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Recruiting Strategies: Practice Good Communication

Just before entering an interview, take a few minutes to review the resume. Although you have carefully read it previously, more than likely you have also read many other resumes in the last 24 hours and you want this candidate to be assured you know exactly who they are and are familiar with their background.

Building good rapport from the beginning is vitally important. First of all, pronounce their name correctly, and if you are unsure, make an attempt and ask them if you are correct. Showing disrespect for a person's name is not funny and should never be used as an ice-breaker, even if it is "Ima Hogg". Also, never be late....being prompt exhibits your respect for the candidate's time and indicates this to be a company expectation. Open the meeting with good eye-contact, a smile and a firm hand-shake.

To begin the interview, I recommend one or two rapport-building questions along these lines:

1) Did you get caught in that thunderstorm last night? (or if they are in another part of the country...) I saw on the news that your area had a tornado last week....was it close to you? Weather-related openers are very safe.
2) Are you enjoying the basketball playoffs? For sports enthusiasts, this could be time-consuming, so be prepared to end the question after a minute or two.
3) Did you have any trouble finding our offices?

Humor can be an effective disarming tool, but only with someone who likes it. You really have to judge the candidate in the first sentence or two....to the extremely serious or nervous candidate, the atmosphere can become awkward. Use humor very cautiously and briefly.

Avoid nervous habits that could be distracting, such as tapping nails or a pencil on the desk, clearing your throat, etc. Use the applicant's first name throughout the meeting....people like hearing their name and it gives them the assurance that they are not just a number in your mind.

As with many things, practice makes perfect in communication...but it's only half of the equation. Next week, we will explore the art of listening.