Interviewing Tips

One of the most significant parts of your search process is the period of mutual discovery when you meet a prospective employer and both parties formulate opinions of each other.

Carroll Technology Services  sincerely hopes this information successfully helps guide you through:

The Interview

Technical skills are what get you an interview but your people skills will separate you from the competition and get you the offer you want.

We think you’ll agree that you have one of two goals each time you go on an interview, either way you always want to make your best impression:

1. Get the best offer if it’s the company you want to work for (along with enough information to decide).
2. Impress the interviewers to the point they want to make you an offer even if you decide not to work at the company. Since you’ve invested your time and effort, you should at least make some positive contacts in the industry (remember it’s a small world).

Carroll Technology Services  has provided this for your benefit to assist you in the extensive preparation we know you will invest to perform at your best in order to achieve one of the above goals. The more you prepare and get excited about an interview, the better chance you’ll receive an offer.

• Be early (15 minutes is great – and will usually translate to getting started earlier)Shake hands firmly, make eye contact and greet each person you meet with a smile.Be courteous, upbeat and friendly to everyone you meet – even before your actual interview – you never know who they are or who they might speak to.Dress in strictly professional attire (Best to have freshly Dry-cleaned).Men – Dark suit with white (no pattern) shirt, black shoes, socks and belt and a tie with a simple patternWomen – Conservative, one color suit, skirt recommended. Neutral stockings and shoes.If you smoke – avoid during the interviewing and as much as possible before (smoke on clothing does linger and some people can be allergic)Perfume and cologne – use very sparingly (can linger on clothing and some people can be allergic).If you carry a pager or cellular phone, set them for silent (or vibrate).Bring several hardcopies of your resume (just in case someone doesn’t have a copy, plus it will help you fill out any application if there is one). Bring a black pen and a pad of paper to take notes.Enter total compensation where an application asks for salary, leave salary desired open.People generally enjoy their time most with others that seem interested in them and make them feel comfortable. Be happy, conversational, warm and at ease with a sense of humor. You want the interviewer to smile or laugh with you at least once or twice during the interview. Use the interviewer’s first name when addressing.A smile is contagious and if you smile often (especially while listening) you will remind the interviewer you are friendly. Being too serious and not smiling is a sure way to lose an offer.
• Body language is important. Sitting up straight and leaning slightly forward makes you appear attentive. Don’t slouch or sit too close, either might make the interviewer uncomfortable.

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Beginning  (the first 3-5 minutes per interviewer)

So you’ve arrived at the interview site on time and have a few minutes to spare.

• Each person you meet with in-person is a new interview and you need to carry out the following steps over again for each interview. Make sure you get the full name (with spelling). Don’t assume the interviewers will speak to each other between meetings – you need to make sure you are prepared to ask and answer all the same questions.

Each of these separate interviews will take place in three parts – beginning, middle and end.The first 30 seconds of any meeting determines the mood. Will you ‘hit it off’ or not. Studies show that most interviewers make up their mind on an applicant within the first 15 minutes. A warm, friendly smile and a solid handshake will set the tone. Maintain eye contact and smile often. Be totally positive. Do not express any concerns during the interview. Your concerns will be addressed after you secure the job offer.Most interviewers will start off with some small talk – How was the drive here? Find us OK ? Weather looks great/terrible, etc. Participate – this is an ice-breaker and a good time to relax.

After the chit-chat – the interviewer may drop a major bomb question on you. ‘Tell me a little about yourself?’ This is a very dangerous question to attempt to answer at this point since you haven’t been told what they are looking for. Since each person you meet with will have a different role and be looking for different attributes from you, it makes sense to find out as much as possible what those attributes are before describing yourself. The best way to respond to the ‘tell me about yourself’ question is to say: "As you can see I have …(give a 30 second overview of what’s already on your resume without committing to anything new) …– could you tell me a little more about the position so I can focus on those areas, I understand you’re busy and I don’t want to waste any of your time." Then LISTEN and take notes. Asking them for additional details arms you with their individual hot buttons, those attributes that need to be demonstrated for you to be qualified in the interviewer’s mind. Armed with the skill breakdown you prepared before the interview (in response to Questions to expect), you can now systematically address each point they said was important to them.

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Middle (20 – 45 minutes per interviewer)

This is the portion of the interview that the bulk of the questions and answers are given.

Spend 50 % of the time talking and the other 50% listening attentively. Be prepared to answer anything regarding your experience along with the Questions to expect. During this period you will reinforce the interviewer’s first impressions of your technical knowledge and personality. Maintain eye contact and smile often. Do not express any concerns during the interview. Be totally positive. Your concerns will be addressed and answered after you secure the job offer.

Misperception or misunderstanding is the single biggest reason people don’t receive offers and it can happen very easily. After all, regardless of the truth, you are only as qualified as the interviewer perceives you are. Be aware of situations that might lead to misunderstandings and try to limit them or respond accordingly. 
Situations to look for are:

• Monologue that lasts longer than 2-3 minutes because that is the maximum attention span you can count on.An interviewer receives a phone call (even if they don’t answer anything said while the phone was ringing is suspect)The interview is interrupted for any other reason (fire alarm, pen stops flowing or drops, etc.)
• If the interview takes place in the interviewers personal office there are many additional distractions possible (email notification, anything work on their desk, etc.).

