In most organizations, it is unlikely that any one individual, even the CEO, would be willing to make a unilateral decision. On the contrary, most executives will want to ensure that their colleagues feel comfortable with whatever decision is made. Thus, they may want to have others see you, talk with you, and get to know you better before a decision is made.
The Follow-up Interview
The follow-up interview simply means that you have survived the second cut. It does not mean you have the job locked up. Everything that pertained to your first interview will apply here as well. You will have to resist any urge to act as though you were already on board when you meet the follow-up interviewers. In fact, they could be especially sensitive to any attitude that even hints that you consider their interviews to be irrelevant.
Most likely, you will be called back for one visit in which you will meet one or more people who will have some input into which candidate is hired. Each person who interviews you will have a different orientation—his or her own way of determining what attributes are important in the candidate who is selected.
In many ways, when you return for follow-ups, you need to treat each individual's interview as though it was a brand-new situation and you were starting from scratch. For instance, you will need to get in step with each new person, so remember your skills for establishing rapport and practice them well. You may also be asked many of the same questions the first interviewer asked you. Be patient and don't let this annoy you. The follow-up interviewers are just trying to do their job. Help them succeed. They may have even less interviewing experience than your first interviewer had.
Your follow-up interviews may also give you more of an opportunity to see the organization at work and to get a flavor of things. Now that the pressure of the initial interview is off, you may have more time to observe whatever you missed the first time.
Just as the employer may be hoping to see you in a more natural light, so you should be looking for similar information. What is the receptionist like? How does the secretary treat you now? Has the first interviewer's personality or style changed this time? You, of course, shouldn't change, but the others you met might. Observe the nature of the changes. Have the others become friendlier? Relaxed? More assuming? Demanding? Are you treated with the same level of courtesy and respect?
How about the people you are meeting for the first time in this follow-up interview? They will be drawing heavily on what the first interviewer said about you, so notice their attitudes as well. Equally important, determine their role in the hiring process. Find out from what perspective your initial interviewer has sought their input. Knowing that can help you, provide the kind of information that will guide them in making their recommendations. Beyond seeking their observations, your initial interviewer may have asked the others to meet with you to provide information. If so, it's important to know that as well.
Before you participate in the follow-up interviews, you should know who will be meeting with you—their titles, their responsibilities or functions, and which areas of expertise they might have been asked to comment on. In all likelihood, their questions will be both very general and very specific. Having gotten this far in the screening process, you may be halfway hired in their estimation. Thus, they may want to talk with you in a more conversational way than your first interviewer did. Unquestionably, they will want to know more about you as a person if they're going to be working with you, and many of their inquiries will be intended that way.
Make certain you are comfortable with anything you are about to disclose before you say a word. Rarely will an interviewer intentionally set you up to disclose something that might hurt your chances of getting the job, but it has happened. Just as risky, however, is the interviewer with whom you feel so comfortable that you decide to bare your soul. Doing so may feel good, but most candidates have told me that it cost them.
It also doesn't hurt to keep in mind that any one of the follow-up interviewers may not want to see you—or anyone else—hired for the post. It could be that they wanted the position or that one of their colleagues was passed over. It may be that they believe in promoting from within and don't like to see outsiders hired at your level. One never knows, so don't become complacent. Stay on your toes.
The job-related questions you are asked by follow-up interviewers will often reflect their specific areas of expertise. Thus, when the interviewers shift into those topics, they may become very specific, even to asking you about topics beyond your scope.
The rule here? As always, don't try to fake it. If you don't know, say so. In fact, it might be a good strategy to ask, rather than tell, when such questions arise. After all, if the interviewer is the expert, what better compliment could you find than to express an interest in his or her specific information or knowledge? In the process, you may learn more that will help you with your own decision.
If you did not meet people who would report to you or hold positions equal to yours during the first interview, you may have an opportunity to meet them now. Recognize that you have as much right to ask questions of people at those levels as they have to ask questions of you. Again, always know ahead of time with whom you will be speaking. As much as possible, make your questions appropriate to the individual.
How long have they held their positions? How would they describe their own functions? How do they see the department's mission? Where do they feel the organization is headed? What activities are they presently engaged in? What comments might they have about those projects?
As always, attitude is everything, so stay friendly with and interested in each person you meet. One candidate who did that successfully was able to draw an employee into disclosing a situation that would need her immediate attention once she was hired. Yet it had not been mentioned by the first interviewer and two subsequent ones.
