Salesman For a Day

Control the Emotion and the Content, or what to do before you get to the first impression!

Persuasion rarely is about offering what people need. By having a deeper understanding of people's hopes, desires, expectations and so forth, persuasion makes it possible to offer what they truly want, what they dream about. In the professional setting of the job interview persuasion is about solving the hiring manager's set of problems. Typically in regards to these problems the manager has strong feelings. It could be brisk enthusiasm about the prospects of the company or frustration with the low quality of the monthly reports, or deep concern about the future of the strategic function within the division. Each and every new position comes with a job description, but what you will never find in this job description is the higher ranking problem that the manager and the company are looking to solve at the moment. Successfully guessing, or assessing what this problem might be is your first step towards assuming control over the emotion and the content of your job interview.

Fact: Linking Marketing Metrics to financial consequences is the number one issue keeping Chief Marketing Officers up at night! In other words their main concern is trying to justify their expenditures and their existence.

The first step towards a good first impression then is not just to research the company -- you will need to really immerse yourself in all the available information. You need to learn not just what it says on the company's web-site, in the latest press release or how their stock has been doing. You need to find out what is the likely leading business problem the hiring manager is concerned about. Even if your position will not be charged with solving this problem, you need to have an understanding of what is on the mind of the person you will likely be reporting to. It is a tall order and most of the time there will be no direct information to help you with this. You need to do a lot of second guessing and this is why the more educated your guessing -- the better your chances you will guess correctly. Because when you have, then you possess the key to making your best first impression and effectively executing your own agenda i.e. persuading the interviewer that you are the best candidate for the job.

Hiring Director: "So, tell me a little bit about yourself! I see you are coming from a Marketing background."

John Runner: "Yes, indeed I am and in the last 3 years I specialized in linking Marketing Metrics to financial consequences. Further I have a Babson MBA with minor in finance and 5 years of industry experience and this is why I believe I will be a perfect fit for this position."

Question 6. What Was Your Greatest Achievement and How Did You Accomplish It?

This is the heart of a behavioral job interview. This is where people prepare most and this is where it gets most personal. It is not about the team, or the department, or the company - it is about you. You need to tell the story of what you had done. So candidates who have difficulty talking about themselves and especially difficulty "bragging" about their accomplishments can be at a disadvantage. Another issue usually comes when a candidate has prepared multiple answers and does not want to limit herself to just one "greatest" achievement. In this case it may be a bit easier if she would use the count-down approach. It would go somewhat like this: "Among the top 3 thing I accomplished as a manager, was this one project, where ... Another accomplishment I am really proud of is ... And the number one accomplishment in my professional career so far is ... !"

OK - now here is what the interviewer is really trying to learn about you, when asking this question:

1. The greatest achievement question is usually pretty straight forward to answer and most recruiters are really looking for examples of past behavior as a predictor for the future employee you will be. Often the "how did you accomplish" part is omitted in the question, but make sure you give it as part of your answer. The circumstances of a simple month-end general ledger close can sometimes provide enough drama, which in turn would show how great you are.

2. Sometimes discrepancies and warning signs will pop-up and raise red flags in the mind of the recruiter so watch for relevance in your answers. If you are applying for a store manager position and tell the interviewer that your greatest accomplishment was the punk-rock CD that you produced and recorded in your basement a couple of years ago - it would be pretty obvious where your heart is.

3. What you consider an accomplishment is also another helpful way for the recruiter to tell about your business and professional goals. People tend to speak about what they like, so if for instance a candidate describes a managerial project as her greatest accomplishment, then this is usually a pretty good sign that she liked being a manager.

Question 5: How Would Your Boss Describe You?

This is another trick question and if you are not prepared - it may take you by surprise. This is the type of mind game that some job hunters thrive on, and others dread. There are recruiters that will actually first verify that your ex-boss is listed as a reference. Then they will ask the question and take notes and then would call the ex-boss to compare. But most would only ask the question as a fun way to open a discussion about personal and professional qualities. If you are not prepared though - you may not be able to see the fun in this.

