Experience, Humans
How to get a job at trivago: 7 tips from our recruiters
On average, our team of recruiters review over 400 CVs and support 30+ interviews each day. That’s why it’s more important than ever to make your application stand out. Here are their top 7 tips for catching the trivago team’s attention!
Applying for the job
1) Less is more when it comes to your CV.
Your CV is the key to the first step in the recruitment process. It’s your first impression and needs to pass the desk of the recruiter and the hiring manager. Always keep your audience in mind when writing your CV.
Of course, you want to make sure the person reading it is able to see all the amazing things you’re capable of. However, make sure not to overload them with information – this could have the opposite effect to what you’re seeking. Make it straightforward and clean for the reader to see your top 5 core skills.
Depending on your experience, keeping to 1 page might not be realistic. but definitely no more than 3 pages. The goal of a CV is to showcase your experience, key skills and which technical skills you bring to the role.
2) Is a cover letter required?
Not unless it is asked for in the job advertisement. When you apply to trivago you’ll complete a short questionnaire to tell us a bit more about you. One of these questions is “Why do you want this role at trivago?” We encourage you to think about this question carefully – this is your opportunity to show us your motivation, what you could bring to the team and really make your application stand out! We review this response every single time we receive a new application, so make it count!
3) What weighs more: hard or soft skills?
There is always a balance when it comes to this topic. Generally your hard skills will get you to the first steps, but your soft skills, those which relate to our company values, will get you the job.
We can spend months looking for a senior technical profile and finally come across someone who checks all the technical boxes. However, if the candidate does not show the soft skills required to collaborate with the team or bring in new ideas, we will continue to seek other applicants.
Often times we have seen teams choose a junior vs. senior profile simply based on their initiative and willingness to learn. It’s important to be technically competent, but it is definitely not the only thing that counts.
Acing your interview
4) Interview preparation and logistics
You got invited to your first interview – congratulations!
As we hire new talents from all over the world, your first interview will likely be done remotely via video call. Once you confirm the interview time, check you have the necessary equipment to do the video call! We recommend this little checklist to make sure you are ready:
- Choose a location – quiet and without distractions.
- Check that your internet connection is strong.
- Check your sound and video quality – the video link is live already, so you can log on and check your video and sound before. Have a friend join the call and check if it works!
- Doublecheck the interview invite for any additional information.
- Be ready for the interview at least 5 minutes before the scheduled time.
5) Do your research before the interview
It is always best to do some research about our business model and industry regardless of the role you’re applying for. It doesn’t matter if you are applying for the core product team or a marketing role – it is imperative to be prepared with a basic understanding about the company, how we earn money, who are our competitors etc. Not only will it show us you’re motivated to join trivago, but it relates directly to the role you’re applying for. Every trivago talent is working towards the same key goals: each of us need to be ambassadors for our company and understanding the business is the first step. This page is a good place to start your research!
6) An interview goes both ways
Preparing for an interview is often associated with anxiety and worries about how to show your best side to your future employer. However, it’s important to keep in mind you’re interviewing us just as much as we are interviewing you. If you start to see an interview as a two-way conversation where individuals are getting to know each other rather than a grilling one-sided Q&A session, then it might already help ease some of the nerves.
An interview is an opportunity to also understand our culture. Use the interview to understand the environment where you are going to spend approximately 40 hours a week. Make sure to ask the right questions regarding the team structure, performance indicators, and overall company mindset. Our company values are key drivers to our business and all our talents; so we want to make sure you have similar traits, but will add value to our culture as well.
7) Motivation to join trivago
One question that we love to ask in all interviews – why do you want to work at trivago?
With talents from over 90 different nationalities, we all have different backgrounds and motivations to join trivago. We value who you are as an individual, so we want to get to know you and your drivers. Be honest and clear in your motivations and try to tie this into what you would bring to the trivago team as well.
Do you have any more questions for our recruiters? Then check out our recruiter FAQ article!
Thanks to two of our recruiters, Alison and Sofia, for compiling these tips for us 🙌
