10 Things Hiring Managers Think During Job Interviews
Have you ever wondered what someone was thinking? The superpower of telepathy (being able to read another person’s thoughts) can be a treasure or a curse, depending on whose mind is being read.
The infamous spousal question, “Does this make my butt look big?” may be an instance where telepathy is considered a curse. During a job interview, telepathy would definitely be considered a benefit in gaging how the hiring manager is receiving you personally along with the information you are imparting to him/her. It would be great to know if we are giving the correct responses and details the hiring manager requires in order to make the offer.
While the job interview is all about you, let’s also remember that the hiring manager is only human and has his/her own life issues to deal with. So while you are eager to please and get the job interview complete and move on to the next steps, put yourself into the hiring manager’s shoes for just a little while.
Hiring managers are busy people, managing their teams, monthly quotas, customer issues, pleasing their own supervisor as well as many other deliverables. Having to fill a job opening can take time away from pressing responsibilities and in some cases can result in a loss of profitability. The pressure to fill an opening is real and in some cases is time sensitive, which only adds to the pressure.
Scheduling the job interviews can be an ordeal in and of itself. This may involve travel to the home office for the hiring manager as well as the candidate. Appropriate space to conduct the interviews must be reserved in the home office. The Human Resources department is often involved with scheduling along with the company’s travel department. Coordinating all of these schedules takes time. A job candidate doesn’t see all these balls-in-the-air. Naturally, they concentrate only on being hired.
The Human Resource department gives the hiring team an interview schedule containing all of the candidate’s names and interview times. Some organizations have a set of approved, standard questions that must be asked as well as approved by the company’s legal department. Many times, job interviews are scheduled back-to-back. This can be exhausting and mentally draining. Imagine keeping your excitement and stamina elevated for long periods as the same questions are asked and answered. The hiring manager wants to be as fresh and energetic for the candidate at 4PM as they were for the 8AM candidate.
Now that we’ve had a bit of empathy for the hiring manager, back to reading their minds! Let’s explore some thoughts that may be wandering around in their heads.
“Does this candidate really understand the role??” If you haven’t read the complete job description before the interview, shame on you. You will fall into a trap of questions you won’t be able to answer or will attempt to wing it and only dig a deeper hole, exposing the fact that you are unprepared. Competition for good positions is stiff and a hiring manager must make the best hire.
“Jeez. This candidate doesn’t seem excited to be here. Are they using this interview to practice and completely wasting my time?”
“Whoa! Hold back on the over-exuberance.” It comes off canned and really fake. Most hiring managers are pretty good at reading people and genuine responses. Loud, cheerleader-type, over-the-top energy is a turn off. Candidates like this (if they are really like this in real life), will wear thin within a team.
“You are reeking of desperation!” Sometimes if a job candidate has been through several unsuccessful interviews and still has no offer, they can lose their confidence and become demoralized. It shows in their posture and mannerisms. If they currently don’t have a job, financial woes may weigh on them and they bring that burden into the interview. As unpleasant as this may sound, this candidate may sound like they are begging for a job.
The hiring manager doesn’t know the ins-and-outs of the candidate’s specific situation. Additional questions can arise in their mind, like, “What is going on with the candidate? Did they possibly get fired from the previous job? Are they hiding something and will blow up in my face?”
“Take the drama to another stage!” The stench of drama! Drama kings and queens need not apply. Hiring managers use their “spidey-senses” to identify the smoke of drama. These candidates go on and on about why their previous jobs didn’t work out. Excuses abound in all they say. “He said. She said”, “Blah, blah, blah”. If this is the first impression they present, what will they be like in one year? This candidate will “stir the pot” and post it all on social media.
“How will this candidate make me look?” Of course the hiring manager wants to look good, so they want to make hiring decisions that will enhance their image within the company. The members of the team reflect the manager. The hire must be the best match for them and must augment the team.
“Can I really manage this person?” At the end of the day, the hiring manager will spend a significant amount of their life with a new hire. It is important that a sense of professional working chemistry is present. If a candidate comes across as a know-it-all and has to have the last word, then they will be perceived as hard to manage.
“I’m bored stiff. When’s lunch?” With a tight schedule, the manager may indeed not have eaten but if you are boring, the manager’s mind will naturally wonder. You must keep them engaged or they will view you as a lunch menu special.
“Please stand out!” Hiring managers interview so many candidates that they can all run together, especially if notes aren’t taken during the interview. The longer the span between interviews, the more difficult it may be to remember what was said besides the usual list of facts. You may be relegated to the “lady with the alligator purse” or “the guy with the crooked tie”. That’s no way to be remembered, so make your work success stories ring with individualism and uniqueness.
This temporary adventure into the practice of telepathy has given you a glimpse into the hiring manager’s mind. Some thoughts revealed were hard to hear but all knowledge can be useful, right? You now have no excuse not be prepared for your upcoming job interview.
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