10 Interview Tips for a Recruiter (2)

Tip 4: Learn to Paraphrase

When a Recruiter paraphrases what the Job Seeker has said during an interview they essentially restate what was said using their own vocabulary but relay the same meaning as what was initially spoken. Paraphrasing is a classic means to counselling and can be applied in effective ways during a job interview. By paraphrasing job interviewers can ensure that they have received the message that the candidate was trying to relay and understood what they were trying to explain. This also allows for the Recruiter to ascertain the legitimacy of the Job Seekers answers in which, if they are answering interview questions falsely (pre rehearsed), by paraphrasing and requesting confirmation, will further establish the Job Seekers understanding of the question and the answer that initially relayed. This top job interview tip can be used during face to face interviews as well as telephonic interviews

Tip 5: Ask Open ended Questions

This top job interview tip reminds recruiters that the point of a job interview is to get the Job Seeker to converse as much as possible. It is the interviewer's job to listen and comprehend who the Job Seeker is and how they articulate their answers during the meeting. Always ask open ended question or those conducive to conversation. In doing so the Job Seeker is required to eloquently answer your questions, think fast on their feet and illustrate to you their thought processes and ability to communicate. Yes or no questions are inevitable but be sure to ask open ended questions such as ' tell me a little about yourself' or 'describe your working history' in order to ensure the Job Seeker is required to inject personality and thought into their job interview answers.

Tip 6: Take Notes

During an interview it is important that the Recruiter takes notes and jots down important points that each Job Seeker makes. However, be careful not to take this to the extreme or to the point that you record, word for word how the Job Seeker responds. Rather record important points that the Job seeker makes that differentiates them form others and makes them a unique applicant. These notes will help when having to shortlist favourites and identify unique factors that set the successful candidates aside from the mediocre ones. By keeping a pen and paper in front of you will also aid Recruiters in remembering questions that come to mind during the interview that you want to remember to ask at a later stage or once the Job Seeker ahs finished responding.

Tip 7: Don't Interrupt

An interviewer's task is to mediate and to ensure that the Job Seekers remain on the same train of thought when answering a specific job interview question. In doing so, many Recruiters mistakenly interrupt a Job Seeker mid response and stop them from delivering their answer to the question. Top Tip number 7 asks interviewers to try to find a balance with allowing adequate time for a Job Seeker to respond and identifying when a Job Seeker begins to digress. By interrupting a Job Seeker mid answer, the interview not only does the candidate an injustice, but may miss out on the delivery of the perfect answer to their question. Each person communicates in their own unique way. Try to allow Job Seekers space and time to respond to questions as they would under natural conversational situations. Remember that nerves may be on edge and the Job Seeker may be the perfect candidate to fill the role but be having some difficulty getting to the answer they are trying to deliver.

In converse to this, Recruiters should not feel obligated to fill uncomfortable silences. If the Job Seeker takes a little while to respond or you are posed with a long pause of silence, do not break this but rather observe how the Job Seeker responds and reacts to this sometimes uneasy moment during the job interview.

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