|
>> Entering
in the room
Enter in the room with due permission of the interviewer.
Shake hands firmly and wish the interviewer as per time of
day. Radiate your confidence with smile. Dress conservatively.
Be always on time. Be a stickler for promptness while answering
the questions with aplomb. Spontaneity is the buzzword. Remember
the interviewer's name.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> Body Language
When the interviewer tells you to sit or gestures you to sit
down then do so after thanking him. Look alert. Sit up erect.
Maintain eye contact with the interviewer all the time. Speak
with confidence and assurance. Interviewers like candidates
who are not shaky but are enthusiastic and responsive.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> Straight Answers
Answer questions openly, spontaneously without holding back
and beating about the bush. Yet be direct and to the point,
avoiding long, drawn-out explanations. It never pays to present
answers made up of miscellaneous or incongruous ideas.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> Keep it Simple and Straight:
If put on the defensive (e.g. "Why do you shift jobs
so frequently?" Why are you changing now?") answer
as simply and succinctly as possible. Keep smiling.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> No carping
Don't dwell on carping and caviling at faults of manner of
previous or present employer.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> Be courteous
Do not smoke or chew gum during interviews. It shows the disrespect
towards interviewer. Do not ask direct questions about salary
or other benefits at the beginning of the interview. Do not
slouch in the chair, tap your feet, play with eyeglasses,
pencil, or fidget nervously.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> Learn about the company
Do your homework and learn as much as you can about the company
and the job requirement.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> Start from the basics
Prepare and rehearse common questions and answers. For example
- What was the nature of your job? What special skills did
you acquire? Were any special goals were set for you? What
was your day was like on your job? What were your strengths?
Weaknesses? Why are you considering leaving your present job?
Why are you interested in this company and how can you contribute?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> If you have it, flaunt it
Ergo, stress your achievements. For example: Processes developed,
sales records achieved, systems installed, absenteism reduced,
product or production improved, etc.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> Leave the door open
Never tell the interviewer that you are not interested in
the job. Leave the door open. The first interview is not the
place to turn down an offer. Do not tell about interviews
you have had or plan to have.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> Ask for the Job
If you are favorably impressed and know all the details of
the position, then ask for the job.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> Say thanks while concluding
the interview
While concluding the interview, thank the interviewer for
the time and consideration given you. Ask when you should
meet again to discuss the position further. It often takes
several interviews to obtain the job offer. Ask for a business
card and give yours in return.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> Don’t be anxious
There should be no room for anxiety even if you need the job
desperately. (The company wants someone who is a winner and
in demand.) Don't give the impression that beggars can never
be choosers. Ask questions about the position -- show your
serious and genuine interests in the duties and responsibilities
of the position.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Besides the interviewer is no less perplexed
over the knack of interviewing.
Modern industry is highly complex and work
life in general, has generated an increasing awareness of
interdependency of tasks / roles and the need to understand
the individual’s preferred / dominant patterns of behavior,
particularly in relation to people and in groups.
Knowledge and skills assessment alone have
been shown up to be inadequate in predicting success in roles
/ organizations. This is further aggravated by the fact that
presence of knowledge / skills is no guarantee that they will
be deployed as desired.
Personal Interviews as a tool for Selection
and internal sourcing, while being the most popular, promises
much but often suffers on many counts.
Not enough interviewers are trained in the
art of interviews. They are not prepared in advance; the process
is often led less by the interviewer’s ability and more
by his confidence in his judgment of people. They tend to
play pop psychologists.
Not enough time is invested in the process
to look for evidence and consistent patterns of behavior,
extrapolations, assumptions and conjectures are made about
how a candidate is likely to be / behave from limited data
about the candidate. Interviewer’s own world-views, biases
and prejudices (personal stances) affect his judgment. Focusing
on what a candidate "knows" to the near exclusion
of a good probe on "what" a candidate has done,
"how", and the nature of his interfaces with others
and the world at large.
Standardization of interview items and sequence,
rigor in established benchmarks for responses and appraisal
of responses is shunned as tedious, impractical and at best
insipid and monotonous. The bottom line is: Comparisons are
difficult and choice making is largely subjective, the "feel
good" factor dominating the decision.
It is now well established by research that
an individual’s values, motives, traits and other components
that constitute the core of personality have a more enduring
influence on patterns of deployment of energies and
behaviour. Factoring these in decision making on selection,
fitness and development planning thus makes sound business
sense.
Assessment tools developed by experts to
profile aspects of personality provides a reliable basis for
data generation about individuals and is time / cost effective!
Professionals help in the absence of relevant training to
interpret results of these tests is a useful step.
|
