Skype interviews (Part 3) - What NOT to do in an interview.

I had doubts if I should go ahead with this video or not. The information I want to share is relevant, and it can help candidates in their future Skype interviews. But it can also be misunderstood and considered as lack of professionalism from my side. Nothing further from my intentions here!

Due to all the respect with the thousands of candidates I had the chance to interview by now, some interviews were really amazing, but others were terrible. If you think for a while, can you guess what makes a job interview really bad, in a way that it remains in your mind for months and even years after it has happened? That is exactly what I want to share here.

There are no perfect pre-defined steps to do a memorable interview. Of course, there are things that helps, just like there are behaviors that do not help at all the candidate to give a professional impression and succeed on the interview. If you are smart and use a bit of common sense, you will probably avoid some of the most basic mistakes you could do to fail in an interview. Nevertheless, as I have confirmed already in my experience, “common sense” is something relative, and can vary tremendously from one person to the other.

For some reason, I realized people still take a Skype interview as something less serious and important than a face-to-face interview. I don´t know why it happens, but this is the only explanation I can find for facing the situations I had to deal with while doing Skype interview. Similar situations never happened to me before in personal interviews, so I guess we should all start taking Skype interviews into a different level.

Here comes a list of real (and also funny) situations I had to deal with in previous Skype job interviews:

Situation 1

A male candidate appeared on the screen without any shirt, t-shirt nor polo. Nothing was covering the top part of his body. Well, I don´t really know about the lower part of his body, as I could not see it on the video, but the upper part was naked, I could see that.

He might have noticed the surprised look on my face once his video turned on, so he immediately justified himself, saying that “It was very hot on his place, so he decided to take the shirt off to do the interview and stop sweating”.

I am afraid to imagine what this candidate would do in case he is at work and he feels that the ambience is getting warm…

Situation 2

I could see a cat, or a dog (or even both sometimes) moving behind the candidate during the interview. I love animals, so I can say it was quite distracting for me, and I assume it could be distracting for most of Recruiters. At some point, the dog started barking loud, and the candidate had to stop the interview to take the animal out of the room.

Maybe the animal should not have been on his interview room since the first moment, right?

Situation 3

In the middle of the interview, the candidate´s father showed up in front of the webcam to say “hi” to me. The father also emphasized that his son was really in need of that job, and that I should give him an opportunity. The father didn´t want to leave after he said his speech, so I politely had to ask him to let me speak again with his soon alone.

Which kind of candidate needs his father defending his qualities to the Recruiter, during the interview? Is it to show how competent he is for the job? Be careful with those situations, because it might create some serious doubts in the interviewer´s mind about the autonomy and empowerment of the candidate.

Situation 4

When I was interviewing a woman, at some point I could see a baby´s hair in the lower part of the video on the computer screen. The “hair” was moving, and I could hear his voice saying “Mammy, Mammy”. Of course, the woman got distracted, and although she tried to ignore the baby…. babies do not understand that.

The kid started screaming during the interview. The candidate apologized, explained it was dinnertime for the baby, and asked if I could call again in about 15 minutes to finish the interview.

I did call her later, but maybe, this interruption should not have happened.

Situation 5

In another interview, I could hear a kind of “echo effect” in the room, but it happened before the candidate opened his mouth and could speak. It was like this: a few seconds before the candidate was going to reply my question with a word, I could hear the exactly same word in a lower tone. It was coming from another person, but the microphone could capture that.

I started being suspicious about it, kept my ears alert, and I finally understood the real situation. There was somebody else in the room, whispering the answers to the candidate, so the candidate could repeat the exactly words to me.

Seriously? Why to do that?

Situation 6

A candidate was checking the watch on his arm from time to time, every minute or so. I asked him if he had to leave, and he said yes, he had to leave, because he was already late to meet his girlfriend.

I apologized for taking his time, and wished him a lovely afternoon with his partner. If the interview didn´t seem to be important enough to him, why should I care too much about it?

