Phone Interviews: Five Tricks for Standing Out

I talked to a candidate today who faced the challenge of acing the telephone interview. Many think they are masters at phone interviews...but you would be surprised how many peopel are truly bad at it! Since it si typically the first impression you are giving the hiring authority or teh HR employee who will either give you the thumbs up or down...beefing up on your telephone skills never hurts! This article, courtesy of Monster, covered some pretty basic, but good reminders for interviewing on the phone. Enjoy!

Phone interviews are a useful tool for potential employers -- the conversations help screen candidates quickly and determine who’s worth a face-to-face meeting. So when you’ve sent out and uploaded your resume online, it’s essential to be ready to kick booty when the phone rings. Here’s how:

Know what you speak of: Make sure you have a copy of your resume, the cover letter you sent and the original job description in a folder near your phone. It’s also nice to add information about the company, the person who may be calling to interview you and any potential questions you know you’ll want to ask. Be sure to be armed with a pencil and paper for taking notes.

Rehearse your responses: Prep for the conversation by thinking about the job and the qualities a candidate must have. How do your strengths match up? What are your weaknesses? Anticipate questions you might be asked and consider how you’ll answer them. Bounce ideas off a friend if you’re concerned about a particular aspect of the job description or use Monster’s Advice Forums to gain information from others in that industry.

Watch your language: In a phone interview, it is important to speak slowly and clearly. Remember, the quality of your conversation and your ability to answer questions is all the interviewer has to go on over the phone. Keep the “ums,” “ahs” and “you knows” to a minimum (think about the Caroline Kennedy debacle. Don’t use slang or other informal language.

Think before you speak: Take the time you need to answer the interview questions completely and thoughtfully. Be sure not to interrupt or begin answering the question before the interviewer has finished speaking; there may be more to the question than you realize. If the interviewer calls at a time that is inconvenient for you, while you’re at work or in a noisy environment, arrange another phone meeting in the near future.

Ask for a meeting: If you feel the interview has gone well, be confident and direct enough to request a face-to-face by saying, “Would it be possible for us to meet in person and continue our conversation? I’d really like to have the opportunity to meet you.” If the interviewer says no, or shies away from making a commitment, be sure you understand what the next step will be. Will they call if they want to meet you? E-mail? If you are out of the running, will they let you know? Taking the time to close the deal proves your competence once again. Understanding the next step will help you sleep easier at night -- always a good thing when you are on the job hunt.

Email Address

I am consolidating email addresses and websites and also eliminating the use of the Prolyn name. Being an independent recruiter, I figured it makes more sense to brand my name versus a company name since "I" am the company. I have done this with a new business venture of mine and have found that it makes sense for people to remember my name versis some company name that doesn't necessarily reflect what the company is all about. Many of you know that I am veering away from Building Materials due to the hardships the industry has faced with the downturn of the economy. It has been sad to see so many great and talented people leave this industry, but also understandable! While my focus career wise has me doing a few different things myself right now in roles I probably never would have imagined, I can honestly say it's a nice reminder to be doing things that I enjoy amd that offer me a diverse job roles in a few completely diofferent arenas. Recruiting will always be one of my passions and as such one of my focuses. I am just not sure in what capacity and all the details of that yet. The fun part is figuring that all out! Please use my caburns@comporium.net address from this point forward. I will have email forwarding on from the old email address for quite some time, but want you all to get used to teh new emails address. Telephone number stays the same. Website is down already and will probably be using none other than my name as my domain for website. There is nothing posted there yet however. : )

Hope everyone is enjoying the Fall and hopefully what will soon be the start of a great new year with lots of new jobs opening up for many of you! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving! : )