The interview process can be a demanding situation that requires thought and planning for the employer as well as the person being interviewed. There are many people around the world who undergo interviews. Interviews are required to learn if the person is the right fit for the position. The job market is competitive and without an interview the wrong candidate could be chosen resulting in poor work ethic and a bad fit for the team. An interview is defined as a formal meeting in which one or more people question, consult, or evaluate another person. Interviews are not only used for employers to gain information, but also for reporters to obtain information on a story. There are many factors to determine before attending the interview so being prepared, organized, and professional is crucial.
Employment interviews are a prevalent choice exercise from various perspectives. In most companies in the universe, the interviews
...remain to be amongst most utilized ways to evaluate applicants for occupation (Mydat, 2013). Among administrative decision making processes, interviews have proved to be the evaluation technique usually favored by administrators and human resource managers. Additionally, applicants see interviews as a just method in comparison to other selection techniques. From the interviewee viewpoint, securing an employment interview is basis for occupation search attainment.
Also, the interview has been prevalent subject among scholars for about a century and is still getting substantial exploration interest. Particularly, various Meta-evaluate have shown that âstructuredâ interviews can reveal comparatively higher standards of rationality without the ill impact usually found with intellectual capacity trials (Hathaway, 2006). Although much is learnt concerning interview, the present researches indicate that there is more to b
discovered.
Benefits of the Employment Interviews
Interviews are usual employer selection devices that gives an opportunity to showcase the employerâs manners and capacities in a confrontational situation. The employee might be anxious due to the interview pressure, but if a person has the credentials and interest for the employment, the interview is themarketingchance. Employment interviews have benefits such as:
- Personal Interaction
This is the main benefit of an employment interview. The employees have an opportunity to present him or her in the finest manner possible, with personal demonstration. An employee can utilize individual merits to build relationship with the hiring panel. According to Lipovsky (2012) the usual core thinking for interviewers is whether they would like to work with the interviewee. Also, this is the chance for the interviewee to illustrate his or her communication skills, which are normally amongst the most noticeableeasyexpertise employers, assess when making deciding whom to hire. - Spontaneity
The interviews offer employeesâ opportunity to showcase their capacity to depart writing and answer queries freely. Mydat, (2013) asserts that the interviewing panel check the clarity of thought through employee reaction, in addition to the specific information they share. Various interview queries are utilized to assess employee creativity and thinking capacities. For example, âhow do you handle challenges in your job? Such a question the hiring panel can employ to see the way an employee can analyze previous experience and deliver illustration in a conceivable, but authentic manner. - Performance
The way an employee performs in an interview matters a lot. An employee may be the best candidate based on the paper qualifications, but fail to be hired depending on how he or she performed during the interview. This
implies that an employee has to dedicate time to research the firm and position, and hence formulate a plan to position himself or herself ("Prepare for Job Interview Questions", 2016). In case one fails to perform well during the interview to secure the employment opportunity, there might be no other chance to fight for such position.
Firms usually attempt to formulate objective analysis device for interviews to evade any view of discrimination or unfairness. Even with the impartial devices, the recruiting panel makes independent analyses of the candidateâs responses. A candidate may be self-confident when answering questions, but if the interviewees do not acquire a good ambiance or feel as if the interviewer have the capacities to perform duties, it does not matter ("Prepare for Job Interview Questions", 2016). This is the reason for structuring personal understanding to whatever degree probable to offer a candidate a higher chance to win the interviewee panelâs heart.
Types of Interviews
A few decades ago hiring was not complicated as today; an employee was required to just submit the application to the company. Thereafter the manager or the hiring personnel would arrange a face to face interview. After the interview the employee would secure the employment or not. Nowadays an incredible character has escalated on employing, selecting, and contracting skilled applicants (Mydat, 2013). With the added number of people participating in the employing course, there are various kinds of interviews that an applicantparticipate prior securing the employment.
Various types of interviews include:
- Basic background screening
Some employers do their background screening from other firms. One member of the hiring panel may call or engage one person from the firm that the candidate was
employed to gather information such as academic account, legitimate names, and the position held by the candidate. This is usually a five minute interview.
After a candidate has submitted an application letter, he or she may be called by on the hiring member. This kind of calls is usually meant to ask the applicant the reason the applied position, his or her strength and expectations if hired (Lipovsky, 2012). The caller at times, quotes payment to ensure that the applied post earnings are within the expected range. In some instance the candidate may be contacted through mail and be requested to answer some questions, or participate in a personality or capacities screening examinationvirtually.