Situation 7

Another story about boyfriends and girlfriends. A candidate seemed to be tired and was almost falling asleep during the interview. I thought he could be sick, so I asked if he was feeling well and if we could go ahead with the interview. He said he was feeling good, just needed some rest. He explained he didn´t have much sleep “because he went to his girlfriend´s place on the previous night, and they didn´t stop having fun all night, so that´s why he was tired today”.

No further comments.

Situation 8

Last but not least… A classical “phone ringing situation” during the interview. We all know we should turn off our phones before the interview starts, but still, we can eventually forget about it, right? What we should not forget is to think properly in case it rings, when you are in the middle of the interview.

So, the phone was ringing. The candidate apologized to me, answered his phone and spoke to whoever was on the other side of the line for almost one minute – I could see that from his webcam and hear him speaking. After, he turned the phone off and told me he was ready to start his interview again.

I could not understand what he spoke about during his phone call, because I do not speak his native language. For sure, it was something funny and interesting, because he was laughing a lot during the call. I think the person on the other side of the phone was more interesting to him than his interview result…

I could go on and on with more examples, all situations that happened to me, but I guess I have made my point. Skype interviews are important, as important as any other kind of interview. Do not forget about it.

Do your best and go ahead!

As you know, English is not my native language. I use it because I can reach more people and share my experience with you. Feel free to visit my blog at julianarabbi.blogspot.com and find more articles and videos.

Click here to watch the video on You Tube.

Click here to subscribe to my YouTube channel.

Skype interviews (Part 2) – How to get ready for it

If you receive an invitation for your first Skype interview, don´t panic!

A part from the regular preparation you would normally do for any interview, breathe, and make sure you check the following steps:

One or two days before the interview:

- Test your Skype program – Do it at least one day before the interview date. It includes checking also the webcam and microphone. If you are familiar already with the layout of the program, and you know for example where to click to turn off the mute bottom for the microphone and where to reply in case the Recruiter sends you a text message, you will be more relaxed when your interview starts.

- Have a backup gadget that you could use for any emergency – Imagine that you test Skype on your computer the day before the interview, and it is working properly. For some reason, when you test it again 15 minutes before the interview starts, there is a problem with the webcam. If you have your smartphone close, or another computer available, you can log in with your Skype ID on the other gadget, do your interview and the problem is fixed. If you do not have a “plan B” in this case, you might need to re-schedule the interview.

- Print a copy of your updated CV- Have it with you during the interview.

On the interview day:

-  Be ready in advance – You should be ready in front of your computer or smartphone, connected on Skype, at least 15 minutes before the interview time. If you were going to do a personal interview, you would not arrive at the interview place two minutes before the interview starts, correct? So consider the same anticipation for Skype interviews too.

- Check the lighting on your interview room – The Recruiter probably will want to see your face, and there is nothing more frustrating than see only a dark shadow instead. Avoid weak light in the place, and be careful if you have a window on your back, with too much light, because it might also contribute to show an unclear image on the webcam.

Don´t worry if you are not a Light Technician to choose the best place to put your computer. Just test it with your webcam on, and decide. A table lamp can also be useful.

- Keep your printed CV close - Some people prefer to have their CV open on the computer screen, in one-half part of it, and the Skype program open in the other half. Doing so, they can read the CV and see the Recruiter at the computer at the same time. Choose whatever makes you feel more comfortable, but have easy access to your CV. You might need to check any information on it during the interview.

- Save paper and pen around - In case you feel like writing down some details during the interview, better to be safe than sorry.

- Chose a quiet place to be - If the Recruiter can´t hear you well due to background noise, this might affected your interview and make you feel nervous. We know that you can´t control you neighbor’s dog barking all day long, nor the construction right above your apartment, nor the car noise coming from the streets. Although, at least try to minimize those noises.

You can close the windows and the door; chose a quiet place in the house to be (if the internet connection works properly from that room); and turn off the TV, the radio and your phone. Please consider also informing your family or other people at your place that you are doing a job interview and that they should not interrupt you.

-  Your appearance – Some colors or kind of clothes might look professional and harmonious in person, but not necessarily in front of a webcam. You will show only your face and part of your upper body. Some fabrics with lines or drawing might create an optical illusion when they appear on the computer screen, and the result can be weird.

