Interview Blunder #8 – Not Knowing The Company Name Or What They Do

A great way to screw up an interview is to show up completely unprepared. You would be surprised at just how many people show up to an interview with no idea what the company does, let alone the company name! Once I as an interviewer realize that the interviewee hasn’t taken the time to learn anything about the company, the interview is as good as over. Funny enough, the first question in these cases is one I can predict 99% of the time – how much does it pay? There seems to be a strange correlation between a lack of homework, and this question.

If this is a common tactic for you, I can assure you that this is why you are not getting offers. If you aren’t embarrassed by it, you should be. In a nutshell – correct it! The following are a few methods to use in order to make sure that you are prepared with understanding that the company does, a little about the interviewer, and the company’s name.

First, visit the company web site and Google the company name in order to pull up articles or related info. Taking a little bit of time to read about the company will not only give you a background of it, but should also prepare you with good questions to ask during the interview.

Follow the company on LinkedIn. Not only can you find some valuable information about the company itself, but you also can see company profile updates as well as updates regarding new employees who have joined the organization, and employees who have recently left. This can prove very valuable in getting a gauge on the culture, and the types of employees who are employed there.

There are instances from time to time where the name of theinterviewer/hiring manger is not provided. Don’t despair though because there are still ways to figure it out. We live in a Google and online world. You can literally find just about anyone or anything. With that being said, do a Google search of the company name along with key words such as the title (or presumed title) of the manager, or "jobs," "employment," "human resources" to see if a similar posting has been archived from the past with the contact name listed. You can also try searching LinkedIn and Facebook using the same type of clues. LinkedIn in particular is about the easiest method for finding someone – I do it all the time. IF those don’t work, pick up the phone and make a call to the main line of the company. Ask for the name of the hiring manager. Be conspicuous, and not too obvious so as to not blow your cover. Finally, there are an increasing number of search engines popping up such as Pipl, Wink, Zoominfo and Zabasearch. These sites are touted for being able to search deeper into the web than an engine like Google.

The moral of the story is that if you show up to an interview with no knowledge about the company, what they do, or even the name, you cannot expect to have success. Take 15-20 minutes beforehand, and do your research. This small investment of time could end up paying dividends.

Interview Blunder #6 – Turn Your Cell Phone Off!

Cell phones have been around now for well over a decade, so this blunder should go without saying. But believe it or not, it still is a problem from time to time during an interview. This is the easiest interview blunder to rectify; turn off your phone…..completely. Setting it to vibrate does not solve it; it can still be heard. Turn off your phone well before you enter the interview, and there will be no problem.

The message a cell phone ringing in an interview send to the interviewer is that you think your personal life is more important than the interview, that you don’t care about the interviewer’s time, and that you don’t take the interview seriously. This has never happened to me personally, but I did hear through a colleague in the industry a story of an interviewee who’s cell phone rang during the interview, and the candidate actually had the audacity to ask the interviewer if she could leave the room to take the call! I’m still blown away by this account.

If you do forget to turn off your cell phone, and it does ring during an interview, silence it immediately! Apologize to the interviewer, let him/her know you thought you had turned it off, and then take this opportunity to let him/her know you are now turning it off. If you don’t shut it down completely, you risk another call, text message or voicemail notification. A first strike may be forgivable; a second will not. Don’t blow an interview for a silly reason like this.

Are Reference Checks Eliminating You From Consideration In Positions You Interviewed For?

In a survey conducted by OfficeTeam (full survey here), it is noted that just over one in five candidates (21%) are eliminated from consideration after speaking to their professional contacts. More than a third of those surveyed (36%) said they were most interested in obtaining input on an applicant’s past job duties and experience. Second to this was learning about the candidate’s strengths and weaknesses (31%).

