| AT LEAST READ THIS PARAGRAPH
You would be amazed how often candidates with impressive technical skills miss out on a
job they really wanted because they did not perform well in their interview. If you are
not inclined to read the guidelines below, please remember the following items (although these may seem obvious they
are 80% of the reasons hiring managers give us when they turn down a candidate):
 | Look great for the interview. |
| Sound great – be upbeat, positive and SMILE. |
| Communicate - look the interviewer in the eye
throughout the interview (surprisingly few people do this). |
| Listen to the question BEFORE you start to
formulate your answer. |
| AND MOST IMPORTANT – Adjust the speed of your
speaking to match the speed of the interviewer’s speech. |
Candidate
Interview Guidelines
OBJECTIVE : The objective of the interview is to get the
contract or job offer.
PREPARATION : An in-person, on-site
interview is a time of delicate assessment by the client. To insure your best
chances of success, you should:
ALWAYS :
Plan to be at least 10 minutes early.
Directly contact both Tentek and client ASAP if you are unavoidably delayed.
Be courteous and smile.
Be positive.
Look your best for a good first impression and dress in a professional manner that you
expect the client to be dressed. Males should wear a dark suit (navy or black) with a
white shirt, dark tie and a black pair of shoes. Females should wear a smart
business suit.
Have a copy of your resume.
Show interest in the project/job.
Maintain eye contact with your interviewer(s).
Be prepared to talk about how your skills and experience can help them.
Be prepared to give references, if asked.
Call Tentek’s account manager after the interview and discuss what happened.
NEVER:
Lie about your experience.
Touch anything on the interviewer’s desk, especially papers.
Discuss contract rates/salary. Tentek will do that!
Hurry your interviewer.
Discuss being overworked where you are or make negative comments about prior employers.
TENTEK WILL :
- Brief you on the nature of the client’s business.
- Brief you on the technical requirements.
- Brief you on the scope of work.
- Provide you with any literature we may have about clients.
- Coordinate interview place and times.
- Find out if examples of code or documentation is required at interview.
- Negotiate the best rate and/or salary possible.
- Check your references.
THE BIG DAY:
The candidate should always offer their hand to the interviewer. As they shake hands,
the candidate should smile and establish eye contact and say their name, "Hello, my
name is ______________. It’s nice to meet you."
The candidate should not sit down until told by the interviewer.
The candidate should NEVER, EVER put anything on the interviewer’s desk.
The candidate should not fidget.
The candidate should start the conversation with an ice-breaker: "Tell me, Mr.
Smith, how long have you been with Jones and Associates?"
MAINTAIN EYE CONTACT, SMILE.
By getting the client to speak first, the candidate will be able to tell what kind of
person the interviewer is and word their answers to questions accordingly. This will also
enable the candidate to ascertain whether the interviewer is a formal or informal type of
person.
If the interviewer asks a question like, "Well, Julie, I see from your resume that
you do not have any experience with Sybase," the candidate should respond in the
following, POSITIVE way: "That’s correct, Mr. Smith, but I do have five years
experience with ORACLE, a relational database that I believe is similar to Sybase, and I
am more than willing to put in extra hours to learn Sybase. My experience is that I pick
up new software skills quickly." This answer automatically turns a negative situation
into a positive one.
The candidate should have an answer to the following questions: "Where do you see
yourself in five years? What are your short-term goals, say, within the next two
years?"
Candidates should prep themselves on reasons for leaving their present or last job.
A VERY GOOD QUESTION for the candidate to ask is, "If I am successful and get
offered this job, what would be my first priority?" Again, this affords the candidate
to say, "I am very capable of doing that, and I feel I could assist you with that
task."
If the subject of money is raised in an interview for a full-time position, the
candidate should reply, "Obviously, money is an important issue. However, I am more
interested in a position that can offer me long-term career growth."
The final questions SHOULD ALWAYS BE, "What is your level of interest? What will be
the next stage?"
The candidate should then offer their hand to the client and thank them for their time.
The candidate should then call Tentek and give the account manager some feedback as to how
the interview went and what was discussed.
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