Complete telephone interviews, mostly lasts half an hour, but at times may take even an hour or beyond based on the complexity of the post. Complete phone interviews are normally done by the staff who would be overseeing the candidate in the new post (Hathaway, 2006). These kind of interviews are objectively detailed and are usually utilized by employers doing countrywide or regional explorations to fill their posts. Even though telephone interviews can be wide-ranging, nearly all employers utilize a face-to-face interview before offering a job opportunity to a particular candidate.
Face-to-face interviews are usually the most worrying for job seekers, as they are required to be in the interview room on time and looking presentable. Face-to-face usually take half an hour or one hour. Basing on the complexity of the post and the organization of the firm, a job seeker may have already attained several footracesitemized above before ever having a chance for face-to-face
interview (Mydat, 2013). Contrastingly, some firms conduct a sequence of face-to-face interviews through employing diverse stages of management till the correct applicant has been chosen. Some firms employ both methods: preliminary screening applicants and putting them in various circles of subjective interviews.
Things To Do Prior the Employment Interview
According to Jensen (2014) the more understanding a candidate have about the firm and the position applied, the more composed the candidate will be before the hiring panel and hence the higher chances of securing the vacancy. Therefore, it is important to prepare various things before the interview to raise the confidence to face the panel.
The things to prepare include:
- Â Study the position exclusively
Dixon (2015) says that a few days before the job interview; the job specification should be the candidateâs closest friend. Studying the position more closely will help to understand the skills the hearing panel may be looking. Prior the interview explores job description and select several most significant roles or skills you have acquired either through the position held before or internship Hathaway (2006) says. This will help a candidate to answer a question like âHow will you improve the performance of the company if you will be hired - Research the firm
Even if the candidate learns a lot about the firm during the interview, it is beneficial to explore some things before Hoevemeyer (2006) advices. For example, understanding the firm mission statement and culture through various platforms such as website will increase chances to secure employment. Lipovsky (2012) adds that nowadays firms do not just employ the rights workers, but also the right people. Therefore, being culturally fit will help the candidate to get employment.
The more the candidate will discuss the position with many people, the higher the knowledge will be gained. A candidate may discuss issues concerning the position with the school alumni holding similar positions. However, it would be more beneficial if the candidate may get time with an employee of the prospective company to discuss some issues, not just about the position applied but for the entire firm too. Such discussions are beneficial as a candidate will be exposed to company norms among other things.
An interview should not be one-sided questioning. Jensen (2014) advices candidates to prepare a kind of speech present before the hearing panel if the will be asked to talk more about themselves, it is equally good to have some questions. The questions may include some duties of the position applied, the firm and the interviewerâs experience at the firm. Such questions will indicate how a candidate is interested in joining the firm. However, a candidate should not ask questions about things already explained in the job description or that can be retrieved from the website.
During an interview the way a candidate gives out the answers is equally important as the answers themselves. Body language and attitude speaks a lot. Smith (2010) encourages that since this thing does not occur naturally to everybody, a candidate should spare some time to rehearse, may it be in front of a mirror or a friend. He adds that interview is the chance for the candidate to prove how professional he or she is. Also, pre-interviews will help a candidate to erode the doubts
and anxieties and hence face the hiring panel more confidently.
Clothing and Attire
First impression talks a lot about a candidate, hence dressing appropriately is a bargaining tool for the post applied. The dressing itself shows how responsible and cautious a candidate can be depending on the situation at hand ("GSA Employment Interview Service", 2006). Therefore, when choosing how to wear the following should be put into considerations:
- Firm culture
Mostly the firms have established a culture that new employee should be willing to emulate immediately after employment. For example, it would appear awkward for a candidate to wear t-shirt and jeans while the employees are used to suits. All the same, it is inappropriate to wear suits when attending an interview in firm that employees are used to casual wear (Jensen, 2014). Also, the nature of work should be taken into consideration when deciding what to wear for an interview. For example, dressing code for construction workers is not similar to that of health workers. - Match the interviewer
Mostly the interviewer will dress according to how they expect their employees to wear. Therefore, when planning things to before the interview it important to research how the interviewers expect their employees to wear. Hathaway (2006) asserts that the dressing mode is not just meant to impress the interviewers, but also gives a candidate confidence if he believes he is groomed the way he is expected. - Appear neat
A candidate should ensure clothes are clean and well ironed. If the clothes are wrinkled or dirty they would attract interviewers to other finer detail or invoke the poor impression and feeling. Wearing clothes that are well fitting helps a candidate to be
comfortable and appear in an interview more relaxed. Also, a candidate should clean and shave hair well or have a manageable hair style. Lipovsky (2012) says that perfumes and aftershaves are not prohibited when attending an interview, but he advises they should be used sparing.