Managers were posed the question, "When speaking to an applicant's job references, what is the most important information you hope to receive?" A full breakdown of their responses are as follows:

Description of past job duties and experience	36%
A view into the applicant's strengths and weaknesses	31%
Confirmation of job title and dates of employment	11%
Description of workplace accomplishments	8%
A sense of the applicant's preferred work culture	7%
Other/don't know	7%
	100%

I can tell you from experience that when a handful of candidates are still in the running for a position, and all credentials and experience are fairly equal, reference checks often end up being the difference in the final decision. A bad reference can be damaging, so be wise who you choose to be reference prior to them being checked. I would rather talk to a reference who has hands-on knowledge of the candidates unique qualities, achievements and experience versus speaking to someone who holds a big title. Also, it’s not a bad idea to supply more references than required, and definitely make sure to get permission from the people you list. It reflects poorly when a reference is called and is taken completely by surprise.

I know people in HR departments at companies who have no qualms with calming any and all former managers, colleagues or personnel from the applicant company’s former HR department they can find. The reason of course is that most of the time a more candid picture will be painted by those who can serve as references but are not directly provided by the candidate. I have used this method to discover big discrepancies in the length of work service stated (by as much as 18 months), and in one case found out the candidate had never worked for a listed company at all! After one interview with a prospective candidate, there were enough red flags raised in the responses given that I was highly suspicious. That skepticism was confirmed when I contacted the Ivy League school the individual had supposedly graduated from and it was confirmed no one with that name had graduated, let alone attended school there.

But don’t be completely frightened by all of this because there are still a good share of companies and employers out there who do not take time to check a single reference. I don’t agree with it or advocate it, but it happens. In a couple of my previous jobs before being a recruiter, I worked for organizations that didn’t call a single reference. Be ready with solid references, but don’t be totally surprised if they aren’t ever checked.

As a last note, I addressed the issues of what prospective employers ask about in reference checks, and how to deal with bad references from previous employers. Both of these discussions can be found here.

Job Search Tip: Make Your Goals Realistic

It can be very taxing on job seekers as they embark on a job search. Often, and unfortunately, the necessity of such a search is brought on as a result of a layoff or reduction in force. This of course can cause emotions of low self worth or esteem which you hope to avoid because a big part of a successful job search is maintaining a positive attitude. Don’t compound the issue further by setting goals that are completely out of reach.

Successful goals should be measurable, attainable and specific. They should also be realistic, and not completely out of reach. Is it implausible to send out 150 resumes in one week? No. However, it’s a goal that may not be as productive as utilizing a mix of networking endeavors in combination with applying online for only those jobs that you are a good fit for. If you are sending out 150 resumes just to meet your number objective, you may not see the results you hoped for. Focus on quality, not quantity. This is where you will see better outcomes.

Keep in mind that goals are set to achieve an intended outcome; in this case a new job. Take it one step at a time, and actively and persistently work toward attaining it. Most of all, be realistic. It is wonderful to have high ambitions, but make sure they are attainable. Otherwise you will end up defeating the entire purpose – to get that new job that awaits you.

Are You Using Twellow As Part Of Your Job Search?

Although LinkedIn is still king, Twitter is up and coming among recruiters and hiring managers. Twitter should also be a medium you use as part of your job search. There are many great tools available on Twitter to enhance your job search, including searching for posted positions (http://www.twitjobsearch.com/ or searching #jobs) or networking by connecting with employees at a target company, Another great Twitter tool is Twellow, a vehicle that allows you to search Twitter profiles.

There are eight main categories to search, with subcategories in each. The categories include Recreation & Sports, Entertainment, Society & Culture, News & Media, Health, Computers & Technology, Government and Education. There are around 20 or more subcategories under each listing. You can search for a company that you want to work for, or can search people’s bios and URLs associated with their bios. There are numerous career advice experts that can be found by using the directory, and searching Employment > Career > Job Search. You may want to even find a group from an industry you are interested in breaking into, and ask people in that industry what they like about the industry, or how they broke in. Be creative, and the possibilities are endless.

Interview Blunder #5 – The Wrong Body Language

Body language often provides more insight about a person than anything articulated verbally. You can say anything you want; if your non-verbal cues don’t match, it won’t be believable. A couple of years ago I interviewed a candidate who claimed to be at a senior management level within the organization she worked for. This actually piqued my interest, because this particular organization was the subject of a reality show, and her department was featured quite often. I found it strange however that when I started asking more specific questions about people that would be her colleagues (based directly from the reality show), she began fidgeting with the cap on her bottled water. The further I probed, the worse it became. Soon she was sitting on the edge of her chair, and she would not make direct eye contact. It was obvious by now that she did not work in the department, or in the position that she claimed.

