3 of 3

Write now Article Tools

Page 3 of 4

to face or over the phone, be familiar with the candidate's experiences. Make notes in the margins of his or her resume or attach your thoughts on a post-it. By writing your thoughts ahead of time, you won't have to rely on your memory to tailor follow-up questions or find explanations for omissions or apparent discrepancies. For example, if Jane Doe has been named to multiple patents and helped to bring some of those products to market at her last MDM R&D firm, then you can tie those experiences to questions that can assess her teamwork philosophies and also her aptitude for navigating the product approval process.

This is also a time to look for red-flags. It is worth your time to find out sooner, rather than later, if your otherwise talented candidate has personality or ethical problems that could prove toxic to your company. Having Ms. Doe explain why she has worked for three companies in the last seven years may help you assess if her career decisions have been prudent and based on her intrinsic motivation to grow and succeed, or if she has a hard time working with other people and often needs to move somewhere new. Spending fifteen minutes carefully and thoughtfully reviewing an application before the interview will let you tailor questions to an individual, and may save you time in the long run.

5. Choose the Best Setting -
While you certainly don't need a corporate feng shui expert to design your interview space, selecting a room with bright, comfortable lighting will keep everyone more alert and make the interview more productive. Also, setting up the interview area so that you can see a clock without turning your head away from the interviewee will allow you to budget time during the process without appearing to be bored. Consider placing a clock on the wall directly behind the interview chair. Your interviewee will have no idea that you are keeping track of time, but you will be secure in the knowledge that you will conduct a quality interview and not lose your entire afternoon in the process.

6. Set the Mood and the Tone -
Take about two minutes to discuss non-work related topics and make the situation more comfortable. After establishing the friendly tone, you can take control of the meeting by transitioning to work topics. Explain what your job is and what your role is within the interviewing process, and then discuss a basic overview of the position. This will put your interview subject at ease, express how professional and experienced you are in

• << previous page
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about How to conduct a winning interview in a short period of time?
We want to hear your view. Write now!