now, do the following:
- Google the company on Google Maps to know where it is exactly,
- Know what bus goes to the region,
- Ask how much the taxi trip is,
- Know how much time it will take you by your car, if any,
- Check if there is a close parking.
This is if the interview location is in the same city.
If it is in another city, you might need to go there some reasonable time before the interview day.
If it is far, my best advice to you is to go there the day before. This will enable you to:
- Be on time, or even IN time,
- Avoid traffic,
- Avoid being late,
- Sleep well,
- Rest well,
- Have enough time to eat a good meal.
It is true that you might be busy and not have time to travel and book a hotel, but you can plan your schedule ahead of time.
Remember, if it is impossible for you to attend, you can just ask the HR manager to postpone the visit. This will enable you to test your negotiation techniques.