Prep Your Quarterly Projections for a Job Interview

It's quarterly earnings season, as companies answer to shareholders for their results over the past 90 days and the first half of the year. It is also the corporate world's chance to plan for the next 90 days.

Corporations aren't the only ones who should be prepared to answer questions about their quarterly plans. According to "Prep Your 30-, 60-, 90-day Business Plan for the Job Interview," senior sales professionals should have plans in place before they walk into an interview.

According to Kathleen Steffey, CEO and founder of Naviga Services, a Tampa, Fla., recruiting and staffing agency that specializes in marketing and sales roles, employers expect experienced candidates to show they've thought about how to grow the numbers out of the gate. "We highly recommend it for candidates, especially in the final stages of the interview," she said. "It shows them, 'I've thought about this.' "

Business plans should reflect that maturation as it develops over periods of 30, 60 and 90 days. And don't try to coast on boilerplate answers that could apply to any business, Steffey said. "It can't be general. It has to be crafted for the particular employer," she said. "If it's general, it's garbage."