Park it at the door, missie.

Hi Claudia,

I called a candidate for a scheduled phone interview this evening and after we chatted for a few minutes, I asked the first interview question. She interrupted me suddenly and asked if I would hang on for a moment. I listened as she poured herself a glass of wine (I know this because she offered me some), lit up a cigarette, and picked the phone back up again. Then she said, "Ok, begin". What’s your impression of a candidate like this?

Not Amused

Dear Not Amused,

Give me a second to think this one over. Did she nail the interview? Is she a good fit with the business you’re recruiting for? How can the situation possibly be more complicated than that?

The recruiter interview is a gatekeeper moment, to be sure. You have to know the job, know your hiring manager, and know the business culture you’re screening for. But at the end of the day, you're aiming for the short list of qualified, affordable, and interested candidates, right? And to get there faster, park your personal bias at the door and think like your customer. So it doesn’t really matter if the candidate was building a bomb in the back room during your call, as long as she has the skills and culture-fit to make the cut for that particular business need.

Am I advocating that you disconnect your common sense? Of course not. I’m saying that any unchecked, personal bias you bring to the assessment process will trip you up faster than a pair of 6 inch stilettos. You’re there, in that moment, on a single mission: to match the potential of a candidate with the requirements of a hiring authority. Nothing else. All the more reason to establish a clear set of requirements at the outset of the search to make sure you assess every candidate equally against a specific (and unemotional) list of must-haves. And all the more reason to spend time with the hiring manager along the way to learn about the real biases that will knock out candidates.

Ask yourself this the next time you scratch your head over a candidate’s interview behavior:

WWHMD?

That’s right: what would my hiring manager do? The emphasis here is the manager’s perspective about job skills and fit with the business culture. If the candidate’s behavior is offensive to you, or she demonstrates poor judgment, test whether it is a recurring theme (that’s just good sense). However, maybe the candidate just doesn’t know any better (we can’t all be Miss Manners, right?)...if that's the case it’s time to test whether this person can learn new things (like maybe a little interview etiquette). The point is, don't allow your personal bias to get in the way in the decision process.

Of course, another option may be that I’ve completely over-thought this whole thing, and you should just learn to schedule your interviews so they don’t conflict with happy hour. Your call.

**
In my day job, I’m the head of Products for Improved Experience, where we help employers use feedback to measure and manage engagement for competitive advantage in hiring and retention. Learn more about us here.

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Tags: Dear_Claudia, bad_interview_behavior, personal_bias

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Comment by pam claughton on July 9, 2008 at 10:00am: She should have poured the wine before she got on the phone! Seriously though, what was she thinking? First thing I'd worry about is if she's interviewing for a client facing position, what will her behavior be like with them?

Comment by Regina Farr on July 9, 2008 at 12:04pm: Claudia your right on this one. I could care less if the person makes themselves comfortable during my screen; I'm assessing their skills and ability to come across professionally with my hiring person and ultimately do the job. If all else is well doing my screen/conversation with them, I'm cool!

Comment by Kyle Smith on July 9, 2008 at 1:47pm: I have been asked by mangers before, "yes the person's qualified, but would you sit down and have a beer with the person?" We call this the beer test. She was just short circuiting the process to see if you were worth having a glass of wine with. It doesn't sound like you passed the whine test. Responsible drinking after hours is hardly taboo.

Comment by Rayanne on July 9, 2008 at 4:26pm: hmmm..., this is a tough one. I have had candidates stroll in after a bong hit, use foul language and show up in a mismatched suit with white cat hair all over it...

~what is etiquette, anymore? let alone phone etiquette...

I would tend to agree with Pam on this one. Pour the wine and light the cigarette before the phone rings... that is only good manners.

Your reputation depends on the candidates your represent and present. I wouldn't risk my relationship and fee on presenting a candidate that isn't smart enough to not behave in a more appropriate manner at a critical point of the process... just my p.o.v.

Comment by Rob Clarke on July 9, 2008 at 7:18pm: File this one under need more information. I am with you Claudia- how stellar is the candidate? How hard of a req is this position? Is the candidate coachable? Maybe call back the next day with a different set of questions and play hypotheticals on scenarios during interviews. If she is garden variety-move on, but if not-try to test drive this one again and see if you can make it serviceable. I know I have had some "wheels off" physicians and I explain the situation to my client before submitting them- sometimes they say submit, sometimes not. But at least you put them through with a warning label if needed- but as Claudia mentioned it is situational depending on the client too.

Comment by Claudia Faust on July 9, 2008 at 7:30pm: I love it -- a mix of familiar and new faces in the responses this week! Thanks for stopping by to play in the sandbox.

@Pam and Rayanne: I must say that I agree with you both - the timing wasn't great on the candidate's part. And while I think you have a valid concern connecting current behavior (in the interview) with potential behavior (in front of a hiring manager), I still think the role of a recruiter is to "channel" the hiring authority when assessing a candidate. This really implies that you are also well matched with the HM or work environment to matchmake well.

@Regina: Not that I think you're brilliant for agreeing with me or anything, but let's face it - you are.

@Kyle: LOVE the Beer Test. The Whine Test has great merit as well.

@NMarie: You hit the nail on the head with ranking candidates. Unless you present a revolving door of fresh candidates until the role is filled (an exhausting search strategy that is fodder for another column on a different day), you're definitely ranking candidates for presentation or elimination. Because of the psychological advantage in doing so, many headhunters extend ranking right into the presentation to the HM: second strongest first, then strongest, and then (and only if necessary) the third ranked candidate.

My only question to everyone relates back to whose etiquette is the "right" etiquette? And what if the hiring environment is more about technical excellence than being polite (or even appropriate)? Best lesson I ever got happened when I presented someone I considered to be a tier 2 candidate (for similar reasons to those at the start of this column) and the hiring manager all but hired the guy on the spot. Clearly I didn't know him well enough to be closing off candidates on his behalf yet.

No, I think that recruiters are called to be matchmakers first. Serve up candidates that fit the business need, and let the hiring manager sort out the rest.

Just my .02.

Comment by Rayanne on July 9, 2008 at 9:04pm: Well..., we just had a candidate that nailed all the interviews with our firm and did very well in the phone interview with the hiring manager, was called in for an on-site interview and while in that interview burped under his breath and kept on talking...
After the interview, the HM called our office and told the Lead Consultant on the search that the candidate was great but there is no way he would hire him because he had no manners...

There is no way that could have been predicted or avoided by any amount of coaching...

Goes back to Maren's post, "you gotta know when to hold 'em..."
That includes burps and other bodily functions...
yikes.

Comment by Claudia Faust on July 9, 2008 at 9:48pm: ROFL....I see the birth of a new sub-industry for recruiting: Manners for the Maladjusted. We could certify them and send them out into the world...

Comment by Kumar Bodapati on July 9, 2008 at 10:56pm: I am with you Claudia.. i had similar experience like you before. I scheduled client interview for one candidate and client manager called him on scheduled time and the candidate ask the client manager to hold on for 2 mints since he is once personel call that time. He is having 12+ yrs of IT exp and technically highly qualified candidate but manager got upset and he didnt selected him. The Manager given the feed back like this...

technically he is excellent the only reaason we are not hiring because of his attitude. I think its all about right etiquette.

The efforts I and my recruiting Manager put went to garbageand above that we got a bad call from client manager.