You should place yourself in front of the webcam, dressed with your interview clothes, turn the camera on, and check if you like the result. Just do not assume it will be good, because the way you see your clothes in the mirror can be different then the way your clothes appear on the screen.

-  The room appearance – A smooth surface on the back is always better than one with too much information (like colorful posters, photos or paintings). You should be the main thing calling the Recruiter´s attention, not all the things that appear on your background once the webcam turns on.

- Keep your status on Skype as “Online” – You can select your status from different options on Skype, so make sure you show the Recruiter you are ready for the interview by keeping the “Online” status. You can also text the Recruiter using the Skype chat 5 minutes before the interview to inform that you are already available.

When you follow those steps, you avoid unnecessary problems. Help your mind to relax and to get ready for the interview. Take this experience just like any other interview you have done before, because that is exactly what it is.

Do your best and go ahead!

As you know, English is not my native language. I use it because I can reach more people and share my experience with you. Feel free to visit my blog at julianarabbi.blogspot.com and find more articles and videos.

Click here to watch the video on You Tube.

Click here to subscribe to my YouTube channel.

Skype interviews (Part 1) – Advantages and Disadvantages

If you are not familiar yet with Skype interviews, let´s fix it now! 

Job interviews using the Skype computer program are each time more and more common in recruitment process all over the world. A Skype interview could happen as the first screening of the candidate, but normally it is used as an intermediate step of the different parts in the recruitment process, or even as the final interview.

Like everything in life, Skype interviews have advantages and disadvantages. Let´s check some of them.

Advantages

1 – It´s a cheap way to do an interview - There is no travelling nor commuting involve for the candidate to go to the interview place. The Recruiter can also do the interview from his house or from anywhere he whish.

2 – It does not requires much technology or equipment to happen - If you have a smartphone or computer with web cam, and a good internet connection, you have almost everything that you need to start your Skype interview. If you do not have the necessary equipment at home, going to a cyber cafe can be a good option, or you can borrow a friend´s laptop for one hour to do the interview.

3 – You do not need to be on the same city or country that the Recruiter is. That gives you the chance to talk to somebody who is geographically very far away from you, maybe even in a different continent. A personal interview in the same conditions would be much more difficult to happen.

4 – The interview process in general is faster when you use Skype interviews. You still need to adjust your agenda with the Recruiter´s agenda, but a part from that, normally you can save some time and get the interview step done soon.

Disadvantages

1 – There is this general feeling that the interview process is colder and more impersonal when done by Skype, comparing to a face-to-face interview. You know (and you see) that there is another person on the other side of the computer screen, talking to you, but it is not the same then having the person in front of you. The more familiar the candidate is with Skype or other similar programs, the better, because this “strange feeling that I am talking to a computer” might disappear at some point.

2 – The interviewer and candidate do not really see each other, only their faces and the upper body part. The interviewer might miss some important information about the candidate due to the limited access to see his body language.

3 – Some candidates don´t consider a Skype interview as serious as a regular interview. They take it as something less important than a personal one. This is a big mistake, because it is an interview, with the same purpose than other interviews! Remember: the Recruiter can make the final decision about your process during the Skype interview, so do not minimize the importance of this situation.

4 – I have seen many candidates trying to play tricks during the Skype interviews or trying to deceive the Recruiter. The fact that we can´t see the ambience where the candidate is, nor the things or people he has around him, can create more misleading opportunities than in a personal interview.

We, Recruiters, know that very well, by experience, so we are more alert to identify suspicious situations. I personally have a clear criterion about how to deal with doubtful situation: if I am not sure whether the candidate is taking advantage of the situation or not, and I can´t clarify that during the interview, the candidate is out of the recruitment process.

Change your mind set about Skype interviews from now one. Today you are more familiar with that and a bit more prepared to face it when it happens to you. Jack Canfield said “Everything you want is on the other side of fear”. Remember that!

Do your best and go ahead!

As you know, English is not my native language. I use it because I can reach more people and share my experience with you.

Click here to watch the video on You Tube.

Click here to subscribe to my YouTube channel.

Short interviews x long interviews: which one is better?

