A lot of important events in my life have started with a simple interview. I say simple because they are so common, not because they are easy. I bet I have done 50 plus interviews over the last 10 years between awards, scholarships and jobs. Out of those 50 I could tell you my best and worst interview without a second thought. With interviews being so common it’s only fair we looked deeper into the effectiveness behind them when relating to reliability, validity and utility. While we hear so much about how to be successful as an interviewee, what we don’t hear about is how to be a successful interviewer. My best tips would be, review the applicants material. They put a small amount on their resume, but they have more skills they can expand on if asked. Nothing makes me feel more confident and recognized than when asked to expand on something off my resume. Interviews need to have structure, there should be questions that are open ended and about the company. Going in with a plan is a must but entertaining conversation and letting the pace flow will let it naturally develop. Interviewees feed of your body language and comments. There needs to be eye contact when they are speaking without starting into their soul. Smile and nod your head when they are talking. Things I discourage that an interviewer does it have pre interview judgement based off the given applicant material or word of mouth. This will affect how you act in the interview even if you’re not trying to. Lastly, while I can agree first impressions are extremely important on both ends, try to conduct a fair and positive interview because sometimes first impressions are altered by the circumstances or environment and can be faulty.
Sources: Lecture 3: Improving Interview Effectiveness
Week 5 – Learning Materials: HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT (MGMT_453_X400_U2022) (oregonstate.edu)
