Interviewing skills

Three Ways To Take Advantage Of A Hiring Manager Who Is Bad At Interviewing

April 9, 2013 By Katherine Burik

3 ways to take advantage of a hiring manager I believe most hiring managers are really bad at interviewing. This has been my personal experience and my experience as an HR executive.

Don’t believe me? Take an informal poll. Ask the next manager you meet (not in an interview of course!) whether they like interviewing people and whether they think they are good at it. I bet my next paycheck they say they hate interviewing and think they are probably pretty bad at it.

Are you surprised? Most people are. It is the dirty little secret of the hiring process.

Interviewing is a power situation. Usually the interviewer has the power and the candidate is subordinate. In any power situation it is natural to assume the powerful person is also good at his or her job. Not always the case.

If you (the candidate) are good at interviewing, can you have an advantage over the supposedly powerful interviewer? You bet.

First you have to recognize the potential crack in the power structure.

How can you recognize this opportunity when you are in the midst of palm-sweating nerves about your upcoming interview? By being calm, confident, and aware of what is going on around you!

I have some experience with this. I think there are 3 basic ways to spot a hiring manager who is bad at interviewing:

They tell you. In one interview the manager said to me at the very beginning, “I really hate interviews and I am not good at it so what do I need to know about you?” I shared my “tell me about yourself” then he said, “Great. Now let me tell you about this company.” And he proceeded to spend the next hour telling me everything I wanted to know and more about the company. I took the job!

They talk too much. In another interview early in my career I interviewed with four people who would be the boss and three colleagues. None of them asked me questions about my background. Instead they talked non-stop for hours. I nodded, uh-huh-ed, smiled, and agreed through every interview. They loved me. I took that job too!

They ask questions from the standard list of Frequently Asked Questions. In an interview for a low level HR position early in my career the Director of Human Resources asked only questions from the FAQs. I was totally prepared. I practiced ahead of time. I knew exactly what I wanted to say. The words rolled off my tongue exactly like I wanted. He accused me of sounding rehearsed. In my head I said, “uh-oh”, but my mouth said, “Of course I am rehearsed. I know exactly what to say because I thought this through ahead of time. Don’t you expect a good HR person to be prepared in every situation?” I took that job too!

I remember these interviews as if they were yesterday. I was able to read the situation and sense my opportunity because I was prepared. I never considered an interview to be a discrete event but as a way to get what I want. Sometimes I want information, sometimes I want to understand more about the people I would be working with, and sometimes I want to give the interviewer what he or she wants.

By being prepared you too can take advantage of opportunities presented by hiring managers who are really bad at interviewing.

‘What are YOUR hobbies?’

January 24, 2011 By Marta Goertzen

What Are Your Hobbies?

We help facilitate local interviewing skills workshops offered to folks enrolled at the local ‘One-Stop.’ (If you are looking for work, and have not visited your local One Stop – in our area called Employment Source – they offer solid resources and some very helpful, professional assistance. And, it’s free to job seekers! Okay, it’s not free, however, a very productive use of tax dollars.)

Kind of digressed; sorry. The backgrounds, experience, education and qualifications of these participants in our workshop will range widely from engineer to machinist to IT specialist to secretary to customer service representative. We’re asking panelists (local company recruiters) to prepare to give participants their typical questions that they like to ask candidates.

One of my panelists said that he likes to ask candidates ‘what are your hobbies?’ I’ve rarely used that question. However, his explanation made a lot of sense:

‘People who play team sports as a hobby – softball, basketball, volleyball– will likely work well in a team and probably handle client-facing jobs well because they are social by nature. Someone who runs competitively can usually be counted on to stick with jobs until they are completed, no matter the obstacles. A cook will be pretty creative and seek ideas and inspiration from others, and have the ability to synthesize information into something new.’

Hmmm. Good idea. Good question.

So what are your hobbies? And what do they say about you? Prepare a story or two, (remember: stories, stories, stories) answers to the ‘what are your hobbies?’ question. It’s a good question, and will tell the interviewer through your leisure-time activities what kind of person he or she might be hiring.

Finding a Job in City A While living in City B: Taking Action, One List at a Time

February 16, 2010 By Katherine Burik

Building Lists – A Great Tool for Me

I wasn’t always a list maker, but I can tell you, when you are looking for a job, lists work. The exciting part of deciding to live in a new city is deciding to live in a new city. You immediately have all these images and ideas about what your new life is going to look like, but getting from the decision to move to that life you’re envisioning takes time and demands action.

For me, I was still working fulltime when I decided to start looking for a job across the country. I had a lot of excitement, but I also had a lot of anxiety about actually being able to find a job. The thought of all the things I needed to do to make all of it happen felt paralyzing at first. I didn’t know where to begin. I started by buying a notebook, and making a list.

I knew I needed to talk to people, so the first list I made was a list of all the people I could possibly contact. I wrote lists of people I could ask to write recommendations or could ask to be references. I wrote lists of people I either knew or had heard lived in the city I wanted to live. I wrote lists of professional contacts I thought might have connections that might be able to help. I continued to add to the list as people suggested contacts or as I met people.

I also knew there were specific things I needed to do in order to teach in City B (this time in Virginia). I knew I needed to look into how to apply for a teaching license in the state. I made a list of items I’d have to secure before I could apply—transcripts, letters of recommendation, applications, trainings, forms to be filled out by others. I also made a list of deadlines I would need to meet, and made a list of questions I’d need to ask.

Last I made a list of districts I would target. I also made a list of things that were important to me—reputation, learning focus, location, accessibility, Next to the names of the districts, I wrote the websites for each district and things people had told me about each of the places.

The Secret of Three – Every Day

Once I had all these lists, I began choosing three things I could accomplish each day. That first day I chose one person I could contact, one transcript I could request, and printed off one application I could complete. The next day I chose another person to contact, another transcript to request, and I asked a colleague to write a letter of recommendation. Each day, it became my job search ritual, I made a list of three things I could accomplish while working fulltime, and by the end of the day I was that much closer to my goal.

Soon, my to-do list included preparing for interviews and then deciding between job offers. If you have questions or comments, let me know. I’ll be happy to chat about this process further. If you would like a coach to guide you in this job transition or ‘first real job’ process, request me. And look for my future blogs.