We discussed last month how to interview someone. This month, we are going to dive into how to interview effectively. This will not be about how to answer a very specific question or how to write a resume that attracts employers – it is going to leverage my experiences with interviewing and explore what I learned.
The biggest misconception with hiring is that we can somehow extrapolate from a brief interaction with someone that they will be a good fit. It is a huge reach to say that asking generic questions, when someone may be either really good at answering or not very good, will reveal if that person will be a good fit for your organization. Reference checks are a huge reach to be a good validator of someone being a good fit as well. Handpicked group of people who are going to sing your praises to a potential employer is not a good indicator of someone’s strengths and weaknesses.
A more effective strategy of interviewing is seeing your body of work as an entirety. This is hard outside of interning someone. But it’s still very important for both the employer and employee. Both sides need to evaluate each other in regards to their ability to cohabitate. Some employers are very hands off and rely on intrinsically motivated people to develop on their own. This does not mesh well with employees who need a lot of guidance and support.
In a sense, as you are interviewing the employer, they are equally interviewing you. As an interviewee, you are trying to extrapolate whether you are going to be successfully working for this person. There are things like Meyers Briggs that create personality profiles. This has some nefarious outcomes in which you can potentially profile someone based on race, gender, or socioeconomic background. We would not choose our spouse off of a Meyers Briggs. There is a lot more that goes into a successful working relationship than just a personality profile.
As you interview, you have to evaluate how you would like to be managed. Then determine if you would be successful working in this environment. If you prefer an autonomous relationship with your workplace, and you have a micromanager as a boss, it will not be a positive environment. There are tells here – do they cut you off as you are talking? Do the other employees wait to do anything only based on commands from the director?
On the other hand, if you prefer more direct guidance and support, this may be a good thing. It may seem counterintuitive to evaluate if you will be a good fit for someone as the interviewee but it could be the best decision you will make in your career. You want continuous upward movement, and a bad match professional will stunt growth and limit upside. You have to look at it as sunk cost versus ROI.
If there are variables that are simply worth it more long term from working somewhere or for someone, that has to be considered, too. Short term, we will always need more money. There is potentially more risk involved with taking a lesser salary to work at a place that is more conducive to your long term development. But that risk could lead to more return in the end. If you feel when you are interviewing that this is a place you could see yourself getting much more out of, it may be worth taking lesser compensation for the long term growth.
A word of caution: be careful of a natural conversation during the interview. The more comfortable you feel during the interview, the less chance you can sell the interviewer on your ability. What will get lost are your skills and how you can bring value to the organization. There is an art here to being able to have a natural conversation while getting across your potential value to the interviewer.
At the end of the interview, you should be able to say confidently that you do want to work for someone or somewhere. The interviewer should be confident with your skill and comprehension of what will be expected of you. The idea is that you and the potential employer feel confident that you will be successful – if you cannot say that, look for another opportunity.