Back in March, I posted an entry for hiring managers on how to develop a phone screen for candidates. Here’s a tip for candidates on how to prepare for a phone screen. (Hiring managers, most of this applies to you too
Make sure you suggest a few alternative times for a phone screen. Not all hiring managers can call you at 7:10pm on Wednesday.
When the hiring manager calls, make sure you can find some privacy and a comfortable place to sit and talk. Stop doing the dishes, watching TV, yelling at the kids, whatever. If you can’t create a private quiet space, consider asking to reschedule the phone screen. I once tried to call someone who was attempting bathe a small child. I happily called back in an hour.
Use a headset if you have one, when you speak on the phone. If you’re like many of us, you use your hands to gesture as you talk. Or, you might want to take notes. A headset frees up your hands, so you’ll sound normal (and animated).
Hopefully, the hiring manager will ask the elimination questions first, and then will start with the behavior-description questions. This is your chance to shine with your stories. (Remember the Practice Before Interviewing post)
If the hiring manager asks about money early in the phone screen, decide if you want to postpone the discussion. If you don’t want to talk about money early, say something like this: “I’d really like to learn more about my fit for the job before we talk about money, ok? I’m flexible on salary.” But at the end of the phone screen, when the hiring manager asks about money, be honest about your salary (and whatever else you received as compensation.)
If you’ve thought about the value you provide to the organization, you have some stories, and a comfortable place to talk, your phone screens should be a breeze.
A hiring manager recently asked me “How do I assess the motivation of my candidates?” I asked him what he meant by motivation. He replied, “The ability to see what needs to be done and the willingness to see things through.” I’m not sure managers care why people are motivated to work; they care people complete the work.If you want to assess this manager’s definition of motivation, you can ask questions like this:
“Give me an example of a time you saw something that needed someone to do it. What did you do?” Sometimes, the right answer is “I did it and here’s how/why.” Sometimes, the right answer is, “I told so-and-so, so that I could complete my work and someone else could perform this work.” If a candidate says, “I always take on whatever work needs to be done,” that candidate doesn’t necessarily perform his/her work. Be careful; you’ll have to monitor that person’s activities closely.
“Tell me about a time you had trouble finishing something. What was it and what did you do?” Listen for the answer. Does the candidate discuss a time he/she asked for help? Did the candidate let the issue drop, never finishing it? Did the candidate create a problem by not finishing? Was not finishing the appropriate choice?
There’s no right answer here. Each person’s experience and how they approach their work will explain about their motivation. Listen and decide if their approach will work for you.
Normally I talk about a hiring manager making an offer. My advice to hiring managers is:
Determine the candidate’s salary range during the phone screen. That way you know if the candidate is in the ballpark.
Before making an offer ask the question, “What would make you say yes to an offer from us?”
If what the candidate wants is reasonable, make the offer. Make sure this offer is the best offer you can make for this candidate.
If you’ve made your best offer, don’t negotiate further.
This works. But sometimes, the candidate doesn’t feel safe enough to adequately answer the second question. When that happens, or when the hiring manager doesn’t predetermine salary and other requirements, the entire pay package, you’re left negotiating the offer.Some people have funny ideas about negotiating. They think the person who first mentions a number is the weak one. I don’t buy it. If you’re a hiring manager and you know what value you want for the organization and what you’re willing to pay for that value, you can stand behind your number. Similarly, if you’re a candidate, and you’ve thought about your value to the organization, you can stand behind your number too. So don’t be afraid to answer a salary question ? either of you.In this economy, it’s possible that money is the only compensation candidates want or companies want to pay. However, that’s unlikely. Certainly in better economies, candidates want more than just money. Some candidates want tuition reimbursement or stock options or specific work hours or specific work experience. All of those things can be negotiated as part of a pay package.If you’re a candidate, think hard about what you want as a total pay package. Sometimes in my career, I wanted to know I could complete work by 5:30pm, so I could make it to daycare before it closed. Sometimes, I wanted to know I didn’t have to start until 8:30am so I could work out. Sometimes, I needed part of an afternoon off to complete my Master’s degree work. One of my employees wanted to take the summers off (yes, July and August) every year. He was worth paying for 10 months even though he took two months off each year. Remember, you’re looking for a total pay package.Hiring managers, if you’re worried about giving people time off without pay or any of the other possibilities, think about why you’re worried. People have lives. You can pay slightly less, if you really think the candidate won’t be giving 100% at work. In my experience, if you and the candidate agree on the value the candidate has as a full time employee, then you can negotiate the fine points of what the candidate wants.If you haven’t read “Getting to Yes” by Fisher, Ury, and Patton, read it. It’s very helpful to understand the principle behind negotiations as opposed to the stands people take in a negotiation.Thanks to Allen for prompting this blog post.
Alan Weiss, of Summit Consulting, is a well-known speaker and consultant. When he talks to speakers (or consultants), he suggests people think about their fundamental value proposition. He says, “Ask yourself how people are better off when you leave?” You don’t have to be a consultant to take advantage of Alan’s tip. When you complete work in an organization, ask yourself, how are things better when you’re done? And, if you’re looking for a job, define this before you start interviewing.Here’s how you can define your fundamental value:
Start with your most recent experience first.
Write down one thing you did that left the project, the product, and/or the process better than it was before you joined the project. If you have more than one thing from that experience, write them down.
Loop on all the experiences on your resume.
You should have at least a few bullet points or some summary statements on a piece of paper. Now, if it makes sense, categorize them. Maybe you categorize by skill (catalogs meetings) or by deliverable (initiated a workbook for new staff). If you’re like me, you exhibit some patterns in your work. This should help you make your patterns more obvious.The final step is to use that value in some statement. My current draft of my fundamental value statement is “I help people see their state and develop pragmatic solutions to their problems.” I don’t know how long I’ll keep that, but that’s what it is for now.If you’re a hiring manager, make sure you know what your fundamental value is, so you can hire people who bring other value to the organization. If you’re a candidate, define your fundamental value so people can easily see why they should hire you.
![[Post to Twitter]](http://jrothman.com/blog/htp/wp-content/plugins/tweet-this/icons/tt-twitter.png){kind=icon}