Okay, so you have moved forward in the application process. Someone on the other side likes your resume and maybe your cover letter and references and/or a networking contact spoke well of you. The next big step in an application process is often the interview (or a questionnaire which is popular for ministry paths). Will you be ready?
The interview consists of one or more people on the hiring/management/search side who seek to check you out further as a potential candidate for hire, to learn more about you and see if you are likeable and qualified to move forward with them. This will be a two-way interaction usually centered around questions and answers, although for some interviews you will be asked to give a presentation. A panel interview refers to multiple people on the employer side being present for the interview. For her current job, my wife had three people in the room interviewing her the first time and then when they called her back for a second interview there were seven people on that panel. Seven! And if you are applying for a church pastor position you may end up before committees, boards, and the entire church membership (those who come out) who may have the opportunity to ask you questions.
The means of interview connection vary today. You may be interviewed by phone, video-conference, or in person. Each has its own uniqueness. Over the phone, the emphasis is on what is said and heard. You can pick up on tone but not body language. Over video-conference, you add what is seen “on camera” which includes body language if that is within the video frame. If interviewing by video, test your technology in advance, select a location and background that is not distracting with what can be seen or what can be heard. Also, look into the camera often and do not read answers to questions given you. When you interview in person you can experience the full presence of people in the same room which adds nuances like touch, shaking hands, more personal eye contact, and scents (hint: you do not want to smell strong in either a positive or negative sense).
Here is a basic outline of interview tips:
• Preparation
• What to bring & Appearance
• The Interview
• Making Contact Again
Preparation
• What are the logistics? Date, time, location/means. Some interviews are ‘out of the blue.’ You are called, or pulled aside, without notice and interviewed on the spot. I remember nearing graduation in seminary when a pastor visited the school offices and I happened to come by and was introduced to him. He began interviewing me on the spot asking me questions like, ‘What are you passionate about?” I also remember one ministry leader who called me out of the blue and asked if I was interested in being interviewed for a pastor role and I did not even know about that opening. Someone in my ministry network passed along my resume to this particular leader. I believe most job candidates have advanced notice of their interview. Mark your calendar and be ready. If you have to travel to a place you are not overly familiar with, map it out, test out the route and timing, if possible. Always plan to show up early (10-15 minutes).
• Learn about the organization and position; be familiar with what their main things are and connect dots from you to them and vice-versa
• Review how you are qualified; what you bring to the table for this job
• Practice answering common interview questions. They are not likely to give you any or all of their interview questions in advance and you cannot know all of the possible questions that may come up. You can and should; however, prepare for some common questions and have great self-awareness in how you are a good fit/match with their organization and the particular job at hand. Expect that some of the questions will be about your skills and experiences in relation to the context/scope of the job you are applying for. Some common questions are also likely to pop up like these.
• Tell us a little about yourself, your background leading up to this stage in your life.
• What are three strengths you have?
• What are a couple of your weaknesses related to work?
• What type of personality do you have?
• How do you deal with, cope with, stress?
• Describe how you respond to criticism aimed at you?
• Describe how you address relational conflict in your life? Give us some examples.
• Describe a disappointing or difficult season in your life and how you grew from it.
• Talk about some accomplishments in your life.
• What types of things have you learned from your current/recent job, or recently in college, that you can apply to the job you are interviewing for?
• Describe some teamwork experiences in your past; how you worked together, your role, your contribution….
• How did you prepare for this interview?
• Why should we hire you?
Note: You need to be able to pitch yourself briefly and concisely with relevance. Follow the 5 Finger Rule; assign 5 relevant strengths/qualities of yours to get across, one per finger. For example, Detail Oriented, Excellent Communication Skills, Fluent in Spanish, Leadership Abilities, and Related Work Experience.
