Do you really want to work here? If so, read on ...
Since taking over the hiring process at LevelTen, I have quickly learned how hard it really is to find good help. Since we are a continually growing interactive agency, our hiring needs of late have been extremely demanding. First is a visit to the usual job boards Monster, CareerBuilder, Yahoo HotJobs, Craigslist, Creative Hot List, Dice, and our own job board. Where it allows, I have the feature set up where the resumes get forwarded to my email in order to save time having to log into every single website to view applicants so as soon as the position(s) has been posted, I receive a flood of emails. Pouring through resume after resume and conducting countless of phone interviews, I have decided to provide some helpful advice for anyone who may want to work here or elsewhere for that matter.
My system for narrowing candidates down for actual face to face interviews is simple. I review resumes and portfolios (if applicable), rank people on a spreadsheet, and narrow down to a list of candidates I would like to schedule a preliminary phone interview with. I then send emails to each candidate to schedule a time that for said interview and if that goes well, bring them in for their first face to face interview and go from there. So here is where I have to stop and provide some tips:
- Read the Job Description I know that many online boards such as Monster and Yahoo HotJobs make the application process so easy just a couple of clicks and you're done. But take the time to read what the job is and what the requirements are. I recently posted an Interactive Creative Director position one which required 5+ years of interactive design. I've received about 300 resumes to this posting and about 1/3 of the candidates even have some remote web experience.
- Proof and Double Proof Your Resume There is nothing worse than seeing resumes of candidates who claim to be detail oriented and thorough, yet have misspellings, formatting inconsistencies, and typos in their resume. I mean, this is the first impression you get and when people have received hundreds of resumes for one position, it's very likely yours will be easily placed in the No pile. If proofing is not your forte, have someone else take a look at it.
- Do Your Homework The main reason I schedule phone interviews via email is to allow the candidate to have some time to prepare. I can understand that when someone is job hunting, they may apply for several jobs and may not have each one of them memorized. So prior to having your (again) scheduled interview, take the time to look at the job posting and its responsibilities, research the company you are interviewing with, and even take some time to think about questions you have about the position and the company. I cannot tell you how many phone interviews where I asked the question, So tell me what interests you about LevelTen and this position? and got the response, Well, I'm not really sure where I found this listing or what it was. And with that I feel that I have just wasted my last half hour talking to this person. Companies want to hire candidates that are proactive and take the initiative to learn about what their role might be. And here at LevelTen, we want to see people who are passionate about what we do and the possibility of joining the team. Also, doing this type of research will allow you to have more tailored answers to questions instead of generic ones, insight you to some questions you would not have thought of originally, and give you a good idea if this position or company is even something you would want to do.
- Speak Clearly My last bit of advice is to speak clearly and concisely while on your phone interview. I actually had one person eating, mumbling, and chewing loudly on an interview. Needless to say, I didn't bring them in for a face to face.
