Re: Interviewing Strategies

Subject: Re: Interviewing Strategies
From: Ned Bedinger <doc -at- edwordsmith -dot- com>
To: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2006 14:53:29 -0800

James Barrow wrote:

Al Geist said:
Edgar D' Souza asked:
classe -at- charter -dot- net wrote:

[]At my former company, we interviewed a candidate who seemed to
fit the job description very well. When the HR manager informed my
manager and I that he was on his cell phone in the company lobby, arguing

<snip>

You may have eliminated an excellent
candidate because the receptionist perceived that he/she was having a
heated discussion with their partner, who told the HR manager who
interpreted the receptionists comments as the candidate having family
problems when in fact, it may have been one of those days when the planets
were lining up wrong for the couple. As Edgar said, you never mentioned if
the person was yelling, swearing, or both. If that were true, then you were
correct in tossing the resume because that would be unprofessional.

This is very off-topic. It's irrelevant if the candidate yelled, used
profanity, or jumped up and down. The fact that his behavior could be
viewed as argumentative, and he was in the company lobby, shows that it was
inappropriate. Not just because he was arguing, but because he didn't have
enough good judgment to take the conflict outside, away from the company.

The schlemiel who gets his/her buttons pushed in a phone call right before an interview is egregious, I'll agree. Still, kicking him out is worse.

The solution, per occassion, is to interrupt the phone call or cubie meeting and ask if you can help them find a meeting room or other sanctioned place where their voices won't carry into the work area. You don't need sarcasm, wittiness, petulance, or gravitas to do this, just a little dignity. Practiced politeness may help you to be disarming when you make this request. If you feel like you're too demure to ask someone for this consideration, consider asking HR for an appropriate training in managing workplace conflicts, or public speaking, or whatever floats your boat.

Of course, once in a while you run into someone whose voice naturally booms like an orator, or carries like a marketplace fishmonger, or expresses distracting levels of attention-getting qualities of one sort or another, and hiring them to work in a cubie farm may be a mistake, depending on the culture. But people who do this other 'loud thing' (and that is the workplace problem in this case, not fighting with S.O. on the phone) generally do not realize that they're too loud. Face it, they're everywhere. Learn how to solve, not avoid, the workplace problem, and then you'll look a lot less like a chicken running around with its head cut off.


NED BEDINGER
DOC -at- EDWORD(oops,shouting)smith.com
Ed Wordsmith Technical Communications
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

WebWorks ePublisher Pro for Word features support for every major Help format plus PDF, HTML and more. Flexible, precise, and efficient content delivery. Try it today! http://www.webworks.com/techwr-l

Easily create HTML or Microsoft Word content and convert to any popular Help file format or printed documentation. Learn more at http://www.DocToHelp.com/TechwrlList

---
You are currently subscribed to TECHWR-L as archive -at- infoinfocus -dot- com -dot-
To unsubscribe send a blank email to techwr-l-unsubscribe -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
or visit http://lists.techwr-l.com/mailman/options/techwr-l/archive%40infoinfocus.com


To subscribe, send a blank email to techwr-l-join -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com

Send administrative questions to admin -at- techwr-l -dot- com -dot- Visit
http://www.techwr-l.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.


Follow-Ups:

References:
RE: Interviewing Strategies: From: James Barrow

Previous by Author: Re: Tables inside numbered lists
Next by Author: Re: Interviewing Strategies
Previous by Thread: RE: Interviewing Strategies
Next by Thread: RE: Interviewing Strategies


What this post helpful? Share it with friends and colleagues:


Sponsored Ads