Interview Strategies that Lead to Job Offers

Host: Dr. Jennifer Hunter, Assistant Director for Family and Consumer Sciences Extension, University of Kentucky 

Guests:  Dr. Caroline Francis, Director of Alumni Career Services and Amanda Schagane, Associate Director of Alumni Career Services

Episode 37, Season 2

0:02 Welcome to Talking FACS; what you need to know about family, food, finance and fitness. Hosted by the University of Kentucky Family and Consumer Sciences Extension Program, our educators share research knowledge with individuals, families and communities to improve quality of life.

0:21 Dr. Jennifer Hunter: Hello and welcome back to Talking FACS. This is your host, Dr. Jennifer Hunter, Assistant Director for Family and Consumer Sciences Extension at the University of Kentucky.

Today, I'm pleased to have joining me, Caroline Francis and Amanda Schagane, Director and Associate Director at the University of Kentucky Alumni Career Services Center. Thank you both so much for joining us today.

0:42 Dr. Francis: Thank you.

0:43 Dr. Hunter: Today's topic is interviewing strategies that lead to job offers. I think this is so important because once you make it through the résumé review process and that you actually have your foot in the door, that that is truly someone's time to shine.

So, let's get started and talk about tips for someone that can help them be successful in obtaining a job offer.

1:10 Dr. Francis: We really enjoy working with clients when they get to this stage and helping them prepare for their interviews. You've made it this far. So, they like you, obviously, if you've been invited for the interview.

When you're called to come in for the interview or sent an email, there’s a few tips we'd like to share with our clients to have the interview be the most effective possible.

The first would be to ask for a full job description. Often, when you apply online, it's a very abbreviated job description. So, ask for the full job description so you can best prepare.

Also, inquire about the interview format and the names of the people that will be interviewing you. That way you can prepare, learn a little bit about their background, and Look them up on LinkedIn as you get ready for the interview.

Additionally, for preparation before the interview, just read everything you can find on the company or the employer, starting with their website. Know their website backward and forward, and then just do some Google searches; why are they in the news? Also, look up the company pages on Facebook, LinkedIn and other social media.

It really should take you a few hours minimum to prepare for the interview. Also, writing out some responses and practicing some responses to common interview questions would be good time and preparation spent well.

2:43 Dr. Hunter: As you mentioned, just at the very beginning, about asking for a full job description. That's not something that I have ever thought to ask an employer. But it is something now; my current position of when we interview that when people come into the interview, I often hand them that full job description at the very beginning.

But it would make so much more sense if they had requested it beforehand, because I always follow it up with saying that now, I know that you cannot take all this information in while you're here. So, after you go home, when you have time to process it, if you have any questions, feel free to give me a call.

But I can just see how much better the interview would be if they truly had that information beforehand and the dialogue and the conversation that we could have.

3:23 Dr. Francis: Yes. Another tip we often recommend is to prepare a leave-behind orbusiness portfolio. So, after you leave the room, after your interview, the employers still have a sample of your work to look at. So, it's a good piece for them to come back to.

Inside of this leave-behind or business portfolio, you would include some samples of your best work, any good press that you’ve received about those, good performance evaluations, recommendation letters, program descriptions; that's your brag book.

3:53 Dr. Hunter: And I am going to say that it's not very often that I have someone that will prepare to leave behind-piece. But when we do, it really does set them apart because we know that they have taken the time, that they've invested in understanding the position, that they've identified the skill set that they can bring to the position.

That really, truly it says that they're willing to go above and beyond, which is often what you're looking for in an employee.

Again, it's not done very often, but I can think of instances where it has been done and those were the individuals that were successful in receiving the job offer.

4:28 Dr.Francis: Absolutely.

4:29 Amanda Schagane: Absolutely.

4:30 Dr. Hunter: Next, it's helpful to just be prepared for different types of interview questions. You can Google sample interview questions and come up with all kinds of good questions that you can practice.

But from the very beginning of the interview, the first question you'll likely be asked is tell us about yourself. And this can be tricky. However, it sets the stage for the rest of the interview.

