Last week, I talked about how to prepare for a traditional job interview. This time we’re going to talk about preparing for another type of interview, one that’s becoming more and more common. Like the question about how to prepare for a job interview, this point was raised in the comments on my post, Recovering from a bad job interview.
In the comments, T.L. from Budget and the Beach mentioned that she had recently bombed a Skype interview. I’ve never had a Skype interview but I like that think that at some point I will. Whether it’s for a job or for a potential client or even talking to me about my book that I know is going to a bestseller (ha!), I would put money on the fact that one day, I will need to conduct an interview in this manner. And most likely, so will. And, just like getting ready for a traditional job interview, there are measures we need to take:
- Check your internet connection. Make sure that it’s working fine and that there are no weather related conditions that could prevent it from going out. If you have crappy service, try to formulate a back-up plan if possible and ensure that you have a way of contacting the interviewer should your connection go down for whatever reason. I also recommend that you verify this plan with the interviewer ahead of time (and also make a plan in case the interviewer’s connection goes down).
- Along those same lines, make sure that Skype is working properly. I have major issues with Skype. For some reason that I can’t explain, it stops working randomly and I can’t connect via video on most days. Even if I restart my computer, I only get about an hour. If you’re using Skype for an interview, do a test run with a friend or family member to make sure that Skype isn’t crashing, is starting properly, and remains connected. The worst thing that can happen is for you to be in the middle of a spectacular answer and have Skype drop out.
- In addition to making sure that Skype is working properly, you should also test the audio and video quality. If possible, get a friend or family member to Skype with you about an hour before the interview. Check to see if you’re coming across clearly and if the sound isn’t all fuzzy and muddled. Or too loud or too soft. You don’t want to spend time preparing your responses and sounding as professional as possible only to have it hijacked by poor audio or video quality.
- Control the noise level. Nothing, and I mean nothing, can ruin an interview more than barking dogs, screaming children, a nosy spouse or any other type of background noise. Not only will they make it difficult for you to concentrate and give your full attention to the interview, they can make it so you’re answers aren’t heard. Having an interview in an uncontrolled, noisy house can also give the impression that you’re not serious about the job. People can grant a little leeway but if it gets too loud, it’s a huge turn off. To combat this, try to schedule the interview when the kids are at school or napping. Put the dogs in another room. Tell your spouse to help. Take whatever measures possible to ensure a quiet, professional noise level.
- Fix your appearance. As someone who works at home, I’m the first to tell you that it’s easy to work in my yoga pants and a baseball t-shirt every day. I don’t do my hair or wear make-up. My office is often a mess. But if I were being interviewed for a job, I would clean my office, adjust my appearance so that I didn’t look like I rolled from bed to my computer, and I would probably do the whole Weekend Update look (nice top, comfy pants. No one sees the pants anyway). It’s important to put some time and effort into your appearance, regardless of the method of the interview. Whether we like it or not, how we look does tell potential employers (or clients) something about us. Looking our best is an essential part of a successful interview.
Of course, in addition to this, I’d also take the other, necessary steps to get ready for the interview. And, now that I think about it, there’s probably a whole extra set of stress involved with a Skype interview.
I probably should start preparing for that now.
Am I missing anything? Readers, if you’ve participated in a Skype interview, what did you do to prepare?
Well as the person who bombed the interview 🙂 I’d say the one thing I wish I’d done differently was have a practice interview on skype. I half-assed asked a couple friends to do it with me but no one said yes. I’d be more aggressive in finding someone. The most awkward things is where your eyes go. You think you are making eye contact if you are looking at them but you are not. It’s counter-intuative to look away in the little camera hole, but that is making eye contact. Also placing the video box of then as close to the camera hole as possible will help. Lesson learned.
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Great tips Jana. I’ve never interviewed via Skype, but have had numerous meetings using it. Being prepared before hand is key as well as remembering to still be professional. Just because you’re doing it from home does not mean you have to look like it.
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Having conducted numerous Skype interviews with interviewees, I’ve got a couple thoughts:
1. Have your cell phone on standby, silent but visible in case the office’s Skype crashes and burns and can’t connect with you by internet. We’ll often try to let you know by calling you. Or emailing you. We didn’t have a great connection to candidates either and regularly *ahem* effed it up. We looked like idiots from my POV but it happens. It’s not standing you up on purpose.
2. Have some patience with your moronic interviewers. *ahem* Sometimes IT spikes the set up request.
3. This is assuming that you are interviewing in good faith: Act like you are actually in that room. If you are being interviewed by panel and your interviewer steps out to get your next interviewer, assume that it’s possible other people can still see you. We had someone who wasn’t actually interviewing in good faith assume that no one could see her because no one was in front of the camera display some very “I could give a @*(& about this interview” behaviors. Unfortunately it happened to be a visible room which she would have known if she were there in person. As the hiring manager, I wasn’t told about these behaviors until well after the candidate showed me other evidence of her attitude and she’d eliminated herself so it wasn’t the dealbreaker but it’s not a good thing to do nevertheless.
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I have to use Skype all the time and absolutely hate it. If you want to avoid interference try to schedule the interview for non-peak hours. You’re more likely to have a great call.
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