• Aside from practicing alone how to answer questions consider scheduling a mock interview with someone, or a team, who knows how to interview and give you honest feedback. In the higher-ed career counseling environment where I work, we provide mock interviews. I have given such interviews one-on-one or we will have 2-3 interviewers on a panel. On the interviewer side, we prefer to have advanced knowledge about a real, or hypothetical, organization and job posting because this provides scope/context to the interview questions. We usually meet for one hour. The first 30-40 minutes cover the Q/A of the interview, as if it was the real interview, and the last 20 or so minutes we provide feedback and tips moving forward. It is our goal in providing feedback to affirm what was done well and to critique what could have gone better (areas for improvement).
• Prepare to respond to some questions with personal examples and stories that bring your skills and abilities and accomplishments to light
• Prepare to use the C-A-R model; Challenge-Action-Result
• Prepare some relevant questions that you will ask. Have a few (maybe around five) questions pre-written that you can refer to before the interview is over. Note, some or all of these questions may be answered during the interview. Avoid questions that are answered easily by the job posting, already in your applicant process of communication, the main pages of the organization website, etc.. Here are some sample questions.
• Do you have any hesitations about my skills and qualifications for this job?
• In what way is performance measured and reviewed in this job?
• What do you like about working here?
• Please describe a rewarding experience you have had working here.
• If you hired me, can you tell me about the people I would potentially be working with?
• Why is this job position open and available right now?
• Does the company offer any professional development training or further education opportunities/benefits?
• What does career advancement and progression look like within the organization; for this job?
• What is the next step following this interview?
• When can I expect to hear back from you?
What to Bring & Appearance
• Interview impressions are important, especially if this is your first time meeting with or officially interacting with the interviewer(s) about this job
• If the interviewer(s) are going to see you, it is better to upward dress a little than to under dress. Also, be well-groomed and have good hygiene.
• Bring copies of our professional documents (i.e. resume, cover letter, references page) in case they do not have them handy
• Bring a padfolio with a notepad and something to write with (don’t take notes with your smartphone)
• Bring your written questions to ask just in case you cannot rely on your memory
The Interview
• Be early
• Use people’s names who are present in the interview with you
• Make good eye contact
• Give quality handshakes
• Pay attention and listen well at the what they say and their questions
• Follow instructions and answer according to their exact/complete questions
• Speak clearly and concisely
• Wrap up your responses clearly, land the plane quickly and well; do not hesitate and delay
• Display some enthusiasm and passion
• Ask a few relevant questions
• Take a few notes
Do not:
• Allow your mobile device(s), like your phone, to be a distraction
• Dress inappropriately
• Appear bored
• Chew gum
• Sound arrogant
• Talk negatively about circumstances and other people
• Talk too loud or too softly
• Ramble on too long with your talking and answers
• Use one-word or super brief phrases for most of your answers
• Use slang
• Ask about salary/compensation details until you receive an offer
• Make the sound, use the phrase, “um” much in your transitions
• Slump in your seat
Making Contact Again
- Send the interviewer(s) a thank you. The best kind is a hand-written personal note about your experience and affirming the interviewer(s), noting something positive about him or her. A secondary, quicker method, is to send an email thank you.
- Be sure to note your continued interest in moving forward with them (unless something has changed on your end; then you can bow out politely and with good etiquette)
- Follow-up: What is next? Once you make it through the interview stage, the people on the employer side are likely to contact you in the near future They may not follow up as quickly as you would like, so you need some patience and follow up with them periodically for a status update. I would not just wait passively since some employers like an eager assertive persistent employee candidate. Show some occasional persistent interest but not obsessive annoyance. They will possibly contact you with news of moving forward with them, which may continue ton to another interview, questionnaire, or even a job offer. They may also contact you with news that the current application/interviewing process has ended for you and they are no longer considering you as a job candidate and are moving forward with other candidates. In this case, they may not give you a clear and honest reason, but you can ask for more specifics. If they give you a reason(s) this may or may not be constructive for your personal development and learning.
What tips do you have for interviewing and what do you think about what I have shared here?
Mike Mullins
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