Candidates for management positions must be prepared not only for traditional job interviews, but for interviews conducted over the telephone as well, as these are used by recruiters to narrow down the number of candidates that will get invited to personal interviews. Get to know the given position as well as the company offering it well. Also prepare answers to questions that you can expect. Don’t rely on the phone interview being brief and you not really being able to say anything. And also stick to the following recommendations.
Find a calm place
Arrange the interview so that you’re not caught in a busy public place, at home with loud children or especially in an office where you work for another employer.
Make sure the connection is reliable
If you have a landline, make sure you use it for the call. If you must rely on a mobile phone, be sure that the sound is good, the battery is fully charged and there is a strong signal in the given location.
Learn how to work with the tone of your voice
Body language won’t help you on the phone. Therefore train your voice so that you sound friendly, optimistic and enthusiastic.
Prepare for questions about the expected salary and possible start date
Recruiters need to know your answers to these questions so that they can decide whether they will continue considering you. You should therefore find out in advance what you can request and offer in this respect.
Prepare the materials that you sent together with the job application
The recruiter who is phoning you will have in front of him your CV and other materials that you sent to him. You should have the exact same materials in front of you so that so you can see exactly how long you worked for previous employers, what your previous positions were called, etc.
Do not allow yourself to be distracted by other conversations
Turn off your email and all other communication programs on your computer. Pay attention only to the documents related to the interview.
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