Companies often prefer to conduct telephone (screening) interviews before inviting candidates to their offices for a face-to-face interview.
This applies particularly:
* When candidates will have to travel a long way
* When there are large numbers of candidates
* When screening by CV is difficult (when for example, personality is more important than experience or qualification)
* When a large part of the job will involve talking to people on the telephone.
If this telephone interview has been arranged through an agency/recruitment consultant you should know exactly when to call the hiring manager, or when they will call you. In other circumstances, you may have to be prepared to receive a call 'out of the blue'.
From the telephone interview, your objectives should be:
* To obtain enough information to decide if you would like to proceed with the interview process
* To give just enough information to answer the hiring manager's questions and persuade them that you are indeed worth interviewing face-to-face
* To 'close' the interview effectively and agree a time, date and place for your face-to-face interview
Preparation
Preparation for a telephone interview is as important as preparation before any other form of interview or meeting. The impression you create in the opening moments, and the manner with which you present yourself will determine whether or not you will be successful.
Find out as much as you can about the company and the job description. If your telephone interview has been arranged by a third party, you should receive much of this information from them. But in any case, do your own researches - company websites are one of the best sources of information. Find out about the size and structure of the company, its products and its markets.
Make a note of any questions you would like to ask. Ask about things if they are important to you, especially if your decision whether to proceed depends upon the answers (for example: will I have to relocate? (if that is something you don't want to do!). Otherwise, ask broad questions such as 'What training will be given?', 'What opportunities are the for advancement?'. Have these questions written down.
Have a notepad and pen ready, along with your diary.
Have your CV at hand. In all probability the hiring manager will have a copy of it too, so you probably won't be asked to describe your background in detail.
Prepare mentally, or better still in writing, a very brief 'potted history' to answer the demand 'Tell me about yourself.' Managers ask this not because they want the information (they already have your CV!), but because they want to listen to you, to find out how communicative you are, and how you sound.
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