Getting interviews but not closing the deal; what am I doing wrong?

5 Comments

1. AnonymousJuly 21,2022 at 5:34PM UTC

   I've been involved with a number of interviews over the past year. In some cases, it was strictly a matter of experience at the end. The candidate that wasn't selected didn't do anything wrong, they just didn't have as much background as the person who was hired.

   As far as mistakes I've personally witnessed - yes, they are all true stories.

   Don't point out that something in the job description is not of interest to you. Then why did you apply?

   If you are changing fields, reframe your experiences into why/how this would apply to the new field. If it's clear you still love your current/previous field, I don't feel positive about how you're going to adapt long-term to something you are clearly considering out of desperation.

   Check your references. Have someone pose as a prospective employer and call them up. I've seen bad (not even malicious or untruthful) references sink candidates. To be fair, none of them have gone from top candidate to "no way" over the references, but you never know.

   Do not trash talk current/former employers, even if you are encouraged to do so. Interviewed an internal candidate who works for a PITA and basically invited her to gripe and she declined. She didn't have the soft skills we needed, but mad respect for her after the interview that I didn't have before the interview. Improved our working relationship immensely (respect plus discovering she was way younger than we thought - put some of our more difficult interactions in a different light).

   Don't wear heavy/any perfume cologne when meeting in person.

   Not sure if any of these apply to your situation, but things I've personally seen in the recent past.

2. Lesa Edwards, Career Coach & Master Resume WriterJuly 21,2022 at 5:57PM UTC

   I would agree with everything Anonymous has said, and add: what are your metrics? You may be arbitrarily deciding that you should have had offers by now, but my rule of thumb is 10 interviews for 1 job offer (which may not be one you want to accept).

   In other words, if you've had more than 10 interviews without an offer yet, it's probably something you are doing/not doing during the interview process. If you've had fewer than 10 interviews, just keep playing the numbers game.

3. Joan Williams, Senior Talent Acquisition SpecialistJuly 21,2022 at 6:30PM UTC

   One thing I recommend to candidates is to tape themselves asking themselves questions and then answering them.
   I promise you, that answer will sound a whole lot better the 20th time you say it than the first.

   This will allow you to edit your answers to precisely get across what you want. I used to practice in the car, in the shower. Doing this can help improve your confidence if you get nervous or help you stay on point if you sometimes ramble.

   And please make sure you listen and answer the question you were asked. I've had candidates talk for 5 minutes and not answer the question I asked them.

   It's also VERY IMPORTANT to have good questions for your interviewers. I have seen this sink several candidates. You can NOT have no questions when asked.

   If, at the end of the interview, you're still interested in the position, don't be afraid to tell them that. Ask what next steps look like, what their timeline is and say "I hope to hear from you soon or I'm looking forward to next steps - I am really interested in this position".

   And personally, I always send a thank you note if I want the job.

   GOOD LUCK!!!!!!

4. AnonymousJuly 21,2022 at 10:33PM UTC

   1) Use as much intel as you possibly can when preparing for the job. Ex, take the job description and turn the job duties and critical functions into interview questions and practice asking and answering them.

   2) Sell yourself on hero moments: Come up with 6-8 scenarios where you help to save your division to include the twists and turns, challenges, how you worked collaboratively, how you infused your innovative ideas into your solutions and lessons learned. Try to pick highly impactful moment that will help set yourself apart from the rest. rehearse out loud, even if by yourself so by the time you present it becomes easy to you.

   3) People like to hear about themselves. Take what you learned about the company. Look up company profile. look up linked in profiles on the staff and their background. Consider their responsibilities and how it interfaces with your potential role and find ways to build that into how you answer the questions. When you touch on what you know about the company and peoples roles and responsibilities a light bulb will go off in that wow, this person really gets what we are about.

   4) Write down what qualities and skills you have that would justify why they should hire you. This is a competition. What edge do you have? Think of this like American Idol.

   If you are able to get an interview, that is the hardest part so give yourself some credit for that. You just need to work on your prep strategy and not only have a confident attitude, you have to learn how to cleverly sell yourself to companies of interest to make them believe they need you. Even research their existing challenges, and be ready to discuss researched and well thought out potential solutions or ideas that might lead them in an innovative direction they have not previously considered.

5. AnonymousJuly 22,2022 at 3:33AM UTC

   These tips are wonderful and I appreciate everyone's feedback. I have interviews tomorrow and Monday so I'll take your advice into account.