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Interview
Tips
Understanding
the Interviewer's perspective
Most
of us are by now familiar with the various do`s & don`ts of
interviews. If not, there is always plenty of interview tips floating
around us all the time. Tips on how to be punctual, how not to
be anxious, when to answer, when to stay quite, how to do one`s
homework on the organization, how to send a thank-you note after
the interview, how to impress the interviewer and so on.
In all of
this religious interview-preparation, we forget a rather important
thing however – the anxiety of the interviewer, who has the
power to hire. Anxiety? ” What on earth should make the powerful
anxious?” you might ask. Let us remind ourselves for once
that with power to make decisions, comes accountability for the
decisions made. Hence the interviewer is anxious to make the right
decision which is to hire the right person.
A statistical
research once indicated that fact that 95% of the time when we
think we are being watched in public , we are actually not .Because
every other person is busy wondering if he or she is being watched.
This is precisely what happens with the interviewee. As an interviewee
we are so worried about being “watched” that we forget
to watch.The only thought is desperation. “I need this job.”
“Will I get the job.” This way you are creating an image
of yourself as the “job- seeker”.
It is important
to understand that you can project yourself as a resource person.
That is , rather than “I need this job” , you convey
“I need this job AND I am needed for this job.” The
danger here ofcourse is self-promotion. What is advocated is not
an aggressive stance but a non-meek & non-defensive one. Which
means – Do not just approach the interview as an opportunity
for the interviewer to understand & evaluate you. The interview
is also an opportunity for you to understand & evaluate- the
interviewer & the company & the position that you have
applied for.
Interviewing
is no science . Hence the interviewer inspite of following the
best hiring practices may not make the perfect decision. There
are a lot of questionsin his mind thatwill remain unanswered,
however long an interview may be. They come through only once
you begin working with the organization. Questions such as :
•
Will you put in full working day regularly ?
• Will you stay around or quit
the job early & suddenly?
• Will you take long to master
the job & become profitable to the company?
• Will you get along with co-workers
& boss?
• Will you try & get away
with the minimum?
• Will you display initiative
or wait for every response?
• Will you turn out to have
character flaws: laziness, irresponsibility, incompetency, sexually
harassing, gossiping, drug or substance abusing , lying, incompetent?
These unanswered
questions definitely keep the inteviewer anxious .Very mouch so
sincethese answers hold the key to whether you are the perfect
hire or not. The kick-backs of a bad decision, of an imperfect
new-employer are varied.
•
Boss of hirer displeased
•
Brings discredit to dept/ section/ division or even company’s
loss of face.
•
Possibly costs the would-be-boss his raise or promotion.
•
Monetary loss in hiring a bad employee
Once you realize
that the interviewer is under stress as well while conducting
the interview, the entire process becomes less intimidating. Remember
no organization wishes to antagonize a worthwhile employee. So
go ahead and don`t forget that there is two of you who want the
interview to go the right way- you and the interviewer. Good luck!
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