OK - now here is what the interviewer is really trying to learn about you, when asking this question:

1. It is not about the ex-boss, but about how you would see yourself through the eyes of the ex-boss. It is one thing to say how you feel about yourself and it is another to say how your supervisor may have felt. It is often relatively easy for a recruiter to see if the candidate is prepared for this question or not. But preparation is not necessarily what they are looking for - it is the unique insight. I had one person say to me in an interview, when answering this question "He would probably describe me as a bit lazy!"

2. With your answer you will reveal a lot about your professional and personal value system. This is valid no matter how prepared or unprepared you are. The way you approach your answer will highlight what you think is important in terms of professional qualities and this is what the recruiter is really interested in.

3. If the interviewer sees that you are surprised by this question she would be able to see also how fast you think on your feet and how comfortable and confident you are with your message. Your confidence and quick reaction may have a bigger impact than what you say. As Marshall McLuhan put it -- the medium is the message.

Question 4: What Were Your Personal Responsibilities?

This is the real deal now. With the answer to this question you will have the opportunity to go for the touchdown ... or drop the ball altogether. This is where you describe what you did on a day-to-day basis, the projects that you owned, and the work that you put in. How do you shine here? It can be quite simple if you focus your message on achievements, on results, on the things that you changed and improved, while owning your work. Give a lot of examples and be specific. Instead of "Prepared the monthly productivity reports" you could say "Decreased by three days the preparation time for the monthly productivity reports, while in the same time increasing accuracy to 100%". You get the picture?

OK - now here is what the interviewer is really trying to learn about you, when asking this question:

1. When asking you about your prior responsibilities, the recruiter is examining in detail what kind of employee you are going to be. Will you be proud of your work (then, you would probably speak with pride about past accomplishments)? Will you be confident and assertive go-getter? Will you be a problem-solver, or merely a problem register, etc.?

2. In my experience the hiring manager will often have a mental list, or even one on paper, and will check off each of the responsibilities for the position she is looking to fill. Sometimes she would even ask clarifying questions, which could be great clues for the attentive job-hunter. If you cannot decipher anything, or prefer not to change your game plan - your best bet is preparation based on the job-description. This is why it is so important to have as much of a detailed job-description as possible. You can not do too much here and you can go as far as setting up a prior informational interview with someone in the company to help you get more information on the key responsibilities.

3. The recruiter is also interested in the overlap between your skills-set and the one needed for the position you are applying for. This would include any type of skills - from mere understanding of excel, to the finer points of the emotional intelligence required in an increasing number of places. Also - are you over or under-qualified? What is the expected learning curve?

Question 2: at This Point in Your Career What Would Be the Perfect Job For You?

Now let me start by clarifying one thing - yes, this is a trick question. Every time you hear this question you have to be able to answer without a blink: "This job is the perfect job for me!" Here is how you do this. You look at the job description and start listing down answers to the question why this job is a perfect match for your background. It is very important to list your business reasons, and not personal reasons, like "I really dig the salary for this type of job!" In addition - try to keep your answers under the section "What I can do for the company!" and avoid the section "What the company can do for me." Once you have the list of reasons 'why' then you will be able with confidence to say to the person you are interviewing with: "This job is the perfect job for me, because ...!"

OK - now here is what the interviewer is really trying to learn about you, when asking this question:

1. First she wants to know if you had done your homework. Do you really know what this job is all about? True - most job-descriptions are standard, vague and provide few specifics about the job. Yet there is enough for you to relate to. Here is another opportunity to impress by highlighting specific achievements from your background, that illustrate why this is the perfect job for you.

2. Your energy level is one measure of your enthusiasm for the job, and the answer you give to this question is the other measure. The recruiter wants to know if you truly want this job. They assume that if you do - it will show in how you approach the answer to this. If you have prepared your list with 'why this is the perfect job for you' - I can guarantee you the recruiter will like your answer.

3. Over-prepare, but don't overdo it. The recruiter will see through any cliche, or borrowed answer. It may look great on paper, but if it is not your true reason for wanting the job - better avoid it.