Conducting Telephone Interviews

[Nuckols, Kenneth M]

Toni Williams said...

> 
> > I have just found out that I am to conduct a
> > telephone
> > interview (tomorrow morning 5/12 at 10) for a
> > candidate for a co-techwriting position. I have
> > never
> > done one and would appreciate any quick tips as to
> > the
> > questions to ask and any other advice as well.
> > Please
> > respond directly as I am on digest. Thanks very
> > much.
> >

I can't provide exact questions, but here's a couple of areas to think
about:

1. Work environment--what kind of work environment is at your company?
Ask some general questions to find out how comfortable the candidate
would be in that type of environment (the review/feedback process that
is in place, the kind of SMEs you have, etc., etc.).

2. The writer's process--get a feel for the writer by asking some
questions about his or her process.

3. Why is the writer interested in your company? Why do they want the
job--what do they know about your company, what kind of
research/experience do they have in your company's industry?

4. Without breaching any confidentiality agreements the candidate may
have, have them describe their current position. How do they feel about
it and how long have they been there? This can be very telling--if a
person only gripes and bellyaches about their current job and can only
talk about the faults of the work environment, the managers, and the job
duties, that might be a red flag or it might not--but it definitely
means you will want to closely examine whether this is just a miserable
person and whether you want to work with him/her or not.

Good luck!


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