There were three body language cues she displayed, and each had an associated meaning. The fidgeting is linked to anxiety and unease; sitting on the edge of her chair is indicative of being physically or mentally uncomfortable; avoiding eye contact is connected to evasion and discomfort. Each signaled that what she had stated was not matching up with the truth, as a big portion of messages are communicated through body language.

It’s normal to be nervous, have anxiety and feel butterflies in your stomach before and even during an interview. Interviewing is something in and of itself that the majority of people out there do not enjoy. But just be careful not to let this anxiety get the best of you to the point where you are sending off non-verbal messages that will hurt you in the interview. Over time I observed different behaviors and body language cues, and would research the meaning of each new one I encountered so that I would be more in tune with what these cues meant. The following (including the three I mentioned already) are some that readily come to mind that you should be aware of as well:

Fidgeting = anxiety and unease

Sitting on the edge of your chair = physically or mentally uncomfortable

Avoiding eye contact = evasion or discomfort

Foot and Finger Tapping = stress, impatience or boredom

Slouching shoulders = lack of self confidence

Crossing arms = resistance or overconfidence

Looking at your watch = boredom

Biting your fingernails = anxiety, nervousness or boredom

Holding something in front of you = shyness or putting up a barrier

Shifting body weight = unease or discomfort

The fake smile = deception or lying

Now you can probably see quite easily how doing the opposite of some of these would convey a positive signal. For example, sitting upright with your shoulders straight shows confidence, and sitting comfortably in your chair shows you are at ease. It’s important to smile, but be genuine or it can appear to convey a meaning of deceit or dishonesty. With an understanding of what your body language is conveying, and a little training to correct the flaws, you will send a much more positive message to the interviewer. Something this important could be the difference between getting the offer or not.

Interview Blunder #4 - Bringing Up Pay & Benefits Before The Interviewer

I remember interviewing a candidate once who made a grand entrance into the room, sat down in the chair, and without being prompted let me know that he was not going to accept employment outside a specific range. He then proceeded to ask what this particular position was intending to pay. In hindsight I wish I had ended the interview right then and there. As we proceeded through the interview, my assessment of this particular candidate was not very good. By the time it was over, it was even worse. Although there were answers to questions suggesting a heightened sense of importance, the initial question from him about pay set the tone in a negative direction. It never recovered.

The best rule to follow for the issue of pay: let the employer bring up compensation. In an interview setting, this will work wonders. In order to negotiate the best possible salary for yourself, let your skills, background and qualities do the talking; if you do so, your chances for a higher offer increase significantly. There is a psyche, as in the case I just mentioned, about the perception of actually being interested in the job versus only being interested in what it pays.

Once the pay issue if brought up, be prepared to answer it competently. Prior to your interview, do your homework to see if you can figure out what the potential salary range will be. For your part, state a salary range instead of a specific amount. Make sure your range is realistic; you probably don’t want a range of $30,000, so staying within $5,000 to $10,000 of your target is much more reasonable. If you are not within the range they want to pay, either high or low, it’s probably not worth the time to apply.

I have seen companies that ask for salary requirements and then state a range of compensation based on experience. The ranges can fluctuate substantially, for example $70,000 to $100,000 depending on skills and background. The reason they do this is because they have not completely decided what exactly they want the position to entail. By evaluating a pool of applicants, they may be able to hone in on candidates that possess qualities they feel would best fit the company. Sometimes that means they figure out candidates in the $70,000 to $75,000 range will suffice; other times the $90,000 to $100,000 applicants appear to be the best fit. Don’t automatically assume that you fall at the top end of the range. More often than not I see the applicants who believe they are at the high end are in reality the ones who are actually at the lower end. They eliminate themselves quickly.

The bottom line for you as a job seeker is to do your homework, figure out where your salary range fits, and let the interviewer address salary and benefits first. Otherwise, you may also find yourself eliminated fairly quickly.