Screening the paperwork
First, companies gather as many applications as they can, usually by placing newspaper ads, listing the job with employment agencies, or by utilizing search firms. This results in an influx resume's and applications. The recruiter, usually someone from the personnel department, prescreens against a background of specific requirements for the position. The company has examined its needs and has developed a hiring plan for filling the opening. This plan spells out in detail the specific educational background needed; the experience required; the personal traits and characteristics necessary for success on the job.
Who gets interviewed?
After the paperwork is screened, the recruiter frequently finds that he or she can sort the resumes into three categories. The first category of applicants doesn't come close to the hiring plan and are rejects. They usually get form letter telling them that their "credentials will be preserved for future reference" and "should a position become available which would use [their] particular experience to its best advantage, [they] will be contacted." The second category of applicants meets part of the hiring plan but is not exceptional. The third category is for the promising; hopefully, that category contains the resume' of the applicant who will eventually get the job. Applicants who make it past this infidel paperwork screening are invited in for a screening interview.
The initial screening interview
The screening interview allows a recruiter or a team of recruiters to see a large number of applicants in a comparatively short period of time. Usually, a screening interview lasts about a half-hour. Most companies generally schedule candidates at forty-five-minute intervals. During that period, they seek specific information on each candidate.
The main purpose is to screen out, in as short an interview as possible, applicants who obviously lack the necessary job qualifications. It also provides another interviewer's evaluation if two interviewers are conducting the screenings. Before inviting you in for a screening inter-view, interviewers will have analyzed your paper work, so that they can organize their thoughts and familiarize themselves with your background and experience.
Three strikes and you're out
You should be aware of three items an interviewer will most likely look at before talking to you. We call them (1)"knockout" items, (2) "concern" items, and (3) "incomplete" items. All positions have certain, minimum requirements that automatically exclude some applicants. These are called ''knockout" factors. Some knockout factors that can be gleaned from the application form are:
- Lack of experience or training
- Job-related health problems
- Unavailability to start employment within a reasonable period of time
- Unrealistic salary expectations
- Periods of unemployment. (Why?)
- Questionable reasons for leaving previous jobs. (Is there pattern? Are you a job hopper?)
- Unusual salary progression. (How has your salary progressed in relation to others in the same career field or line of work?)
- Failure to account for all time periods. (Do your dates conflict with one another, or are they incomplete on your application?)
- Time lapses in educational programs. (Was there a break in your education? Why is it incomplete? Did it take you longer than usual to get your high school diploma or degree? If so, why?)
The third category of items an interviewer looks for before the screening interview* can be labeled "incomplete "items. All of the information requested on an employment application is important. If you overlook a major portion of the application blank, chances are the interviewer will ask you to write in the missing information before you start the interview. Or, if it's only one or two questions, you may be asked to fill in the information during the interview.
How you'II be rated
During the initial screening interview, the interviewer will most likely rate you for several selection factors. These will differ from company to company and job to job. Generally, you'll be screened for such characteristics as:
- Aggressiveness and enthusiasm Responsibility and maturity
- Intellectual ability and communication skills
- Personal relations
At the end of the screening interview, the interviewer will recommend whether or not you should be pursued as a job candidate. At this point, the interviewer can make decision to test you or line you up for a second, in-depth interview, commonly referred to as a "selection interview."Or the interviewer can make a decision to reject you.
Even though you may want to know where you stand at the end of an interview, even if you've to be rejected, you most likely will not be given a verbal turn-down. Most companies have found that such a rejection after a screening interview can lead to anything from discrimination complaints to lawsuits. So don't expect this kind of feedback from your company interviewer. It's only natural to wonder why you've been rejected. However, only the most skilled interviewer can walk that tightrope and provide you with a response general enough to avoid specific reasons for rejection, specific enough yet one that will satisfy you. So, if rejected, you'll probably get a letter in the mail. But enough gloom. Let's say the recruiter does haven interest in you; then you'll be invited for a second interview, or you may be given employment tests. Either one of these actions is a positive sign; they indicate you're a definite contender for the job. The field has narrowed, and you are one of the finalists.