Never give a one-word ‘No’ to answer a question. It shows a level on inflexibility and you never want to be labeled as a non-team player or inflexible. Examples of how this might come up: (all could be answered with a simple no but shouldn’t)

• Skills - You are asked "Have you ever done XYZ ?" Your answer, "No, but my skills in ABC are very similar and I feel the transition will be a smooth one."
• Personal - You are asked "Would you like to travel (or relocate or work 60 hours/week) ?" Your answer, "I haven’t given that much thought before – if that is necessary for the job, I would definitely have to consider it." You might only consider it for a split second and decide no, but you don’t know the real reason for the question – the interviewer might be using it to test whether or not you are a team player and not really as a viable qualification.

Road-block questions (the "what in it for me ? questions):
Never ask about compensation, benefits, possible travel or hours worked on the job. Remember that if you impress the company with what you can do for them, you will get the best offer possible. Other questions not to ask at this point are where you will sit, when they will send you to training, or when you have your next review. Any of these important concerns can and will be addressed and answered before you secure the job offer but after the interview.

• When asked your current salary, certainly disclose it. Try not to get pinned down to a desired compensation figure. Once they are interested in having you join the company you are in a better position to negotiate.
  If you give a specific $$ number you lose in one of two ways:

• If you ask for too much money you risk scaring the company off and elimination from consideration
• If you ask for too little money you may have left money on the table.

• When asked what compensation you're looking for, let them know that money is important, but not your primary objective. Tell them that if they're interested, you're sure they will make a fair offer and you'll consider any competitive offer.

• If they push you for a compensation figure, just remind them you were told Carroll Technology Services  had identified a competitive range and reiterate that if they're interested, you're sure they will make a fair offer and you'll consider any competitive offer.

Bring and use your Questions to Ask.

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End  (the final 3-5 minutes per interviewer)

This is a critical time because here you determine how you’ve done, are they interested or not (and if not what you can do about it). If there are any misperceptions (as mentioned before) this is the time to correct them.It is usually possible to sense when an interview is coming to a close. When that happens you should utilize the proven 4-point close that follows.

1. Ask the interviewer if they have any additional questions or if there is anything that they would like to hear more about from your background.
1. If the answer is yes – determine what you need to cover and answer it. Ask 1) again.
2. If the answer is no – continue to closing point 2).
2. Express courtesy. Tell the interviewer "Thank you for your time - I appreciate you taking time out of your busy schedule to meet with me"
3. Express interest and positive feelings. Remember the second goal you are trying to achieve with any interview – make sure you leave having left the most positive impression possible. Even if you still have some reservation or are definitely not interested, don’t express your concerns at this point. There is plenty of opportunity for Carroll Technology Services  to follow up with concerns, etc after the company expresses their continued interest.
4. Ask this question "Do you see a fit for me as part or your team/organization ?"
   This is a confident question but extremely effective at getting to the bottom any perceived shortfalls.
1. If yes – Ask what the next step is and again offer your interest. Don’t say too much else; get out of there on a high note.If maybe – This could mean no and the interviewer could be trying to let you down easy or there could have been a simple misunderstanding about your background. Your new goal is to determine the if cause for the interviewer’s hesitation is real or actually means no.
   This is a tense moment – break the tension with "Boy, that wasn’t what I was hoping to hear."
1. A common reason for a real maybe would be the company is interviewing a number of candidates or the interviewer needs to confer with multiple other interview-team staff. Tell the interviewer that you can appreciate those reasons but you can’t control those things and want to make sure there is nothing about your background that could be stronger.If the interviewer does not offer what seems like a real reason, ask them "what would make me a better fit" and then listen.
1. If you have the skills mentioned – Say "I’m glad you brought that up, we never got the chance to discuss that – here is what I’ve done in that area" and then describe it.
2. If you do not have the skills mentioned – Do not try to fake it – Say "Yes, you’re right, I’ve never worked with . . . directly but I love to learn new things and if you speak to my references I’m sure they’ll tell you that I learn and come up to speed quickly."

Once you’ve addressed the maybe, follow up by repeating closing question 4).
If no, which is almost unheard of, follow the same process as for maybe.

Once you’ve addressed the no, follow up by repeating closing question 4).

Maintain eye contact and smile often. Do not express any concerns during the interview. Be totally positive. Your concerns will be addressed and answered after you secure the job offer. to top

Call your recruiter as soon as possible. Write out your thank you note (with the names of all the interviewers you met with) and mail it.

We will make every effort to follow up with a client immediately after we speak to you. It is important for us to relay your interest to the client when we follow up with them. Your concerns will be addressed and answered after you secure the continued client interest.

You may be required to return for another interview. Carroll Technology Services  will make every effort to convey the importance of expediting any remaining requirements before the offer stage. Please be patient and relay all pertinent information regarding your developing situation to your Carroll Technology Services  representative so we may better serve your needs.