Sweet Sixteen July 8, 2010

Tomorrow I have another job interview. This will be my fifteenth interview since being laid off last year. That is 15 in-person interviews.

Can that be right? I am not counting the many many phone interviews and the second, third and yes I had one forth interview. And this is not counting the many recruiters I have met with.

I am pulling out a suit one more time.

I have worn a suit more times in the past year than I have in almost my entire life. So once I am gathering up my hope and my charming personality, working up my talking points and my experience and I am heading off to almost certain rejection.

Oh don’t put that out there you might say. But I’d rather be a realist at this point than an optimist. I’ll give it the old college try and see what happens.

I can look back and see why I was not chosen for most of the positions. It is a buyers market and I am interviewing for technical jobs. In this climate employers want an exact match to their needs. If you don’t have experience in the version of software they are running they don’t have to settle.

It didn’t used to be that way several years ago before the crash. Companies used to understand that no one could know everything and that the learning curve is not very steep once you have the foundation.

I am also 10 years older than I was when I last looked for a job. A bit greyer, and way more experienced. I don’t think that is a plus in this economy.

The last job I interviewed for paid less than I made 10 years ago. They told me that got 70 responses to the ad and they were doing 14 in person interviews.  I made the first cut, the phone interview but not the last.

I know I may be a shit head on this blog, but if you saw me on the street, you’d think I was a conservative guy. I look like an Eagle Scout. I actually am an Eagle Scout.

Some of the jobs I  interviewed for were below my skill level, some where outside my area of expertise, on several the companies wound up not hiring anyone. On some I never heard back. Silence was supposed to equal rejection. On others I was told that I was a very strong candidate but they chose someone else. That stung more than silence. Some interviews I know I talked myself out of the running. In the beginning of this process I was nervous and a bit too truthful. I have since honed my interviewing skills and stick to the highlights.

I was in upper management for the past six years and trying to go back to my roots has proved challenging. There are not many management jobs available so I tried to go back to hands on tech jobs, but my skills weren’t updated. I actually contacted my local unemployment office because I heard that the would pay for so called vocational training to update my skills. I was told that the waiting list was a year long.I wish I had called them a year ago but I didn’t think I’d be unemployed this long.

I had some great interviews with people who really knew the art of the interview. It really is a skill. And I have had some very awkward interviews with people who were not skilled at all. Those interviews were the most difficult to do well at.

I have basically stopped applying for jobs for the summer so this will probably be the last interview for a two or three months.  I need a break.

If something looks  great I am still sending resumes but I am not sending them to everyone anymore.

I must have sent 500 resumes in the last year. It is exhausting.

I am being sent on this interview by a recruiter who I sent a resume to in May. It takes a long time to get to the interview phase. Companies are being very cautious about hiring. I asked the recruiter how many people they had met with already.

Here is his response:” I do not know how many people are in the running but I do know that no one has run away with it and it is still up for the right person to pull in. They have met with a good number of people.”

This recruiter is actually a pretty cool guy from what I can glean from one phone call and several emails. He sent me little interview tips like:

Please forgive me if the suggestions are obvious to you. I have had people in the past do or say things in the interview that could have been avoided had I sent this type of email in advance. Since it is my nature to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, I must force myself to send this email to all candidates before an interview. Here are some basics to review:

-Bring a copy of your resume.

-Wear your best suit.

-If the position that you are interviewing for is not your number one choice at that moment in time, please treat the opportunity and the interview as if it were your number one choice. Please do this for two reasons. First, out of respect for the employer offering the position and second, for yourself. The position may become your number one choice if other opportunities do not work out. This is really important in today’s job market.

-Get to the interview early. Allow yourself plenty of time for the unexpected. (Traffic…) This will keep you calm and show that you are very interested in the position. If you get there early, you can get an early start on the application process. Fill the application out completely. Do not put “see Resume” in any fields.

-Be positive during the entire interview. Avoid going down any negative path in your conversation.

-Let the interviewer control the interview. Discuss the topics that they want to discuss when they want to discuss them. Offer added information on topics but know when to stop and give control of the interview back to the interviewer. Don’t be afraid to ask questions to clarify the interviewer’s question if needed.

-Get the business card of each person that interviews you and send each of them a separate email thanking them for the interview. If the card is not available, I can get you email addresses.

-Respect, confidence, manners and professionalism go a long way.

-Look people in the eye and enjoy the opportunity to engage in conversation about your talents. This is not the time to be modest. They need to know why they should hire you. They need to know about all you have to offer. You may know you are right or the position but what is important is what the interviewer knows at the end of the interview.

Since you are interested in the position, I think you should put your best foot forward. Keep in mind that the goal is to get them to make you an offer.

I know that if you can secure this position, you would be working in an environment that will show appreciation for your knowledge, experience and talents. I wish you the best of luck with the interview.

Please give me a call after the interview.

All sound if not obvious advice. I figured I’d pass it along in case you are looking for work too.

I’ll let you know how the interview turns out.