How To Walk Through A Job Description During A Job Interview
The internet is awash in example questions that you can ask during a job interview, it would be insufficient to try and give a thorough summary in a way that would bring value to you.
So we will skip the interview questions and do something better.
We have been programmed as humans to a “one-click” mindset. That one innovative button from Amazon that was patented in 1997 provided a twenty-year runway of revenue and profits that no other retailer would be able to match or come close.
Staple’s easy button and Amazon’s one-click button productizes a mindset that we have been conditioned towards; make it fast and make it easy.
Can you imagine if an online dating service advertised a one-click-to-marriage product or a counseling service marketed an easy-parenting algorithm?
Why does that seem so absurd, but a one-click button to purchase ballpoint pens to be delivered in one day seems reasonable and expected?
Relationships.
I don’t have a relationship with a ballpoint pen. I have relationships with people.
Relationships cannot be reduced to one click, and the ones that are have little value.
Employers have been trying to figure out for years how to automate and one-click their way to a hiring process akin to pushing a metaphorical easy button.
Life is filled with examples of fast living leading to a shortened life, and intentional, slow living leading to a longer life.
Hiring is similar.
Either you will pay the price upfront and maintain the investment through consistent, predictable leadership, or you will not pay the price upfront and maintain your investment through hope, anger, frustration, and unset and unmet expectations.
Throughout the hiring process, you have done the methodical hard work of determining the gap in your business, writing a job role that will help fill that gap, budgeting the role to ensure alignment with revenue and expenses, finding the right people to talk to, casually getting to know those people, sharing your vision, mission, values, and culture, and evaluating their technical skill set and their motivational leadership.
All that leading up to this point of finally sharing the actual job role with the candidate. Pay the price now, and you will enjoy clarity later.
At this stage of the hiring process simply be a human. Pull out two copies of the written job role, one for you and one for them, and begin walking through all of the steps and tasks, and capabilities that this role will require.
As you go, be a good human... interact, ask questions, seek clarifications, field their questions, take notes, go deeper, and thank them for their time.
Provide insight as to who they will be working with internally, who they will be interacting with externally. What does a day or a week in the life of their role look like?
This is a great time of the hiring process to actually have an example ideal weekly schedule for this role so they can visualize a real-life week, and they can also see that you have put in the hard work of making sure there's a place for them. A lack of clarity on the front end will lead to significant and enduring frustration on the backed with real consequence.
At the time of this training being developed the recruiting and placement firm Monster.com reported results from a survey conducted finding that a staggering 95% of American workers are looking to leave their jobs and a significant number of them reported burnout as the reason.
Burnout is a direct result of chaos in expectations, chaos in planning, and chaos in blocking time. Essentially, we burn out when we see no progress towards the vision.
You can search the internet for the silver bullet question that will ensure you’ve landed the right person, but the reality is that you likely won’t need them and can simply have a helpful, life-giving conversation using the written job role as your shared point of focus.
The right fit is less about their experience, and it is more about your preparation and leadership.
Near the end of the conversation, this is the time to explain the job role compensation structure. This is not the time to discuss specific compensation amounts (salary, incentive comp percentages, etc.). You are simply communicating…
This role is a liveable salary plus a commission of sales and will be paid twice monthly
Or...
This role has a base salary and qualifies for a quarterly bonus and will be paid every two weeks...
... or whatever the structure of compensation is. Again, this is not their job offer with compensation specifics. Just compensation structure.
Once complete with a substantive dialogue using the job role as your foundation and the compensation structure explained, wrap up and confirm no other questions, thoughts, or concerns.
Let them know that you will then take the feedback from this conversation along with the assessments you have had them complete, the feedback from their references, and any other questions they’ve had along the way, and you will put all of that together and invite them to the next step which is a partner interview.
One other word of note, many times it will also be a good idea to invite other current team members who would interact with this role at this stage of the interview process. Your other team members can help you interact with the candidate from their unique perspective. They will also get a chance to weigh in on the candidate since they are the ones likely to spend the most time with them.
We have even seen some employers bring in a customer or two to have them evaluate the candidate during this stage.
Avoid hitting the easy button now, and you will have a chance to hit it on repeat down the road!