So, you want to begin with a strong answer. And that question really is not about your life story. It needs to be concise and two to three minutes. A little bit about your past that's relevant, little bit about your current situation and then why you want to work for that company. So, you are on from the very first question.

Sure, throughout the interview, the team is assessing your likability and if you would be a good team player and enjoyable to work with. But you want to, in a concise format, let them know that you have the skills, the training that you can meet the job description. So, the “Tell me about yourself question” is a good place for that.

5:32 Dr. Hunter: And I think that such -- At least, individuals think that it's such an easy question that often they overlook it. But I can think of several examples of answers that we receive that they tell us about maybe playing high school baseball or things that are completely irrelevant to the position that they're applying for and that they are much removed from that stage of their life.

But people do seem to revert back and truly tell us fully about themselves when we would prefer maybe that more concise answer of directly about how they themselves relate to the position at hand and the skill set that they bring.

6:07 Dr. Francis: Yes. Additionally, we would like for clients and recommend that people prepare for behavioral or situational interview questions. And this can be challenging if it's been a while since you've been on an interview, but you will likely get some behavioral or situational interview questions.

They are scenarios that you would likely face on the job; “Tell me about a time when you had to deal with an angry customer.” “Tell us about a time when you had to meet a tight deadline.” These are examples of behavioral or situational interview questions.

And the selection committee -- The theory here is past performance is the best predictor of future performance. So, they're trying to see how you would respond in a common situation that would be challenging in your new role.

So, just remember the acronym STAR. When you're crafting your response, you're going to tell a very specific example where you describe what was the situation or task you faced. What action you took and what was the result, quantifying whenever possible.

So, if you remember to use the STAR format, when answering these questions, you'll do just fine.

7:20 Dr. Hunter: I think that's such a great tip of just helping folks understand about behavioral-based interview questions because those are the type of questions that we typically ask and you can definitely tell when someone has practiced and you can find, as you said, all kinds of examples online of what those questions may be.

But you can tell if they've practiced or they reviewed questions or maybe they've just been part of a behavioral-based interview before so that they're more comfortable. But you can also tell when it's someone's very first experience with hearing this type question that they take a lot more time before they answer the question, that they might stutter some through it or have to come back to it later. That it really is a mind shift from maybe traditional interview type questions.

8:04 Dr. Francis: Another way to prepare would be to think about a few of your accomplishments; your career accomplishments that you're really proud of. And write those up in the STAR format. And they may be used possibly in the interview to answer a behavioral-based question.

8:19 Dr. Hunter: Let's talk a little bit about the closing interview question. We often like to ask, “Tell us why you would be the best candidate for this position.” And people really struggle with that question. I think it catches them off guard more than anything. But is it common to have a closer type question?

8:38 Dr. Francis: It is. And even if the selection committee does not formally ask you that question, we encourage clients to be prepared to close the deal.

So, in essence, to prepare for that, think about what are two or three of the reasons why you feel you should be the number one candidate, why you should get this job.

And at the end of the interview, take control a bit, if you're not formally asked that question, and thank the selection committee for the interview opportunity and then share, “There are three reasons that I would like to leave with you today on why I am a good fit for this job.” And you can mention each of the three reasons.

These are things you could have thought about in advance of the interview, or if they seemed to really be interested in pieces of your work experience or a skill set, then you can substitute those in for your three.

So, it does help to be able to sell yourself. Often, interviewers tell us after the interview they can't quite tell if the person really wanted the job.

9:42 Dr. Hunter: I've had that experience.

9:44 Dr.Francis: Some of that maybe nerves, but we have to sell ourselves. We have to let them know. If we truly determine this is a job we want, we have to sell ourselves.

9:56 Dr. Hunter: Excellent. Other strategies that you all may have for successful job interviews.

10:02 Amanda Schagane: One question that comes up sometimes, even by the candidate, is to ask about money. And often, that's surrounded by some discomfort.

