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In the classes I am taking about job hunting, the instructor talks about the power of small talk in the selection process. He says that most people who are invited in for the interview are about the same level as far as education, experience, and technical skills. What will really make the difference between one candidate and anther is how they interact with their potential supervisor and coworkers. If it is a social office they will always hire the person who appears nicer and will make their day more pleasant.
I am just shocked how few posters in this thread are accepting of ten minutes of small talk before the interview starts with all the technical and behavioral questions.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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Originally Posted by I'm Retired Now
In the classes I am taking about job hunting, the instructor talks about the power of small talk in the selection process. He says that most people who are invited in for the interview are about the same level as far as education, experience, and technical skills. What will really make the difference between one candidate and anther is how they interact with their potential supervisor and coworkers. If it is a social office they will always hire the person who appears nicer and will make their day more pleasant.
I am just shocked how few posters in this thread are accepting of ten minutes of small talk before the interview starts with all the technical and behavioral questions.
That may be appropriate for some jobs, but in many, if not most, there is little to be learned about how they would perform in the job and with 30 people to interview for one opening, wastes a lot of valuable time. We schedule an hour apart with a goal of 45 minutes actual interview/work sample project time to allow a little runover time and for time to review the next applicant's resume.
Here were the small talk topics I tried with applicants for about 5-10 minutes before I asked them about their experience with Microsoft Office, writing, editing, filing, etc.
The hot weather this summer
The nice art work in the lobby on the way to the conference room
The construction going on outside the window
The nice view from the window from the conference room
The slow commute I had that morning due to traffic
Misc misc.
That's just weird. A person shows up wearing business clothes, all primed for tough interview questions, and suddenly the interviewer acts like there is no interview and you are just going to chat about the weather. Plus, based on the topics above, those are completely bizarre things to "chat" about and I can't imagine what anyone would have to say about any of that. No wonder they "freaked out." Sounds like you were acting very strangely for an interviewer, and they probably wondered if it was some kind of joke. If you want to chat, why not chat about something relevant, like, say, hey, i notice you went X university, how did you like it there? Or I see you live in Xtown - I heard it's nice there, blah blah.
Most people who think a bit of small talk is a waste of time don't understand that business is about relationships and how you interact with your boss and coworkers in casual conversation can make or break your career. No employer wants to hire only robots, but wants people with personalities.
Some people lose sight of the fact that they are supposed to sell their character along with their experience and skills at a interview.
I agree. Unfortunately, this backfired on me in an interview a few months ago. While I was trying to "be personable" and show her I had a life outside of work, she interpreted this to the agency as my being "too talkative and not serious about the job." After hearing this, I replayed the interview in my head and could only recall two instances where I spoke about my outside interests and hobbies. Other than that, everything else we talked about was job-related.
I also didn't appreciate her planting that seed of insecurity in my head.
Most people who think a bit of small talk is a waste of time don't understand that business is about relationships and how you interact with your boss and coworkers in casual conversation can make or break your career. No employer wants to hire only robots, but wants people with personalities.
That may be appropriate for some jobs, but in many, if not most, there is little to be learned about how they would perform in the job and with 30 people to interview for one opening, wastes a lot of valuable time. We schedule an hour apart with a goal of 45 minutes actual interview/work sample project time to allow a little runover time and for time to review the next applicant's resume.
Damn. You're missing out on creating a great work culture. Finding the right personality "fit" is much more important than technical skill. Nothing can ruin an office environment more than people who don't mesh with the group. And why the heck are you even interviewing 30 people for one opening? LOL No wonder you don't have time!
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