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TIPS TO MAKE YOU AN EFFECTIVE INTERVIEWER

• The more information you gain, the better your hiring decision. The more comfortable the candidate
is in the interview, the more you see the REAL person and your hiring decision is even better! The easiest
way to accomplish this is in creating an atmosphere that allows the candidate to be comfortable and
speak freely .
• Try to put the candidate at ease at the beginning of the interview. If the candidate feels comfortable
s/he will be likely to share more information with you . Be conversational and personable .
• Maintain his/her self-esteem. If you find that the candidate freezes on a particular question, you may
want to go to the next question . If the candidate tells you something that s/he knows is a bad response
try to make them feel better about it .
• Listening skills are essential in an interview. It is important to let the candidate speak without being
interrupted . Remember that the purpose of the interview is to obtain as much information as possible, not
to provide it . If you are interviewing a candidate, you should be listening 80% of the time and talking 20%
of the time . We call it the 80/20 rule .
• While the candidate is speaking, watch his/her body language and facial expressions. These
expressions will provide you with additional insight about what is being discussed . Look for eye rolling,
folded arms, head shaking, excitability, etc .

• All of these can be clues and foreshadowing of “times to come”…so be aware. How well groomed is
the candidate? A wrinkled shirt, messy hair, dirty hands, etc . are fairly indicative of what you can expect
in the future . A good rule of thumb is that you can almost count on the fact that during the interviews,
candidates are on their best behavior, and are as well groomed as they will ever get . If he or she does
not meet our grooming and hygiene standards for the interview, it will not get better later .
• Was the candidate on time for the scheduled interview? Historically, most people who are tardy for
their interviews have the same problem on the job . Of course, circumstances DO happen . Ask why s/he
was late and draw your conclusion based on the reason provided, and the amount of concern exhibited
for the tardiness . Either way, be skeptical .
• Past behavior predicts future performance. If the candidate continually speaks negatively about a
previous supervisor, be concerned that s/he may have a tendency to oppose authority . If the candidate
exhibited a lack of concern for co-workers in the past, s/he may have trouble getting along with others .
People typically have an extremely hard time changing their behaviors . Be careful that you don’t
disregard that type of information .

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