In general, the candidate should not be the person to ask about money. But if in an interview, the employer asks what your desired salary range is or your desired salary, you want to be really careful about your response. Because if you give a response that's too low, they may take you up on the offer. If you give a response that's too high, they may not be able to afford your talent. And so, you want to have a range prepared, then do your research before.

A few resources that we usually recommend for clients are to do a quick search on salary.com and payscale.com so that you can make a really informed range, if you're pressed to give range. In general, try to avoid that if you can.

10:49 Dr. Hunter: I do think that the salary discussion is always uncomfortable in an interview and it's awkward. It changes the tone and that it really, I think, would be best for the person interviewing to wait and have that as a follow up conversation. So, if they make it to the next round or when they call to offer the position as opposed to --

Because typically, that's going to be at the end of the interview. And you want to end on a high note and it often changes it to just being a very awkward note.

11:16 Amanda Schagane: It can often come off as presumptuous too.

11:19 Dr. Hunter: That's true.

11:20 Amanda Schagane: Yeah. It’s good.

11:21 Dr. Hunter: Last tips that you all may have for us?

11:24 Dr. Francis: Practice interviewing. It is easier, the more you do it. Be able to sell yourself. Always think of two or three reasons why you want the job and why you're a good fit. We've got to help the employer out. We have to help the selection committee see that you can hit the ground running, that you have what they need; you’re going to solve their problems and make their life easier.

And then definitely follow up with a thank-you note to ideally each person on the selection committee. And soon as possible, I would send the thank you note.

Also, be sure you know the next steps before you leave. You'll have a couple of questions that you would like to ask the committee prepared. One of those would be, “What are the next steps?” “Can you share a timeline on this process?” And that way you'll know when to follow up, if you haven't heard by their deadline.

12:17 Dr. Hunter: That was one question that I had to ask you all before we wrapped up was about the questions at the end of the interview. So, often the floor is going to be turned over to the candidate, “Do you have any questions for the search committee or about the position?” And I'm often surprised that the number of people that just say, “No.”

And to me, in their interview process, that's a little bit of a turnoff, because I do, as you mentioned earlier, want someone that's done their homework and if you've done your homework, you should come in with questions about the position or the organization.

Tips that you all may have on asking those questions at the end of the interview?

12:52 Amanda Schagane: Sometimes candidates make the mistake of thinking that the interviewer just one-sided. But as a candidate, you should be evaluating if this employer, this organization, this role is a good fit for you, too. And if you don't ask good questions, you may not know.

Having good questions is a way to showcase that you've done your research on the group. Ask about how their office culture is, if they happy-hour together, if they lunch together; all of that can be really telling to decide if that's the type of work family that you want to be part of.

13:18 Dr. Hunter: I think the point that was made earlier about sometimes you leave an interview and you think, “Did they really even want the position?” That when someone does not ask questions, I think it kind of feeds more into that, because if they really wanted it, there has to be something that they want to know about the job or about the office cultures, as you just mentioned.

One other question, as you were talking about follow-up and you mentioned the thank-you note. How soon or in what method should someone send a thank-you note?

So, you mentioned as soon as possible, but should that be sent electronically as an email or should it be a handwritten card in the mail?

13:56 Dr.Francis: Part of it's driven by how soon the selection committee is going to be advanced into the next steps. An email is fine; I prefer handwritten note. If they're going to be making a quick decision, it never hurts to have some thank-you notes in your car. Go out to your car after the interview, write the notes and bring them back in and leave them with the receptionist.

14:16 Dr. Hunter: Oh, that is a great tip, because often, you do make decisions fairly quickly, especially if you're going to a second round of interviews of who might be moving on. But again, if you just look at above and beyond effort, that would be above and beyond effort.

Wonderful. Thank you both so much for joining us today.

14:34 Dr. Francis: Thank you.

14:35 Amanda Schagane: Thank you.

14:36 Thank you for listening to Talking FACS. We deliver programs focusing on nutrition, health, resource management, family development and civic engagement.

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