If you have any tips to share from being on the hiring side and conducting interviews, post them here.

First, job seekers, there is no shame in not getting an offer after an interview. You can be great and still not get an offer. It's not a reflection of your ability, there are many other factors being considered.

I've been on a few interview panels the past few months and it's very enlightening. Maybe these insights can help others in their interviews.

Some highly qualified candidates who check all the boxes, sometimes still don't get an offer due to perceived cultural fit or personality mismatch for the role. This is ultimately best for the job seeker and the company.

A perceived lack of interest in the technology, mission, and business sector also hurt some candidates.

A sense that the company would not be able to fulfill a candidate's leadership ambitions, and very high compensation requirements were also factors.

Some are passed over despite being able to do the job because the panel felt like the company might not be able to meet their expectations or they would be too unhappy long term due to the mismatch in company needs and the candidate interest or personality.

I think it's best to be honest with your desires and ambitions because if you aren't, you may get an offer and after a few months realize your needs aren't being met. Better to be up front and let the company determine if it's a good fit (assuming the company is also being honest and transparent and not over promising or misrepresenting anything as well).

I am in complete charge of hiring for my own team for roofing. Obviously, this is a sales role. I hire for all levels. Some interviews don't know the difference between asphalt and stone coated steel roofing. That's ok. It's commission only, no experience necessary, pay is commensurate on experience and how much training I have to do.

I've interviewed folks I thought were awesome and a lot that will never get a callback.

Honestly, for me, having been in a corporate gig for over a decade, prior to roofing, there are a lot of qualities I look for and ALMOST NONE OF THEM have to do with knowledge of the product they are selling. I can teach that. It's unimportant compared to that which I cannot teach and that is personality, energy, character, etc.

I will hire an energetic trustworthy guy that doesn't know what a roof is over a roof expert that is boring.

I love people that are excited and fun and honest about what they want, what they offer, and what they lack. Lord knows that in sales there is no shortage of bulls-ters.

I like candidates that walk the line between egotistical jerks and extreme confidence.

One full person can suck the energy out of a team, regardless of the format and environment that team is in.

This is a cool idea for a thread. Nice work!

You might be the perfect candidate but sometimes the opening is more for an internal hire but interviews are done with external candidates to check the box.

This might be taken as sexist but it's simply intended to be an honest observation from experience on several interviewing panels. Sometimes emotion and female to female competition I've seen be a factor. Been on several panels where the hiring manager is female and a female candidate seems spectacular yet the hiring manager just didn't like them. Couldn't explain why and left us somewhat baffled each time. I only add that as I've never personally seen it the other way around. Not exactly sure why that is other than an emotional female competition thing.

Gyles Marrett said:

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This might be taken as sexist but it's simply intended to be an honest observation from experience on several interviewing panels. Sometimes emotion and female to female competition I've seen be a factor. Been on several panels where the hiring manager is female and a female candidate seems spectacular yet the hiring manager just didn't like them. Couldn't explain why and left us somewhat baffled each time. I only add that as I've never personally seen it the other way around. Not exactly sure why that is other than an emotional female competition thing.

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I've seen the opposite occurring as well. Hiring manager was newly divorced and a known "man hater". Put male candidates at a disadvantage. Sometimes luck plays a part and there is not much you can do. Not a perfect science.

AggieMainland said:

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You might be the perfect candidate but sometimes the opening is more for an internal hire but interviews are done with external candidates to check the box.

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I posted this sentiment on a thread a few weeks ago...but no idea why this activity is done. Waste of time for both parties. Maybe one of the HR folks on this thread can answer, since it's not really a "hidden" aspect of the process anymore, at least not to people that follow this forum.

My company uses behavioral based interviews. Many companies do. They've got their flaws. But I think we explain what we're looking for in the answers and people have a lot of leeway for what their topics can be about. I tell people the key piece I'm looking for is "What did you contribute to your situation in the context of the question. Be specific about your actions."

Many people just don't follow the instructions. They talk about what their team did. They talk about a situation that happened to them. Etc. This is common feedback from our interview teams.

You can really set yourself apart in a behavioral interview if you can clearly articulate how the actions you took directly contributed to the outcome of the situation. It doesn't mean you aren't a team player. Google behavioral interviews and practice several questions beforehand.

Aust Ag said:

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AggieMainland said:

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You might be the perfect candidate but sometimes the opening is more for an internal hire but interviews are done with external candidates to check the box.

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I posted this sentiment on a thread a few weeks ago...but no idea why this activity is done. Waste of time for both parties. Maybe one of the HR folks on this thread can answer, since it's not really a "hidden" aspect of the process anymore, at least not to people that follow this forum.

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I've been recruiting internally for a long time for large companies, small companies, and everything in between. This happens a lot less than you'd expect, probably less than 10% of the time. If a job is expected to go to someone internal, then a company will typically just interview internal candidates and not external candidates.

I've also seen the reverse happen quite a bit, an internal candidate was expected to get the job, but the hiring manager liked an external candidate better and ended up hiring them over the internal person.


If most jobs hired internal candidates then recruitment agencies wouldn't exist.

I've been the lead on eight interview panels on the past month. We have three openings to fill. The ones we offered were the 'most prepared.' What I mean by that is who did their homework both for the position and the company? We always end interviews with giving the interviewee the chance to ask us questions. It's always telling what questions they ask, especially when they have some understanding of the company's structure and how the position they are interviewing for. Shows that they realize that there is more to comprehend than just the interview itself.

I've interviewed all kinds of people over the years. Here are just a few of my personal preferences and opinions:

Things that HELP in an interview:
Being friendly!
Dressing professionally.
Displaying passion, confidence & knowledge.
Weaving life's priorities into answers about situations, things that demonstrate their character.
Someone who has spoken highly in favor of the candidate, with specific examples.
Showing some level of humor, being able to lighten up a bit, and just chat, when appropriate.
Knowing one's own deficiencies and a plan on how to build & overcome them.
Knowing one's own strengths and how to fully utilize them.
If you have an impactful story about your life, tell it!
If you are generally a nice person, it will show up in the interview, and you get more "points" in my book.
Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice answering questions out loud, with your voice, not just in your mind. Have someone randomly ask you interview questions, etc, and get feedback from them.

Things that HURT:
Assuming it's ok to drop an F-bomb, or other profanity, in the interview.
Trying to over-sell confidence, or showing arrogance.
Not knowing exactly what they are applying or interviewing for.
Grammatical/spelling errors in resumes or answers on documents. One or two are ok. It's not OK when it appears that it is the way you talk.
Recently saw a resume that had listed all the protests that the applicant had spoken at. If I wanted to hire a protester, it would say that in the job description. Will definitely NOT be bringing politics into the workplace.
If you are not a nice person, it will show up in the interview, and I won't hire you.

I could go on and on, but will leave with this....First impressions are super important, too, but not the end-all/be-all of it. Walk in confidently, be friendly, not meekly quiet, but assertive, and comfortable.