WOW the news is NOT GREAT for Interviewers as well as Candidates

Have you EVER gone on an interview for a job and not extensively done research on the company you are interviewing with? Well here’s the first disquieting fact. About 40% of junior to middle management candidates and yes, a few seniors… don’t do nearly enough due diligence on the company they are about to interview with so as to give them the edge in the interview process. Even worse – some (admittedly more of the junior ones) don’t even take the time to go to the website. In this day and age where information is available at ones fingertips – Linkedin, Google, company websites and so much more, why would anyone sabotage their chances of presenting themselves in the best light; you want to appear knowledgeable and plugged-in, interested and impressive in what you know about the company interviewing you and keen to get the advantage over the competition. It’s simple, a smart and prepared candidate can parachute themselves to the top of the interview list and get the best positive result.

So interestingly enough, a very brief version of this subject-my concern about ill-preparedness for interviews was one of the subjects of my Linkedin postings profile yesterday (January 25^th). Love it when I get people reading what I have to say and “liking” what I have to say. Really love it when I can get a good dialogue going on a narrow career related subject I think is important but often overlooked. As a Talent Acquisition Specialist in Supply Chain, Executive Retail & Merchandising and Purchasing, I specialize in areas where the demand for talent is high and it’s so so hard to find great people.

So I was very interested to hear what some of the feedback was coming back from individuals about their perception about the preparedness (or lack of) of interviewers at some of companies they have met with throughout their careers. I find it exciting to have an opportunity to get a bird’s eye view from the candidates’ perspective of how they perceive the missteps taken from the interviewers end. So here goes:

I can understand the frustration candidates can feel when some interviewers and/or hiring managers have not taken the time to closely review the resume prior to the interview. The perception is that sometimes little upfront work has been done to prepare interview questions which come across as having limited interest in the candidate. The interview therefore never progresses to get down to the details of the role because time is being wasted on re-reviewing the resume which should already have been done. The feedback is that this routinely happens and it doesn’t reflect well on the company and is usually a deterrent in a candidate accepting an offer. Because this vertical (Procurement & Supply Chain) SCM is so tight, the onus needs to be pushed back to the employer to package their organization in as much of a favourable light as possible “this is why you should come and work for our company…”so knowing the resume well beforehand is critical (said one senior director). If a candidate feels they have to direct the questions in the interview because the interviewer can’t (which does happen when being interviewed by someone NOT in the hiring line), much credibility is lost and that’s not a good sign for the company.

Oh, and one last small but point worth mentioning because it comes up again and again. Interviewing in a public space like a cafeteria was reported as a resoundingly big NO-NO , candidates find the atmosphere off-putting and impersonal. And let’s face it’s a confidential interview and who knows who they know and the candidate wants to keep their interview with your company on the “down-low”.

I like feedback, not just the positive the negative is way more valuable. I hope that all of us use it to hone and improve our craft. I know I will.

I know there is alot more to be said about people’s experiences and welcome your stories or ideas for a blog. Please email me at bhann@argentus.com

Over and Out

Bronwen