Once I applied for a Recruiter job in country in Europe, and the interviewer wrote me an e-mail to schedule a Skype interview. I got excited about it! I was ready online 10 min before the interview time, connected on Skype, and decided to write a short text to the Recruiter to say something like “Hi, I am ready here, let me know when you want to start”.

She replied immediately to say that she was sorry, but she had to re schedule the interview. I was disappointed, but OK, we re-scheduled it for the following week. The next interview day arrived, I was ready again in front of my computer, and the Recruiter was there, on the other side of the screen.

The interview lasted 8:37min in total, from the moment I said my first “Hi, good morning”, until my last “Thank you very much, bye”. 8 minutes and 37 seconds. Nothing else.

How long a job interview should last? Is there a minimum time? Is it necessarily bad to go through a short interview? Who said that long interviews are always a good sign to the candidate?

I used to work with massive recruitment. It means that I had to recruit for a big number of position, and consequently interview a bunch of candidates daily. When a Recruiter needs to deal with time pressure, targets and big numbers, the length of the interview is something that he needs to be careful.

A part from considering the interview length, in a massive recruitment the Recruiter needs to be clear about the main aspects and skills he need to check during the conversation. He needs to optimize his time in the best way possible.

For example: If we are looking for a Receptionist candidate who can speak fluently 2 different languages and have experience in 4 or 5 star hotels, we need to make sure we cover those aspects during the interview.

If I speak with candidate A during the interview using the two languages he said he can speak, and I see the candidate is fluent in both, I can move fast to the other aspects I need to check. I can ask for more details about his hotel experience, and I might even do that switching from one language to the other, to check his technical vocabulary.

If all his replies matches to what I am looking for, the interview will probably move fast and I can easily make my decision about whether the candidate should go ahead on the process or not. This situation could end up being a fast interview, and the reason is that the candidate was good and met all the requirements I was looking for. I didn´t need a longer time to confirm that, things were already clear to me.

Imagine I interview now a different candidate (B). When I start checking his language skills, I notice that his level is not fluent (although that´s what was written on his CV). He starts to feel nervous, so I decided to switch to the other language I need to check. His fluency is not as high as the position requires in this language either, but I think that it might be happening because he is already nervous from speaking the previous language.

I decided to take it easy and speak about different things, to “break the ice” and give him some time to recover and maybe get confident again. After that, I need to go back and check his languages skills. When he speaks again, his level is “on the limit”, so I am still not convinced that he meets the requirements. I appeal for more details about his hotel experience in one of the languages I need to check, and then I ask for the same details in the other language.

At the end, the candidate could give me the details I was looking for, but it took much longer than the previous candidate did. I had doubts about this candidate´s language skill, so I needed to make the interview longer to check things repeatedly, until I was ready to make my final decision.

If I had to choose between both candidates above, I would probably go for the first one. Maybe his interview lasted 20 minutes, maybe a bit less or a bit more. Was this time enough to check everything a Recruiter needs to check and make an important decision like offering a job that can change the person´s life? Well, in an “ideal” world, we Recruiters would have plenty time to spend as much as we want in a job interview, but reality is different.

If we Recruiters can check all the aspects we need during the interview in a short period, in most of the cases there is no point of stretching the conversation. I already have the information I need to support my decision about offering the candidate a job or not. In some cases, a short interview can perfectly be a good sign. It can be the best thing that can happen to you!

Do not be necessarily suspicious about short interviews. The feeling from the candidate´s side can be “I had so many other things to say, but I didn´t have enough time”. We know about it, and we are sorry that the work volume and time pressure does not allow us, Recruiters, to spend more time with you. Remember, you are doing a job interview, and both parts involved, Recruiter and candidate, want the same thing: a positive reply. If a short interview is enough to lead to this situation, the goal was accomplish.

Be yourself and show who you are since minute one of the interview. You never know how long it will last, but remember that every impression, every detail and every information will support the Recruiter´s final decision.

Do your best and go ahead!

As you know, English is not my native language. I use it because I can reach more people and share my experience with you.

Click here to watch the video on You Tube.

Click here to subscribe to my YouTube channel.