It is better to wear one colored clothes than printed ones. A colored cloth may be communicating a message that a candidate may not be aware of. However, an interviewer should know the boundary between what is smart and stylish and dress accordingly. If an interviewee must have accessories he or she must choose them with a lot of caution. For example, if he must carry a bag, a small bag would be more appealing than a big one. Lipovsky (2012) says it is inappropriate for an interviewee to have accessories that will distract interviewers.
Employment Interview Analysis and Methodology
Although there are various ways of acquiring employment analysis data and selecting and selecting ways that are most suited depends on the requirements of the position available. Usually the ways focus on work-related information, but when various methods are employed candidate that is most suited is selected. Choosing an appropriate work analysis method is dependent on the organization of the firm, management structure, nature of the vacancy available and pros and cons of the vacancy (Smith, 2010). There are various employment analysis methods as discussed below:
- Observation method
Interviewee panel observes an interviewer in terms of performing and unperformed duties, presentations, academic qualifications, experiences among other observable things. It may appear the most simple analysis method, but it is the hardest, reason being each person has a unique
way of observing things. Everybody is influenced by his or her dislikes and hence any inclination on various matters (Dixon, 2015). However, work analysts may induce equal observing capacity through training.
This is another commonly used analysis method during the interview. An interviewee is presented with a form containing some questions. The problem with this method is that it is prone to bias, hence when questions are being formulated they should be well thought of (Hoevemeyer, 2006). So as to get the correct work-related information, the administration should ensure effective communication to the employees and assure the data gathered is for their own benefit (Jensen, 2014). It is vital to tell them that the information will not be used against them in any way. However, if not done in the right way it will not give the expected results.
What To Expect After the Interview and Steps To Follow
Only several job seekers are hired immediately other are contacted later. The time to receive the response depends on the nature and the complexity of position and number of applicants. However, an applicant should give himself or herself a reasonable period to expect the feedback. If no feedback after that period, the applicant can go back to the firm to inquire his or her fate. More so, is advisable that an applicant should ask when and how to expect the feedback before leaving the interview room (Dixon, 2015).
Immediately or few days after the interview it is good to send a brief thank you note to the interviewee. Thank you note will serve as a way of expressing interest with the post. Most applications do not send thank
you note, hence any applicant who sends it stands a chance to defeat others. If there is no any reply after the given period or self-set period. It is advisable to call firm or the interviewee, but it should not the first day after the interview (Hathaway, 2006). In case the firm does not reply to the call follow, there is a chance they are not interested in hiring the applicant, hence he or she should focus on the job hunt to other companies rather than being discouraged.
When following up an applicant should be clear he wants to know about the applied vacancy and if informed the chance was given to another person he should express gratitude for being chance to attend an interview. Being positive can give an applicant a chance to be considered if an opportunity arises. Lastly, the applicant should request the interviewee to tell him why he was not selected. This will help to know the weaknesses and focus to eliminate them in future interviews ("GSA Employment Interview Service", 2006).
In the past one decade job interview researches have been going on and giving the impression that âstructuredâ interviews are more productive than âunstructuredâ ones (Smith, 2010). From this perception, it is clear this research have focused on various components of employment research. However, to have a wider perception of employment interviews the research may include features such as the ones that show how the interviewer's decision may be measured, applicantsâ effects after both failing and passing the interview, and the concept of interviewer to the interviewee.
References
- Dixon, D. (2015). How to Nail the Job Interview. The ASHA Leader, 20(5), 32.
- Farr,
J. (2005). Next-day job interview. Indianapolis, IN: JIST Works.
- Career Choice essays
- Career Goals essays
- Career Plan essays
- Community Service essays
- Dream Job essays
- Duty essays
- Employee essays
- Internship essays
- Interview essays
- Job essays
- Job Interview essays
- Performance Appraisal essays
- Portfolio essays
- Service essays
- Skills essays
- Vocation essays
- Work Experience essays
- Work-Life Balance essays
- Immigration Reform essays
- Self Assessment essays
- Self Evaluation essays