Paul Copcutt
Paul Copcutt is the successful personal brand coach for professionals who are struggling with an action plan and the confidence to land the six figure job they deserve. His clients become “Square Pegs” who stand out above the competition by getting noticed for the right reasons to be hired for the jobs they’ve always wanted. A Certified Personal Brand Strategist and specialist for Higher Bracket.ca, Canada’s only $100k+ job board, also top global Career & Training contributor to the Knowledge Forum at Marketing Profs.com and an active member of the Career Professionals of Canada. Often quoted in The Globe & Mail he is an invited national speaker on the subject of personal branding and has appeared on Report on Business TV. Web site: www·personalbrandstrategist·com
Most candidates, even when they are nervous, find that having a one-on-one, face-to-face meeting is something they can endure for an hour or so. If they prepare well, conduct some research and put themselves in the right frame of mind, the meeting can even be enjoyable – well almost!
But the explosion of technology, the talent shortage, global hiring replacing local and the fact that companies know that they won’t keep a new employee for life, has meant an increase in alternatives to the traditional face to face interview. So how do you prepare for the non-traditional interview, and what can you expect?
TELEPHONE INTERVIEW
The main challenge for most people is that the telephone eliminates the ab ility to ‘read’ the interviewer. A telephone meeting also entails honing your listening skills and resisting the temptation to multi-task or even just check your email while on the call. Don’t laugh - it has happened!
Quite often, a recruiter or hiring company will use the telephone interview as an initial screen and they might use this in one of three circumstances:
As a First step
With the use of email, job boards and web site response there are very few instances where an initial application is now a telephone call. Certain jobs might mean this is a good strategy and if this is the case you need to prepare as much for this interaction as a face-to-face – because there is a whole area of the unknown.
Think about the position and what questions might be asked about your background and suitability to the role. Have a list of questions so if you get the chance to ask questions, you appear interested and prepared and don’t look as if you’re just dialing in for a job.
Unless the advertisement states specific times to call try early or late in the day, people tend to be at their desks and more available to talk than the middle of a hectic schedule.
Information gather & confirmation
This is usually a less-planned interaction on the behalf of the recruiter or hiring manager. They may have received a good response to the posting from similarly qualified candidates but they want to be able to manage the list down to a workable number for face-to-face meetings.
Quite often they will have set aside some time in the day to make these calls and they are trying to complete the task quickly and efficiently. Resist the temptation to launch straight in to a conversation if they catch you at your phone. It is much better to say you are busy and set up a specific time to talk. That way you can have all the necessary paperwork in front of you, copy of the posting, your resume, list of questions and can ensure you are not going to encounter distractions or interruptions.
Before the interview ends, always ensure that you ask “does that answer your question?” or “do you require more information on that?” - then at least you are leaving the call not second guessing yourself as to whether you answered all their questions.
First Stage Interview
There are a number of reasons a company might use the telephone to conduct a complete first stage interview:
Geography – candidates are scattered across the country or globe and it is difficult to bring them together quickly and cost effectively.
Mass hiring – a number of candidates are needed for the same or similar positions, response has been high and there is a need to reduce the pool.
Outsourced – where third party recruiters or other outside agencies are being used to bring just a handful of candidates to a shortlist for the clie nt to meet with.
Profile Fit – many companies are now spending a great deal of time and resources on identifying good fit candidates. Usually this is conducted in part at looking at the attributes and skills of current successful employees and then creating a benchmark for candidates to match up to. These criteria are then developed into a series of questions that they take you through during a very structured telephone call.
In all cases of a ‘first stage’ telephone interview you should apply the same ‘rules’ as for an ‘information gather and confirmation’ call, but you should be ready for a potentially longer process, maybe over an hour. You will likely get more of a chance to ask more questions and you are legitimate in asking the question “Is there anything that you have heard about my background or skills that are particularly relevant to the position and you want to know more? Or that I may not yet have made you aware of but are important for this job?
Teleconference
This again is a technology that is being utilized due to global hiring or the need to involve decision makes from various locations. Keep in mind with this technology that there can be time lapses depending on the distance and technology that is being used so occasional silences are not a bad thing.
Video Telephone
One of the major search firms pioneered the concept of using video phones to screen candidates due to the global nature of their business. Candidates are sent a video phone by courier and an interview appointment is set up. Th e process is quite intense and once over the candidate returns the phone and may never get to physically meet the recruiter, but they have been able to make a visual impression.
PANEL
When faced with more than one interviewer at once you need to be consci ous of the fact that each may have a different reason for being there and have a different agenda. You need to be prepared for this by finding out as much as you can about each person and their role in the organization.
In these situations there is normally a main point person who facilitates the group and controls the process, but be sure to share your time with all members of the panel in terms of eye contact and when speaking move your delivery around the group.
Not as common in today’s job market, panel interviews are still used in academic, technical and government selection processes and not always just conducted for internal selection.
GROUP
This format has been used heavily in hiring for junior positions or in a graduate intake process, however there have been cases where the group interview has been used at more senior positions.
Interviews have been known to last a few hours to even include an overnight stay and observations of candidates in various situations including formal dinners and social situations. Never assume that you are not being assessed . Sometimes the idea is to get you to relax, so they can see if you act differently when the interview hat is not on.
Although companies might be using this approach to aid seeing large numbers in a short space of time, most often it is to see interaction and leadership skills as well as reaction to pressure situations and scenarios.
VIDEO CONFERENCE & WEBCAM
The advance in technology and improved internet connections have led to the ability for interviewers to use webcams and other visual technology to conduct interviews. This is still in the early stages of usage but with companies now hiring around the globe and considering candidates from all corners of the world this approach is only going to increase in use and there are even companies now setting up in major cities with these facilities for hire on an hourly basis. Candidates need to remember that the technology is not in real time . There can be quite a lag in saying something and the person at the other end hearing you, so again you need to allow for lapses and silent gaps.
Also on occasion the video may be only one way – your picture going to the interviewer, but you cannot see them in return. This can be quite disconcerting as you are aware of your own body language but cannot get a feeling from the interviewer in reverse.
These interviews can be the closest you will get to the traditional face to face interview and should be prepared for and conducted in exactly the same way as you would for a ‘live’ meeting.
SUMMARY
When facing any type of interview candidates should:
- Always try to understand what the selection process is going to be.
- Establish what format the interview will take.
- Ask who will be present, at the least name and title.
- Be prepared – research, resume, results, requests.
- Get used to not being able to see reaction or get body language feedback to your answers.
- Hone your listening skills and eliminate distractions.
- Clarify that the interviewer has all the information they nee ded and ask what the next steps are going to be.
- Ask for the next step/interview or job.
- SMILE – even when no-one can see you, it still has an effect on you and the interviewer.
The danger for the candidate is that due to the talent shortage they believe that their talents are in demand and short supply and they do not prepare as much for any interview as they should.
The danger for the hiring company is that they want to make the right hire . While the traditional interview has not always been the best way to pick the right person, alternative approaches may make candidates feel uncomfortable if things are not explained clearly, or if too many steps deter the candidate from continuing the process.