The JobSync Blog
Are You Giving Unintended Clues to Candidates in Interviews?
October 13, 2011
Throughout an interview and immediately afterward, job candidates are trying to decipher the content and delivery of hiring managers. Recently, U.S. News and World Report featured a blog on certain clues candidates should look for in an interview to help them assess how it went. These clues can equally be turned on their head and should be kept in mind by hiring managers who don’t want to mislead candidates or show them their cards:
- Did you discuss next steps and your company’s timeline with a candidate?
- Did you ask the candidate about his or her own timeline?
- Did you try to sell the position or the company to the candidate?
- Did you mention that the company has a lot of good candidates you’re talking with or that you have a lot of decisions to make internally before your company moves forward?
- Did you interrupt the candidate or look bored?
- Did you spend a lot of time answering a candidate’s questions in great depth and encourage them to ask about any reservations they might have?
- Did your interview run over the allotted time?
- Did you show the candidate around the office, introduce him/her to others, or suggest a future meeting with someone else on your staff?
Problems with presenting such clues typically arise when a hiring manager is simply going through the motions with a candidate with whom there is no intention to hire. Avoiding such problems couldn’t be simpler, and here’s a clue: Say what you mean and mean what you say. If that’s not possible, don’t say anything at all.
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