Tag Archives: Interviewing Skills

How to Connect With an Interviewer

When preparing for an interview, it is very easy to get mired down in the details of the process: research, preparing answers, developing a list of references, etc. Given all of the advanced preparation needed for an interview, it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that at the end of the day, interviewers will be drawn to the candidates that they genuinely like. That means that you have to be able to make a connection with each interviewer. This can be easy when you are sitting across from an open, friendly hiring manager, but it can be difficult when you’re sitting face to face with a serious interviewer, or a hiring manager that might be having a bad day at work.

So how can you make a connection with an interviewer, no matter what their personality or demeanor? You can’t expect to click with every hiring manager you meet, but these tips can help you develop rapport with most interviewers you encounter in your job search.

Remember That First Impressions Matter

We are taught at a young age not to make snap judgments about people, but it is human nature to make assumptions about new people within the first few seconds of meeting them. Hiring managers are no exception.

Be sure that you are dressed professionally, regardless of the company’s dress code. Style your hair neatly, and keep jewelry to a minimum.  Smile warmly, make good eye contact, and be sure to extend your hand for a firm and welcoming handshake.

Learn the Art of Mirroring

Mirroring, the conversational art of imitating the behaviors of the person you are talking to, is an excellent strategy for making a connection with an interviewer.  So, if you are faced with a high-energy interviewer who smiles and laughs frequently, match your energy level to hers. However, if the interviewer is serious and no-nonsense, tone your energy level down.

Mirroring is a solid strategy for the early stages of your interview. As you relax and get into the conversations, allow your own personality to shine through.  It’s important to be yourself so that you and the interviewer can determine whether or not you are a cultural match for the organization.

Don’t Save Questions Until the End

Interviews can be stressful for a number of reasons, but at their core, these conversations are unlike any that you have in real life. A regular conversation flows freely, with questions, replies, comments, etc. If you want to create a more natural feel for the interview and develop a connection with the interviewer, don’t wait until the end to ask your questions. Instead, ask them naturally, as they arise.

For example, if your interviewer asks where you see yourself in five years, and you lay out your desired career path, follow up your answer by asking about the company’s internal career and leadership development opportunities. Asking questions throughout the natural course of the interview will help establish rapport, and can lead to some interesting exchanges with the hiring manager.

If you are on the hunt for new and exciting opportunities to grow your career, contact The Prevalent Group today. As a nationally recognized management and executive placement and recruitment agency based in Northern Illinois, we work with experienced managers and executives in sales, marketing, engineering, technology and more. We match our talent with opportunities that can help them rise to new challenges, and we will work closely with you to help you perfect your interviewing skills to make a lasting, positive impression on hiring managers.

Tell Me About Yourself: How to Develop an Elevator Pitch

Many interviews open with the same question, “Tell me about yourself.”  Many interviewees see this as an invitation to tell their personal life story, but this is not what hiring managers want to hear. “Tell me about yourself,” is an invitation to provide an overview of your career background, your achievements, and where you see yourself in the future. The answer to this question is often a great place to utilize your elevator pitch.

What is an Elevator Pitch?

Elevator pitches are named for a challenge: How would you express your value as an employee if you found yourself on an elevator with your dream employer and you had to describe yourself to that person in the time it took you to reach your floor?

Your elevator pitch should be concise, illustrating who you are and how you can help the listener. It is a sales pitch about yourself that you deliver verbally, which means it takes focus and practice in order to deliver it with confidence. To be effective, an elevator pitch should be compelling and memorable, and it should clearly illustrate your value to the employer.

How to Create Your Elevator Pitch

Developing an effective elevator pitch takes some time. Though it is short, it carries a lot of weight, and determines the tone of the rest of the interview. Here are some tips to help you craft a compelling elevator pitch:

  1. Set aside time to sit down and create a career inventory.

    Write down the things you would want potential employers to know about your skills, achievements, and relevant experience.

  2. Edit, edit, edit.

    Once you’ve got a nice, long list written down, it’s time to edit. Delete anything that is not absolutely critical to your elevator pitch. You want to be left with just a few bullet points. Remember, the elevator pitch is not your life or career story, it is more of a highlight reel of your “top hits” that should leave the interviewer wanting to learn more about you.

  3. Format the pitch.

    Now that you’ve got a list to work with, you can begin to craft your pitch. A solid elevator pitch will answer the questions: Who are you? What do you do well? What are you looking for from your career?

  4. Tailor your pitch to your audience.

    Remember that you are giving a sales pitch, and the listener only wants to know what’s in it for them. Therefore, the message should focus on your benefits as an employee. Instead of saying, “I am an HR professional with 12 years of experience in the finance industry,” it would be much more powerful to say, “I am an HR professional with a track record in successfully recruiting top-level management.”

  5. Practice, practice, practice.

    After you’ve got a solid draft in place, practice your pitch out loud with friends, family, or your professional recruiter. They can help you make any edits that might be necessary, and the more you practice delivering your pitch, the more confident you will be in your delivery.

Professional recruiters can be an invaluable resource when it comes to perfecting your elevator pitch and your entire interviewing technique. If you are a professional in engineering, information technology, operations, sales, or marketing, and you are looking for new and exciting career opportunities, contact The Prevalent Group today. We are a nationally recognized management and executive placement and recruitment agency that works with innovative organizations in northern Illinois and beyond. We can help you locate job opportunities that align with your long-term personal and professional goals.

Effective Nonverbal Communication in an Interview

In a job interview, the answers you give to specific questions are an important part of landing the job. Your answers are not the only criteria that interviewers use to evaluate you, however. Nonverbal communication is just as important as verbal communication. If you can give off the right nonverbal cues, you’ll have a much better chance of impressing the hiring team.

Here are five tips to help you give off the right signals at your next interview:

1. Make Eye Contact

Eye contact is an essential form of nonverbal communication. Strong eye contact demonstrates confidence and can help build rapport with the interviewer. Eye contact should be natural, however. Don’t overcorrect and land in staring territory, which can be uncomfortable.

2. Use Correct Posture

Nobody likes a slouch – especially in an interview setting. Be sure to sit tall, with your back straight, shoulders back, and head high. This will communicate confidence as well as trustworthiness.

3. Smile!

Smiles are contagious. If you smile brightly at your interviewers, it will help them relax, and will set a positive tone for the meeting. Smiling also portrays a positive attitude, which every employer is looking for.

4. Watch Your Hands

Hand gestures are sometimes important for emphasis, but be careful not to talk too much with your hands. Gestures can be distracting, and you don’t want to take your interviewer’s attention away from the content of your answers. Keep your hands on the conference room table, gently folded, or if you’re not seated at a table, fold them in your lap.

5. Tone of Voice

Voice tone is a form of nonverbal communication, and is especially important during phone interviews, as this is the only way the interviewer can get a sense of your personality. Monotone talking can make you seem unexcited. On the other hand, speaking up, speaking clearly, and changing to the tone of your voice to match your emphasis can help engage the interviewer in what you’re saying.

It can be difficult to gage your own nonverbal communication style. An excellent way to prepare for interviews and perfect your nonverbal communication is to partner with a professional recruiter.  Recruiters can help prepare you for interviews by working with you to perfect your posture, eye contact, hand gestures, and voice tone so that you’ll send the right messages to hiring managers.

If you are an information technology professional or engineer in Chicago who is seeking new opportunities for career growth, contact The Prevalent Group today. Our team of recruiters can help you locate electrical engineering positions in Chicago that align with your skills, qualifications, and your long-term career goals.