Perhaps this project might interest you.

My name is Juliana Rabbi and I will present here a series of 11 videos in which I will be sharing some of my knowledge in the Human Resources area, especially as a Recruiter. I choose some aspects related to the interview process that I consider relevant, contemporary and useful for candidates and interviewers, and I want to divide that with you.

I have a Psychology Degree, a post-graduation course in Psychodrama and a Master Degree in Human Resources Management. My main work experience in the last decade has been in Human Resources departments, especially in Recruiting and Selection. When I talked to people about my jobs and my experience with interviews, more than once I heard that my stories were interesting and helped them to think about the selection process in a different way.

One day, I decided to create a blog and record some videos. It is very nice when I am surfing on internet and I find an interesting article that helps me to rethink about my professional career, about my work, about my relationship with the candidates, coworkers and supervisors. I feel thankful for those people who took their time to share that. So why not to do the same? Why not to share a little bit of what I have learned in many years of experience?

I know what I know today because I studied and worked hard for many years, but also because other people shared their expertise with me during this process. Those people I met along the way helped me to grow, and some of them not even realize that. There is another interesting aspect of sharing knowledge, which is:  when I think about what I do and exercise putting it into words, it helps me to clarify my ideas and my own thoughts. Today, I am proud of myself that I have something to share here!

I am very excited about this new project, and I am putting all my energy and effort on it. Not everybody has a blog or videos on YouTube, so I found it an interesting thing to work on it. On the other hand, I know many people that have blogs and videos, very professional ones by the way. The information on those blogs was helpful to me in different moments of my life. If some people could be useful sharing what they know, I can also do it!

The videos are going to be recorded in English, and you can subscribe to my YouTube channel by clicking here. As you probably could noticed already, English is not my native language. So why did I decided to speak in English in those videos? It would be much easier for me to do that in my native language but I decided not to go for it. Then, why is that?

First, because it is challenging to me to speak in a foreign language, and I like challenging situations. I like to do some extra work and search for some specific words I need to use. I like to keep my attention in a high level when I am speaking to be able to express my idea, and I have to do that using English. I want to do something that motivates me to go beyond and really put effort, energy and concentration in what I am doing. Recording those videos in my native language would be like putting my mind in an “automatic mode”, and I don´t want that.

The second reason is to show that we can achieve things we want to, if we prepare ourselves and do it. I am sure I am going to do several spelling mistakes, or mispronounce some words. So what am I planning to do? I will do my best. I am able to express myself in English, and that is my main point here: if I can express myself, I can share my experience, even if I am not speaking in my native language. 

I have been using English for the last 8 years on daily basis at work, and I also use it constantly with friends, in my free time, I read and write in English, I watch movies, I act in English… so why not record the videos in English?

I consider I can reach more people with English than I would do using the other languages I can speak.

On the process of deciding in which language I was going to record those videos, I realized I was already enjoying being active in a project that was motivating me. This experience is something new for me; I have never done anything similar. The creation process that starts when you decide to go for a new project is very powerful. Working on this project now is taking me out of my comfort zone. 

I found already many excuses to forget about those videos and my blog and do not “waste my time” with things like that. I thought about giving up several times. However, there was a limit, an imaginary limit sometimes, other times a commitment I did to myself, and once I crossed it, I didn´t feel like giving up my project anymore.

If you like my idea, I invite you to check my next posts and videos. Remember: this is post number 1, and there will be 11 posts and videos in total about recruitment and selection. As I mentioned, you will be able to find more about it on YouTube on my channel and here on my blog “julianarabbi.blogspot.com”.

Thank you very much for your time.

Do your best and go ahead!

Click here to watch video number 1 on my You Tube channel.

Watch my videos on You Tube (the links are here)

You will find the same information of my posts in a video format, on YouTube.

Don’t forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel! 

You just need to click here, and you will know every time I post a new video.

