Interviewing – The Evaluation, Part II
In the previous four articles I discussed how to prepare for, conduct, and begin to evaluate the interview. In this part of the interviewing process I will continue to discuss how to evaluate the results of the interview by looking at the key factors involved, and by evaluating the documents that were acquired during the process.
The next questions that must be answered is: Has he worked within your company's style of chain of command in past positions? What were his comments about this style of chain of command, and did he feel comfortable in it? There are as many different styles of reporting structures, as there are different companies. If he worked in a small company for most of his career, there may be some question as to whether he can work in a company where he does not interact directly with the owner on a daily basis. He may find it difficult to take direction from more than one person. Your company may be one that has a department for human resources, accounting, operations, customer service, etc., and all of these will give him instruction from time to time during the course of his employment. This can be confusing to an employee who has always taken direction from only one supervisor. Look at his comments that might indicate a problem with this. In addition, someone who has always worked for a sophisticated company with many departments may find it hard to work for a small company without clearly defined departments.
Does your company need a team player or an entrepreneur, and does his background tell you that he is this type of person? This might seem like an obvious question, but think of the problems that can occur from putting an entrepreneur into a team situation. He would feel restricted and could feel that his efforts are being frustrated. Your team could feel that their input was not being appreciated. Not a healthy working environment in either case. In reverse, putting a team player into an environment that requires that they conceptualize and create on their own might work out. It depends on the candidate, and there are good people available who can work in either environment. On the other hand, there are those people who need the input of others to finish the creative process. You need to look for examples that were given by the applicant that clearly demonstrate the abilities that your company requires.
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