Interviewing Inadequacies

Job Seeker's Story

Tina, a high school graduate, had worked in retail sales for two years and decided to transition into a clerical job so she could have regular work hours similar to her friends. Her ultimate goal was to be a Clerk Typist in a public-sector job. She was experienced with business word-processing and spreadsheet software, but Tina's typing speed was well under the 45 words-per-minute (wpm) requirement in order to apply for such a position. Consequently, out of desperation, she decided to apply for anything she could find in the want ads until she could land a clerical job and build her typing skills.

Tina's strategy paid off immediately. She located a want-ad announcement for a grocery store Cashier Clerk position at a large food chain in a nearby town. When she saw the high union wages mentioned in the ad, she went in to the store and applied on the spot. Within one hour she had an interview with the Jessica, the Human Resources Manager.

As Tina responded to Jessica's questions about her past retail job, she was beginning to imagine what she would do with her wages and how she would still have time to conduct a continued job search for a clerical job. Tina felt the interview was proceeding nicely when Jessica asked, “Where do you see yourself in five years?”

Tina immediately and proudly answered, “I plan on being a Clerk Typist with the City of Oakland.”

To Tina's utter bewilderment, the interviewer suddenly lost interest in her and ended the interview. Tina did not get a job offer. She had no idea why she had not been offered the job.

Job Seeker's Stumble

No matter the level of position, employers seek to hire applicants who will stay with the company as long as possible. Talent retention and talent development are very real issues for companies. In fact, according to the 2007 CareerXRoads’ Annual Sources of Hire Survey, a survey of a representative cross-section of companies and recruiters, internal transfers and promotions accounted for 33.9 percent of open positions filled. This source of hire (internal employees) was the top-ranked method for filling companies’ open positions. Consequently, indicating in an interview BEFORE you are even hired that you have no intention of staying with the company does not make you a viable candidate in the employment reviewer's eyes.

Job Seeker's New Strategy

The employer's target—his or her needs and concerns—need to be uppermost in your thoughts as you respond to interview questions. Not only the content of your message, but also the manner of delivery, has to “connect” with the interviewer both rationally and emotionally. A rational connection is one that reassures the employer concerning his or her needs (such as your ability to do the job well and produce results), as well as his or her concerns (such as your willingness to commit to the company and be loyal if given the opportunity for training and promotion). An emotional connection with the interviewer elicits rapport, confidence, and believability—all necessary factors in the final job-offer decision.

Using the “Where do you want to be in five years?” question, here is a three-step approach Tina could have used to respond that would have bolstered her candidacy:

1. Inform: Providing information (details) is rational. It allows the employment reviewer to “know” the facts. You provide the logical facts in the interview. Some are short answers to questions such as “What was your GPA?” or more detail-backed C-C-A-R stories to validate your skills and accomplishments. Most interviewees do not move beyond this step in their interview answers. For this step Tina could have said, “My plan is to stay with a company, such as yours, where I can develop my professional skills and grow as the company grows.”
2. Persuade: This is a rational and emotional step. Using quantifiers, for example, strengthens the factual (rational) content of your message and makes it more convincing (emotional). You are, in essence, bolstering your “story” to persuade the listener that you are to be believed—that you do possess the needed skills, strengths, attributes, and experiences to be the best hire possible. Weave in numbers, dollar amounts, and percentages to characterize your factual information, which in turn will boost your credibility. For example, Tina could have continued her response by saying, “Over the course of five years I would hope to improve my skill sets and take on more responsibility. Since I have led retail-sales teams of up to five employees to achieve record-breaking sales, I would like the opportunity to move into a team leadership role.” The delivery of your message can also serve to persuade the employment reviewer to “like” you as a candidate. If Tina had mirrored some of the interviewer's behavior, such as energy level, rate of speech, body posture, and eye contact, she would have “connected” with Jessica and made a more favorable impression. The likeability factor plays a big role in the final decision. If two candidates possess equal qualifications and accomplishments, it is the more likeable candidate (perhaps seen as fitting better into the team and company culture) who will be viewed as the superior candidate.
3. Motivate: This final step is totally emotional. In it you are attempting to get the employment reviewer (interviewer) to take action and make a decision that you desire—inclusion in the next round of interviewing or even extending a generous offer, for example. To round out her answer, Tina might have commented, “Since I have up-to-date computer skills along with two years of customer-service experience, I believe I could start immediately with very little training needed. How soon would you like to see this position filled?” Tina is clearly supplying the interviewer with the bottom-line logical reasons (saving time and money) for curtailing the rest of the interview schedule with other applicants and hiring her as soon as possible.

This three-step strategy incorporates both the rational and emotional components that are a part of the interviewer's decision-making process, whether conscious or not. By addressing both components successfully you will reinforce what is ultimately an emotional decision—based on likeability, culture fit, and personal branding—with rational, logical reasons to hire you over other candidates. The key concept to remember is that people “buy” because of emotion and justify their decision based on logic. This holds true for interviewers as well; after all, they are human too!