by Angela Copeland | Dec 3, 2018 | Advice, Career Corner Column, Newsletter
Have you ever had to do extra work in a job interview? One of my most intense interviews ever was at Target. I interviewed there after graduate school for a project management role. The process was unlike one I had ever seen up to then.
Target flew me into Minneapolis one evening, with a day of interviews to follow. The day itself is a blur now. So much happened in a relatively tiny amount of time.
I had multiple individual interviews. They happened back to back in a small room. One person would come in and interview me. They’d leave and then another person would come in. This happened around four times in a row. It was back to back with no real breaks.
Then, the human resources manager took me to lunch. It was right next door. And, it wasn’t any kind of lunch. It was a lunch interview. I had to be on my game.
After lunch, I was taken to another business nearby. There, I took an IQ test that was very much like the SAT you might have taken to get into college. There was a math portion and a verbal portion. It was a lot do to after five interviews.
But, the fun didn’t end there. Next, I was met by a psychologist. The psychologist administered a psychological exam.
After it was over, I remember stretching out in the back seat of a cab on my way back to the airport. I was exhausted. I’d never had such an intense interview.
This sounds like a lot of work, doesn’t it? That’s because it is. But, do you know what else it is? It’s an attempt at a fairer interview process.
No interview is unbiased. Some people perform better in an in person interview. Others do better on a test. Allowing the candidate to be tested in multiple ways is a good way to reduce the likelihood of an unfair process.
In fact, my favorite interviews are the ones with the most work. I like it when you write a proposal for the manager, to show them what you will bring to the table. I feel like it gives you a chance to sell yourself. It gives the manager a chance to truly measure your abilities. And, it reduces your risk of a mismatch.
The next time you’re put through a long and difficult interview process, remember this. The process is likely more fair than if the hiring manager met you and quickly decided. If you get the job, it’s more likely to be a better fit for you.
You may also be wondering whatever happened at Target. I got the job offer and the company was so nice that they sent me flowers to congratulate me. Target was a truly amazing company. I didn’t end up taking the job, but I took away the importance of a thorough interview process.
I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.
Also, be sure to subscribe to my Copeland Coaching Podcast on
Apple Podcasts or
Stitcher where I discuss career advice every Tuesday! If you’ve already heard the podcast and enjoy it, please consider leaving a review in
iTunes or
Stitcher.
Happy hunting!
Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach
by Angela Copeland | Nov 26, 2018 | Career Corner Column, Illegal Interview Questions, Interviewing, Newsletter
I’ve been talking to a number of job seekers lately about illegal interview questions. They keep coming up, and I keep asking myself why that is. When you’re a job seeker, you may not realize how common illegal questions are because you’re interviewing for only one or two jobs at a time. But, surprisingly, they’re popping up in job interviews quite a bit.
Common illegal questions include: What is your marital status? How many children do you have? Are you planning to have more children? How old are you?
Honestly, it’s hard to understand why these questions are coming up. I have wondered how hiring managers don’t seem to know what not to ask. And, I’ve wondered why they’re even asking at all.
In some cases, the hiring manager may be simply trying to make small talk. They may be trying to get to know you. But, it’s really hard to say. In some cases, the hiring manager is clearly asking the question for unethical reasons. But, in other cases, someone may have been trying to make casual conversation and may have unknowingly stumbled into murky waters.
So, why does it keep happening? My best guess is this. Hiring managers are rarely trained on what not to ask. Human resources often assumes that in today’s day in age, we all know what not to ask. Then, when the hiring manager does ask these questions, the candidate doesn’t react negatively. The reason is this. If you want the job, you don’t get upset by a potentially off-putting question. That’s a fast way to eliminate yourself from the candidate pool. So, the hiring manager gets no feedback in the moment. After the hiring process, if you’re not selected, you have little to no interaction with the company. You are at times lucky to get an automated rejection email for your time.
What’s a company to do? I propose that companies should install a system to solicit feedback from candidates. This would close the loop on hiring. The company could ask the candidate for anonymous feedback about their interview. It could then be routed to human resources who could be alerted to potential issues in questions. This would protect the company’s interests, educate the hiring manager, and improve the experience for the job seeker. It’s a win-win-win.
One company that is implementing something similar to this process is Amazon. After a candidate interviews with Amazon, they receive an anonymous survey titled “rate our phone interviews.” The survey asks whether or not the interview experience was frustration free. It also asks for what they could do to improve, and it gives the job seeker a free form text box to provide feedback.
Implementing this sort of feedback treats the job seeker like a valued player in the process – similar to a customer. And, this is a great foundation of mutual respect on which to build a future working relationship.
I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.
Also, be sure to subscribe to my Copeland Coaching Podcast on
Apple Podcasts or
Stitcher where I discuss career advice every Tuesday! If you’ve already heard the podcast and enjoy it, please consider leaving a review in
iTunes or
Stitcher.
Happy hunting!
Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach
by Angela Copeland | Nov 19, 2018 | Career Corner Column, Interviewing, Newsletter
When I was in college, I never joined a sorority. But, like you, I’ve heard some of the horror stories about what it can sometimes be like to become part of Greek life. For some (but not all) student led organizations, hazing rituals are just a part of life. Looking back, it seems like they’re a silly college-aged tradition that have been left in the past. Somehow, these rituals are following us into adulthood. They’re showing up in the most unexpected place: the job interview.
Some employers put candidates through stress interviews. They ask inappropriate or irrelevant questions in an effort to get a reaction from the job seeker. They’re interested to see how you might react under stress. The answer often matters less than the reaction. I recently heard from a job seeker who was cursed at during a job interview in a confrontational way – in front of a group. The hiring manager was trying to get a reaction out of him.
Other employers are asking candidates to do homework, lots of homework. It may come in the form of creating plans that the company may use. It may involve taking tests. Many of these tools are meant to help identify the most capable candidates. But, it often discounts the work experience a candidate has in favor of how well they perform under pressure on a particular day.
In other situations, employers may put the candidate through physical stress. Perhaps they’re booked with back to back travel and interviews with no time for bathroom breaks or rest.
The most surprising interview trend I’ve seen lately that falls into this category is company-wide voting. Did you know that if you interview at a company, there’s a chance that the company’s employees will vote on whether or not they liked you, just after you leave the building? It might be one thing to ask folks if they have concerns with a candidate and if they do, what those concerns are. But, in some organizations, employees are given a simple yes or no choice. If anyone votes against a candidate, there’s a decent chance they will be kicked out of the process.
With all of this comes a note. I’ve heard of these practices more within the tech world than anywhere else. So, if you have an important corporate interview coming up, don’t fear. There’s a decent chance that you will not be exposed to most of these tactics.
On the flip side, I do understand that when you’re the job seeker, you should be willing to go along with most of the things a company asks of you – especially if you want the job. But, if a company treats you badly in the interview process, don’t forget it. That may be how the plan to treat you as an employee. If the job interview process seems immature, it’s possible the staff may be too.
I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.
Also, be sure to subscribe to my Copeland Coaching Podcast on
Apple Podcasts or
Stitcher where I discuss career advice every Tuesday! If you’ve already heard the podcast and enjoy it, please consider leaving a review in
iTunes or
Stitcher.
Happy hunting!
Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach
by Angela Copeland | Nov 12, 2018 | Career Corner Column, Interview Questions, Interviewing, Media, Newsletter
When it comes to job interviews, I’ve seen it all. Most interviews come in a fairly straight forward format. You do a phone screen with human resources and then a phone interview with the hiring manager. Afterward, you come in person for meetings with the hiring manager and other folks on the team.
But, not every interview is so simple. Some companies ask job seekers to do a presentation about themselves. Others ask you to complete an IQ test. And, some ask you to create a proposal of how you would spend your first ninety days if you were hired. And, then every once in a while, a company will ask you, “What kind of salad dressing best emulates your life philosophy?”
I know this must sound like a joke. But, no, I’m not kidding. Companies will ask questions such as, “If you were a sandwich, what kind of sandwich would you be?” and, “What font best describes your personality?”
These types of questions can serve a few purposes. First, they can test how you react under pressure. Are you able to roll with the punches, even when you’re asked something outside of the box? They can also test you from a culture fit perspective. Do you answer in a way that is in line with the company culture? And, they can test your creativity. How interesting, thoughtful, and unique is your answer?
Although questions like this really make no sense to many people, I can get behind them under one condition. That condition is that the interview process is a two-way street.
If the job seeker is going to go along with your crazy line of questions, then you in turn (the hiring manager) should treat the candidate with an equal amount of respect. If they’ve put in a lot of time doing homework as part of your process, take the time to follow through with them – even if it’s a little more work. Interview them when you say you will. Respond to their emails. And, if you don’t select them, let them know quickly and in a respectful manner.
The part about this type of process that I do not like is when the entire thing is a one-way street. If a candidate is going to play along with this sort of line of questioning, the company should be prepared to be respectful in return. This is especially true if the candidate has put in a significant amount of time into the application process.
Ghosting a job seeker or taking weeks and weeks to follow up on email communications is not acceptable. It’s no way to treat any potential employee or future representative of your company. When you treat the job search like a joke, you’re treating the candidate as if they are disposable. And, they will likely feel the same about you in return. Treat others the way you want to be treated.
I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.
Also, be sure to subscribe to my Copeland Coaching Podcast on
Apple Podcasts or
Stitcher where I discuss career advice every Tuesday! If you’ve already heard the podcast and enjoy it, please consider leaving a review in
iTunes or
Stitcher.
Happy hunting!
Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach
by Angela Copeland | Nov 5, 2018 | Career Corner Column, LinkedIn, Media, Newsletter
I recently had the opportunity to attend LinkedIn’s annual human resources event: Talent Connect. Held in Anaheim, California, the event showcased everything LinkedIn’s been working on in 2018, and their plans for the future. It’s always a great educational event. The information presented ranged from what they’re doing for job seekers with their applicant tracking system — to how they’re helping companies to expand their online learning systems with LinkedIn Learning (formerly known as Lynda.com). They also announced the acquisition of an employee engagement platform: Glint.
Dan Shapero, Vice President of Talent Solutions at LinkedIn, announced the purchase on stage, alongside Glint CEO, Jim Barnett. Glint’s mission is to “help people be happier and more successful at work.” The technology is expected to help answer tough HR questions, including: the overall health and performance of the organization, where to find new talent, and if the capabilities of the team are aligned to the business needs.
“With LinkedIn’s insights into the larger workforce alongside Glint’s internal view into employee engagement and skills, we will be able to help talent leaders answer all those difficult questions,” said Shapero. “Glint provides executives with the tools to answer questions about the health and happiness of the talent they have, while giving managers at all levels the access and insight they need to improve.”
Glint’s technology encourages companies to regularly gather employee feedback on work, culture, and leadership. And, it provides those insights back to the leadership team to make informed decisions. This is great news for employees and managers alike.
After all, replacing employees is expensive. And so often, employees aren’t leaving to make more money. They’re leaving because they’re unhappy, or they want more career growth. A solution like Glint may help companies to solve these problems for employees before it’s too late.
As I think back on my experience at LinkedIn Talent Connect, there’s one theme that really shines through. It’s undeniable just how integrated LinkedIn is becoming into each and every one of our professional lives – from the beginning to the end.
Ten years ago, LinkedIn was a simple networking website. Today, it’s a collection of technologies that travel with us through our entire career journey. We use LinkedIn to research where we want to work using their company reviews. We monitor and apply for jobs on LinkedIn. We estimate how much money we should be making using LinkedIn Salary. Once we’re working at a company, we stay in touch with our colleagues there. We use LinkedIn for referrals and references. We use the site as a continuing education resource. We even throw away our business cards because we know we can use LinkedIn instead.
And now, companies are using LinkedIn to find out how they can be better employers for their employees. Regardless of where you are in your career journey, one thing’s for sure. LinkedIn is likely a part of your everyday professional life.
I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.
Also, be sure to subscribe to my Copeland Coaching Podcast on
Apple Podcasts or
Stitcher where I discuss career advice every Tuesday! If you’ve already heard the podcast and enjoy it, please consider leaving a review in
iTunes or
Stitcher.
Happy hunting!
Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach
by Angela Copeland | Oct 29, 2018 | Career Corner Column, Newsletter
Sometimes, you want to feel like your work means something. You want to feel like a person who is performing a craft. You want to feel like a professional. Somehow, looking for a job can make you feel like a discount item on a shelf at a big box store.
The salary is an area where companies have lost their way. During your first phone call with a company’s HR department, the recruiter will ask you how much money you make – or how much you want to make. Recruiters will tell you that they’re simply trying to understand whether or not you’re inside their budget.
But, this is the thing. Companies have a wide band they can pay employees. Asking this question is like a game of chicken, where the company is hedging their bets to try to get a good deal. But, how much are they saving on this exercise? Is it worth the cost of upsetting and candidate?
Years ago, I shopped for a new car. I went to a typical car dealership where I was treated like prey. Then, I went to a Saturn dealership. Saturn was a completely different experience. There was no negotiation. There was no pressure. If the car worked for you, it was yours. If not, no problem. Despite that Saturn no longer exists, ask anyone who owned one what the experience was like, and you’ll find out just how positive it was.
Along similar lines, Glassdoor.com recently revealed that a ten percent pay increase only raises the likelihood of employee retention by 1.5 percent. So, what does this mean?
It means that employees are looking for the right job. They aren’t looking for the highest paying. They’re looking for fit. And, a lot of fit comes in the form of feeling like you’re treated with respect. Asking salary right out of the gate is the very opposite of respect, and it diminishes you and your work experience down to a price tag – one number.
The good news is, certain states and some cities are beginning to outlaw questions about your pay history. These laws are changing quite a bit, so you’ll want to look at what’s fair game in your area. But, the good news is that these new laws are shedding light on this important issue. Asking pay history can mean that if you’re underpaid today, you’ll continue to be underpaid in the future. Some companies are getting rid of the work history question completely, as the laws are changing.
But, it won’t stop them from asking how much you want to make. Before you answer this question, do your research. Although it doesn’t feel like it, answering this question in the first call can weaken your negotiation power later.
Perhaps in the future, companies will begin to share their budget first. It would allow you to focus on fit, and ensure companies are paying everyone fairly.
I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.
Also, be sure to subscribe to my Copeland Coaching Podcast on
Apple Podcasts or
Stitcher where I discuss career advice every Tuesday! If you’ve already heard the podcast and enjoy it, please consider leaving a review in
iTunes or
Stitcher.
Happy hunting!
Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach
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