|
Phone interviews are not much different from face to
face interviews, but some employers do continue the
practice for pre-screening candidates for actual
interviews. But the candidates' perspective varies
and many of them get unnecessarily tense about this
because of sudden adrenalin shoot up.
You
can turn the table around in your favor if you take
it in the right spirit and face it positively. The
following tips will help you understand the anatomy
and ways to handle phone interviews successfully.
Tips and Secrets of
Successful Phone Interviews
One
major difference between phone interviews and face
to face interviews is that you can't see each other.
Secondly, phone etiquette differs from that of
personal interview etiquette. Here are some tips to
phone interviews that help ensure that you get a
call for the actual interview.
1.
When you indicate your willingness for phone
interview, specify the time that suits you. This
allows you to avoid cell phone conversations. Using
a cell phone for an interview is a dicey
proposition, because of the possibility of dropped
calls, bad connections, etc.
2.
If you sense trouble with telephone interview, do a
rehearsal or a mock phone interview with a friend.
3.
Ensure that you are available at the chosen time and
that your voicemail or answering machine is turned
off. If your answering machine comes on, you might
annoy the interviewer.
4.
Be prepared at the specified time with your resume,
a list of your achievements, and pen & pad for
taking notes nearby.
5.
Make sure the kids go out; turn off TV or stereo.
Since you can't see each other face to face, short
pauses can become uncomfortable. The interviewer
might be thinking of an additional question related
to the previous one. Be patient unless you have to
ask something about the question.
Additional etiquette
tips are listed below:
1.
Don't do anything that could disrupt the interview.
Eating, drinking, smoking or over enthusiastic
talking all cause unnecessary interruptions.
2.
Never miss the call. If you are not home at the
appointed time, a human voice (relative) would be
better as an answering machine might annoy the
caller. If you think that you will miss the call for
some reason, ALWAYS call the interviewer before they
call and realize that you are not available.
3.
Ask for the caller's name and confirm it is for the
interview. If you have genuine reasons to reschedule
the interview, explain it at this stage and suggest
a new time.
4.
Use the person's title with his or her last name.
5.
It is fine to take a moment to think about your
answers. Enunciate clearly, making your answers
short and to the point.
6.
Avoid sneezing and coughing while on the phone and
when you can't avoid it, say 'excuse me'.
7.
Your smile can be heard over the phone. Smile as you
would do in an actual interview.
8.
Avoid answering in short yes or no answers. Always
elaborate if you can.
9.
Discuss the salary issue only if brought up by the
interviewer first.
10.
At no point in time should you get into an argument
with the interviewer over any issue.
Tony Jacowski is a quality analyst for The MBA
Journal. Aveta Solution's Six Sigma Online offers
online six sigma training and certification classes
for lean six sigma, black belts, green belts, and
yellow belts.
|