You can also click on the links bellow to watch the videos:

Video 1 - Perhapsthis project might interest you – 6:08 minutes

CV

JULIANA   RABBI

E-mail: julianarabbi1@gmail.com Nationality: Italian (European Union Work Permit) and Brazilian LinkedIn: https://es.linkedin.com/in/julianarabbi

SUMMARY:

Passionate about people and challenging situations. Commited to use my skills to delive excellent results and create a positive impact in my Organization. Integrated with international experiences and use of languages, combining that with work under pressure.

OBJECTIVE: 

Senior Recruiter and Generalist Human Resources positions.

• Growth mindset professional and 10 years’ experience in Human Resources. 

• Adapted to international environments, with sound language knowledge (Bilingual English and Spanish; Native Portuguese).

• Participating in different Projects: designed an internal promotion program; updating Job Description and Job Profiles; taking part in international job fairs; working together with Hiring Partners and training Junior Recruiters

• Price winner, due to exceptional performance and dedication to work - “Navigator of the Quarter” (2013).

• Met deadlines and worked autonomously, without need of close supervision.

• Recruitment and Selection for Bilingual profiles and Hospitality positions (personal, telephone and Skype interviews). 

• 2.500 candidates approved in 2015. Recruitment trips in 4 continents. 

• 100% of the interview reports and feedback surveys updated in real time into internal candidate tracking system.

WORK EXPERIENCE

Royal Caribbean Cruises LTD Sucursal en España (Spain)
Global Senior Recruiter - August, 2010 - July, 2016 (6 years)

• Recruitment and Selection of candidates to work onboard cruise ships, for different positions in the Hotel area, in charge of all the cycle of the recruitment process.

• Strong experience interviewing different hierarchy position (Entry Level, Staff and Managers) and profiles.

• Effective contact with Operation Managers, Supervisors and Hiring Partners, insuring the continuation and improvement of services.

• Used to deal with daily work pressure, manage a large amount of candidates and met aggressive goals.

• Flexibility to work at the office and also from remote.

• Optimized travel costs, reducing the company´s expenses and improving results.

• Excellent feedback from the Hiring Partners and candidates about the interview process.

• Active participation in different internal projects (assisting in the web page layout and content; suggesting improvements for the candidate´s tracking system; training of the Human Resources staff in international offices; representing the Company in international job fairs).

• Bilingual English – Spanish job.

Maponwer ETT Team S.A.U. (Spain)

Consultant (Responsible for Key Account IBM) - September, 2008 - August, 2010 (2 years)

• 100% responsible for the Recruitment for two international work centers.

• Delivered efficient and fast reply to client´s demands on daily basis.

• Scrupulously in charge of the follow up with client and candidates.

• Practical know-how of webpages and strategies to succeed in obtaining the right profile.

• In charge of Administrative tasks and efficient contact with other internal departments.

• Flexible orientation, supporting the team with different clients whenever necessary.

•       Bilingual English - Spanish job.

EDUCATION

Master in Human Resources ("Human Resources Development and Knowledge Management")

Complutense´s University of Madrid, Spain. Ended: 2010

University Graduate - Psychology

Federal University of Espírito Santo, Brazil. 1999 - 2004

Especialization: Formation in Pedagogic, Organizational and Communitarian Psychodrama

Pegasus Desenvolvimento e Consultoria Ltda, Brazil - 410 hours - Ended: 2002

Additional Studies and Events:

Presentation at the Federal University of Espírito Santo, Brazil for Psychology students - Subject: "My work experience living abroad for the last 10 years" - 2016

"Human Resources Management" and "Management and Selection by Competencies". Élogo´s Group, Spain - Ended: 2007

English Study Semester - Ireland - 2007 - 2008

LANGUAGES

English - Advanced Level (daily use of English at work for the last 8 years)

Spanish - Advanced Level (living in Spain for the past 10 years)

Portuguese - Mother tongue 

ADITTIONAL INFORMATION

• European Work Permit.
• Available immediately to relocate and to travel with short notice.
• Travelled to more than 43 countries.
• Actress in amateur theatre and improvisation plays since 2008.
• Volunteer work – English teaching assistant in classes to foreign students (elementary level); taking care of abandoned dogs.
• Computer skills (Windows, Microsoft Office, Lotus Notes, Office 365 and different internal Human Resources tracking systems).
• Reference available upon request.