Our current job market has seen many impacts of COVID-19 but one in particular is interviewing and recruiting in a market controlled by Zoom and other online platforms. To remain professional, virtual interviews should be conducted and handled in the same manner as face-to-face interviews. Being online it is easy to forget some basics to the interview process. To ensure you will "seal the deal" on an interview make sure to note the following:
As I go further into my tenure with Vanguard Healthcare Staffing, one thing I have noticed more and more is that the questions candidates ask inherently provide answers for me a a recruiter. Recruiters are never provided with all of the answers surrounding a potential place of employment; however, the questions candidates don't ask are the ones that bar them from an opportunity. If I present an opportunity to someone and a candidate does not ask any questions regarding the role there can't be any true interest. There's nothing wrong with that! But those who can come up with pertinent questions on the spot truly display interest. It also displays one's ability to sell, not necessarily a product or service, but themselves and is there anything more important than that during an interview? It's not easy, I get it. Someone calls you with an opportunity that you previously knew nothing about maybe a couple of hours ago and you are supposed to be fully engaged and eager to learn. Meanwhile, you probably have a million other things going on during that day, most likely, doing the work your current role commands. But keep in mind it's the questions that are not asked that keeps recruiters and hiring managers from giving the green light.
Most of us are familiar with the Exit Interview. An employee is leaving the organization and HR asks them to fill out a questionnaire or schedules a sit down to ask them questions about their job and the organization: how they felt about their boss, company culture, workload, benefits, pay, etc. Exit interviews provide valuable information that can help adjust or improve the organization for current and future employees. However, it's already too late. This employee has already moved on to another position with another organization - Was there something the organization could have done to retain this employee?
Attracting and keeping top talent can be a challenge for many organizations. According to Aptitude Research Partners, it is a top challenge for nearly 76% of decision makers. Employee engagement begins even before day 1. Take a look at your interview and onboarding process to evaluate your candidate experience for best practices.
"The Challenger Sale: How to Take Control of the Customer Conversation" was published by Matthew Dixon and Brent Adamson in 2011 which dissects the different types of sales reps with "The Challenger" as the main focal point. The Challenger Sales methodology focuses on teaching, tailoring and taking control of the sales process. Using this approach, the authors argue that a sales rep can take control of any customer conversation.
One of the major advantages of being a recruiter is connecting with new individuals every day. While we are constantly expanding our network, it allows us to help our clients fill their vacant positions as well as help candidates looking for their next placement. For this joint venture to be successful both the candidate and recruiter must handle every encounter with dignity and respect. How you manage your interactions with people has a direct impact on the value of the relationship. It can take weeks, months and even years to build trusted relationships, but seconds to break them. Don't burn a bridge, build one.
Regardless of industry, company, or position candidates need to ask questions that not only qualify them for the opportunity, but position themselves to get an offer. When I get feedback from hiring managers, the people they speak most highly of are the ones that ask great questions and take notes. Your job in an interview is to find out more about the opportunity and find out what the interviewer wants in their next hire. These questions I am about to share with you help you not only learn about the company you're applying for, but also separate you from all other applicants gunning for the job.
The Challenger Sale was written by Matthew Dixon and Brent Adamson and hit shelves in late 2011. Their analysis and dissection of the sales rep uncovers what skills, attitude and behaviors it takes to be a high performer. Their model argued a new approach to sales which contrasted with conventional sales wisdom moving the focus away from building relationships or uncovering needs through questioning and guiding the customer to be interested in your solution. This model has since been adopted and implemented by numerous organizations in hopes or taking average performing reps to a top-performing team.
The SPIN Selling Fieldbook teaches us the art of SPIN Selling and also puts you to the test while reading. SPIN Selling is all about asking questions to help you make the sale. SPIN Selling is one of the most well known sales books and sales strategies that it is still used today after 30 years.
In The Challenger Sale we learn how to identify situations and leverage them into our control during the sales process.
