Here is a good tip from Tory Johnson via the abcnews.com website. Is MySpace a Professional Liability? provides insight into her technique for researching a candidate. It is surprising how many employers do not take a minimal amount of time to search the web for a candidate’s information.
I must confess, I am a neophyte when it comes to the social networking boards. I have cruised around MySpace.com a couple of times looking at the business-related information. There wasn’t much that I found. However, the individual information is quite extensive. Yes, I have heard the punchlines on Leno about MySpace, but this article does lay out an excellent use of the site for background checking candidates.
Second excellent idea in this article can be found right here:
Like most employers, I want to hire people who aren’t easily flummoxed and can easily go with the flow, which certainly includes handling curveballs. Speaking of unanticipated interview questions, I asked a college senior how she enjoyed her Spring Break in the Caribbean. She panicked. “Oh. Wait. Um, uh&did I tell you I was going to the Islands or&wait&did you find my pictures on MySpace?” I said nothing, waiting for her to figure out the answer herself. While that may sound cruel on my part, I wanted her to regain her composure and think through the situation. Turns out, she was defensive for a reason.
Her silence was an effective interview move that is difficult to execute. It is our natural human tendency to want to help people who are struggling. Yet, when you ask a tough interview question that makes the candidate struggle, it is best to bite your tongue and observe how they handle the question. If you help them by restating your question, you forfeit the opportunity to see them under pressure.
We have written about our use of pressure on a phone screen in a previous newsletter. Sales, especially, is a pressure-filled occupation. We use pressure throughout the process to see the candidate in action. The points in the article are just as applicable to a face-to-face interview as they are to a phone screen.