Telephone Job Interviews - 5 Top Tips For Success
Telephone interviews are usually used as the first stage in the
screening process.
Although people sometimes get nervous about them, they're
actually a chance for you to make a great first
impression.
Being offered a phone interview is a really good sign. It
means the company is seriously considering you for the job. It
also saves you the time and expense of travelling to a
face-to-face screening interview.
Telephone interviews are normally quite basic, without too many
trick questions.
Typically, a company will want to get to know you a little - get
a feel for the personality behind the CV. They'll probably ask
you a few questions about your CV, work experience, skills,
background and why you want the job. It's easy to prepare for
this type of question, before they call you.
It's really important to take a telephone interview
seriously. It's more than just a chat: the interviewer will
be deciding whether to invite you to a face-to-face interview.
You should treat it as seriously as any other type of job
interview.
To prepare for a phone interview, it's critical to:
1. Set the call up for a time when you're able to relax and
not be disturbed.
This might mean asking to be called outside of office hours.
2. Don't do it at work.
You'll be too nervous to do yourself justice. And what
would happen if your boss walked in?
3. Dress as you would for a face-to-face interview.
Sit upright in your chair and hold the phone as you would at
work. All of this helps you present a professional image. If
you're at home, in your jeans and lounging on the sofa, you
could come across as being too laid back.
4. Really listen.
You can't see the interviewer, so you'll need to concentrate
on their tone of voice and what they're saying. You won't get
the visual clues that tell you what they thought of your answer,
so you'll need to put in the effort to listen to their response.
You might be surprised how much information a "pregnant pause"
can give you.
5. Think about your body language.
Try to imagine the other person sat on their end of the
phone and move your body as though you were looking at them in a
normal conversation. If you would normally smile, then smile.
This will help you avoid sounding "wooden" on the phone
In summary: as long as you take it seriously and prepare well,
you should breeze through the telephone job interview and make
it to the next round of recruitment.
To find out more about how to be a job interview success, visit
InterviewStuff.com