Recently, I conducted a poll asking people about their worst interview experience. What surprised me the most was that the majority of respondents did not talk about sweaty palms, or not knowing how to answer a question, or getting lost on the way to the interview. The majority of respondents told horror stories that demonstrated time and again that the interviewer (and sometimes the company) did not appreciate how impactful their behavior in the interview actually was.
We’ve all heard that an unhappy customer will tell twenty people about their experience. So too will candidates who feel mistreated tell people—and they may tell the very people you want to hire. After all, individuals in transition tend to drift together and share war stories. And when those people share a common industry or functional skill, the stories run more quickly than you can possibly imagine.
Since ultimately the best position for a hiring company to be in is one where they have the choice of several fantastic candidates for each position, it is incumbent upon hiring managers to remember that the interview is a two-way conversation. Not only are you evaluating the candidate for placement in the company, the candidate is evaluating you and the organization to determine if this is the right environment for them.
- Be Prepared. Time and time again I heard candidates say the interviewer hadn’t read their resume, hadn’t cleared their schedule sufficiently for the interview, hadn’t thought through the interview questions. “I think they are trying to show me how busy they are,” said one respondent. “But really, it just comes across as uncaring and unprepared. Why would I want to work for someone who is so thoughtless?”
- Be Polite. Another common theme in the stories of terrible interview experiences was of interviewers who were rude to candidates. “Why would anyone want to join the Navy?” asked on interviewer in a rather condescending tone. Another interviewer spent the time pointing out areas to correct on the candidate’s resume.
- Be Politic. Amazingly, I also heard stories of inappropriate and illegal questions or comments. And not just of the “Do you plan to have children and leave?” variety. One candidate was asked to provide a client list from the company she currently worked for. When she refused, the owner of the company where she was interviewing had the gall to ask, “How badly do you want the job?” (Not badly enough to give the client list!)
- Be Participatory. More than one respondent told of interviewers who spoke non-stop. “I could hardly get a word in edgewise!” I was told. “How can they know whether or not to hire me if they never asked a single question or listened when I spoke?” inquired on person. “It was ridiculous.”
- Be Positive. Just as you would not think highly of a candidate who spoke disparagingly of managers or coworkers, so candidates do not think highly of interviewers who are disparaging about their company or department.