What can you learn from a 30-min interview? (employees, tips, job)

[psichick]

I have had quite a few 30-min interviews, or phone screenings if you will. The conversation ends with the person saying they're really excited about my background/experience/etc and will forward my resume to the person who'd be my boss, but then I don't hear back or fall out of the running altogether.

I'd love to find out what a hiring manager can learn in those 30 minutes.

Typically, we go over my resume, what the job will entail, etc. Obviously, I know I'm not a perfect fit for all the jobs, so some I understand. Others, not so much.

[jade408]

I hate phone screens with recruiters. Because you are never really sure how much they know about the job and how much they will understand the "lingo" if you go into details the hiring manager will care about. Or if they are looking for buzzwords.

A couple of tips:

1. Have a 2-3 minute pitch on why you are great for the position (that sums up your career)
2. Reframe your answers to hit the bullet points in the job description, with an example of something you have done at work/personal life that the company is looking for
3. Ask one really good question that shows you did some research on the company

And tip 4: try to get around the recruiter. Most job postings mention who the hiring manager is. Use linkedin and see if you have a connection to the hiring manager and reach out to that person directly with a great cover letter.

[Itz]

Here is one thing I've earned about "recruiters" within companies: They don't know anything about the job being advertised! In most cases. They pick a resume that they think looks great, has the skill sets that the manager is looking for - but... the hiring manager gets the resume with the screened question/answers and shakes their head while on their way to talk to the recruiter.. Seen it, been there.

So, don't get to down on yourself about it.

When talking to the recruiter or any other first interview people always keep the job description handy to refer to it constantly! Keep your answers 100% relevant to the posted job description. Find out about a company before the interview i.e. look up their website, what does the company do, are any big projects posted, what about their financial filings. Tailor your answers to the company, to their systems, and to how well you would fit in!!! This can require some quick thinking so if you're not an off the cuff thinker - prepare some canned answers that you can tailor to other companies.

[psichick]

Here's another question then...how do you know if you're talking to the hiring manager or a recruiter? I know I've talked to both. Some know more about the position than others.

One more question, is there way to look at LinkedIn without an account? I don't want to create one.

And thanks you two for the tips. I think so far I'm doing all the above. Need to polish it up though I'm sure.

[jade408]

Originally Posted by psichick

Here's another question then...how do you know if you're talking to the hiring manager or a recruiter? I know I've talked to both. Some know more about the position than others.

One more question, is there way to look at LinkedIn without an account? I don't want to create one.

And thanks you two for the tips. I think so far I'm doing all the above. Need to polish it up though I'm sure.

Create a linkedin account! It is a great way to get a new job, and practically required these days. And you get a wealth of info about the company.
#1: you can find the job title of the person who is contacting you, 90% of recruiters have a profile up
#2: you can use the factoids you find out about the hiring manager to connect with your interviewers
#3: more job postings that are really really targeted

If you are scared, keep your profile private. But being honest, many recruiters start at linkedin for new employees. Some do not even branch out (this also depends on the kind of work you do.)

I know I need to work on my recommendation strategy. I need to get more. I have loads of connections, but few recommendations. I haven't really taken the time to "look" for them either.

Back to your question? I just go on linkedin and figure out their job title, if it isn't on the email they send! Otherwise, it depends on the company size. Typically for places under about 30-40 people, you'll talk to a hiring manager. Somewhere around 50 they start to hire recruiters. If the job requires a really specific and hard to find skill set, they might hire an outsourced recruiter/placement agency, even in a small company, for a high value position.

[psichick]

Thanks for the info. Yeah, LI and I don't mesh well. To me, it was always a "who's most popular" type of social media outlet. I mean, did I really need to "connect" to people I didn't even like, just because I worked with them? And how much arse did I ned to kiss to get a recommendation? And would it be worth anything? I finally just shut my account down. Too personal and too childish. Granted, this was WAY back when and I know it's maybe a bit more than that now.

I'm an executive assistant, I highly doubt people are looking for those on LI (dime a dozen), unless you work for the CEO of a multi-million/billion dollar company and are damned good. So, if I make my profile private, and someone searches for me, can they even find the profile, or just not see it?

I think I'm just very anti-LI. I'm a very private person, even FB is a stretch for me and all I talk about on there is my dog (I feel bad for my friends, LOL).