We've been thinking about interviews lately. When people rank the most anxiety-producing experiences in their lives, job interviews almost always float to the top. How many other conversations do you have that have so much riding on them? But the truth of the matter is that there's no getting to the promised land of that new job without going through the trial of a job interview, be it on the phone or face to face. You can't get around it - the best you can do is prepare.
Perhaps not surprisingly, most employers don't love interviewing new employees, either. For employers who don't have an HR department handling at least the first round of interviews, its time away from their "real" work. Plus, it's startling how few employers have any idea how to interview people, from what to and not to ask from a legal standpoint, to how to tailor questions for a given position.
If you're a job seeker, in addition to really doing your homework on the company or organization, and your interviewer, a cornerstone of interview preparation is preparing answers to the questions you'll likely be asked. We've found some interesting articles about interview questions here and here. (On a side note, if you look at the links we've got for employers, there's advice on what constitutes a crummy interview question. You'll note that the "bad" interview questions overlap substantially with the most common ones - the best you can do is prepare your best answers to bad questions).
If you're an employer, and you fall in the "I hate interviewing" camp, it might be time to up your game and find ways to make yourself better at interviewing. We found some ideas here and here.
What questions have you been asked in interviews that you've loved? What quesitons have you been asked that made you question why you even wanted this job in the first place?
If you're in the position to hire people, what are your favorite questions to ask?
Meanwhile, here are this week's new positions on Health Hires:
Greenfield Health is seeking an Internest of Family Physician
Outside In is looking for a Clinic Operations Administrator
Oregon Association of Naturopathic Physicians is hiring a Membership and Development Manager
