Recently in Interviewing Category

Q:  Should I ask about compensation and benefits at an interview?  What other questions should I ask? - Scotia, NY

A:  Benefits yes, compensation, maybe not.  A good way to get an idea of how a company will take care of you is to ask "If I am brought on board, what kind of health and fringe benefits do you offer?"  This can help you find out what your company offers you without being too pushy.

A good question to ask someone interviewing you is "How long have you been with the company, and what has influenced you to work here?"  This helps the company see if you are interested in the long haul, and can develop an instant rapport amongst your potential peers.

Q:  How do I find the most up-to-date internship listings?  I'm looking for an internship this summer.

Q:  I'm graduating in May, and have applied for many companies I hope to work for over winter break.  A few companies have told me to wait until April to apply, while others have asked me to apply now.  What is the right approach to take?

I encountered two more people recently who had very unprofessional or unclear voice mail messages.  After bringing it to the attention of one of the people, I was told "well it took forever for me to get it right, so I'm not going to change it now." 

Several news outlets reported this week that Wal-Mart was letting go of 12,000 workers in its Sam's Club division.

Reading deeper into this story, it became clear that most (if not all) of these workers were part-time and/or were in-store product demonstrators.  These in-store demonstrations will now be outsourced to a firm specializing in this service.

Many companies fear bringing in outside workers for basic tasks, feeling it will take away from the level of service or consistency of that service. 

While anyone losing their job faces an uncertain future, situations like this can happen and people holding the positions often are given the opportunity to pursue a position with the new company.

In my family alone, two of my relatives worked for companies whose services were then outsourced, and both received new jobs with the new company similar to the tasks they were performing.

If you are good at what you do and passionate about the products and services you offer, no layoff can stop you from trying to keep your job when it is sold off to another person or company to do.

It never ceases to amaze me what people have on their answering machines.  This past week alone, I heard three voice messages of people who really need to change their approach.  Two of the voice messages said "please hold on while you enjoy this music", followed by loud and unprofessional sounding songs.   The other voice message sounded like someone saying "hello", then "what", they "sorry I'm not here".  I told these people that if they wanted to be taken seriously, they need to have a standard, professionally sounding voice message, because you never know who is going to call you.

Here is a submission from the writer of Monday's submission, WK, who also wanted to share his worst experience in the hiring process.

"My worst experience was for my first job (at a retail store).  The interview was set up when I received a phone call asking if I could come in for an interview in 15 minutes.  Me being a 16 year old kid at the time, anxious to get a job, and finally make some money of course,  I agreed, got dressed appropriately and rushed over.

When I arrived to the store, I was led to an office where I was told to sit and wait for the manger.  It took almost 20 minutes for someone to come to the office.  The assistant manager conducted the interview, asking the necessary questions and giving me the information on the job.  After the interview was completed, I was informed the general manager wanted to see me as well.

10 minutes or so later, the manager finally arrived, and at this point, I was quite disappointed and upset at the process, and I was sitting with my elbows on the desk and my chin on my hand.  The manager pointed out my posture and added it wasn't very professional of me. 

He then went on with his own interview process, asking me the same questions and telling me the same information the assistant manager had already gone over.   I informed him that we just went through this already, and that I understood everything that had been explained to me.  He replied that "that's how we conduct interviews." 

By the end of the process, my view of the company became one that was of negative nature and I didn't care much about the job once I started it.  The worst part of it all was the job only paid $6.15 an hour which was minimum wage at the time."   WK

Here is a submission from one of my readers on his best experience in finding a job.  Later this week, I will share his worst experience.

"My best experience involved in a hiring process was when I was hired to work at Friendly's Restaurant.  When I arrived there for the interview, the manager, Alice, greeted me personally with a smile and escorted me into the office.  She made small talk with me, and then began the interview immediately.

I felt welcomed from the moment I entered the door, and she was also very up-front with me.  She told me at the beginning of the interview that she was strict and ran a "tight ship".  She explained how she expects all her employees to be working as long as they are on the clock, and that she would accept nothing less. 

Alice also explained to me that those who work hard and put in the effort to do the job would be rewarded with the ability to choose days off and be given raises when they have good quarterly or yearly observations.

I feel like that this was a good way to conduct an interview, and out of all of the interviews I've had, it was the best."   WK

 

Interviews are a glimpse at what you have to offer - more importantly, they are glimpse at what the company you are meeting with has to offer.

I interviewed in mock interviews several soon to be graduates of Skidmore College.  All of them possessed a trait I look for in any viable candidate - inner conceit.