It's astounding how many interviewers don't even bother to introduce themselves when they kick off an interview.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve entered a first conversation with a company representative, he immediately begins asking questions, and 10 minutes in I still have no idea if this person is even an engineer, or in a technical or managerial role, an internal or contracted recruiter, or something else entirely. Other times it’s been clear I’m speaking with an engineer or scientist, but they didn’t share any explanation of what type of work they do or what their current responsibilities are. Sometimes, it’s an engineer that’s not even an employee of the company, but a contractor, which also changes the context of the discussion. On a couple of occasions I’ve been speaking to a CEO or CTO directly and had no idea.
When you meet a candidate for the first time, introduce yourself! Mention your role, responsibilities, and background, at least briefly. It needs to be clear to the candidate if you are technically trained or not, and if so what exactly is your specialty. This is essential for framing the conversation. Otherwise, it’s extremely difficult for a candidate to know how to respond to questions, and he will likely feel a little sheepish about interrupting you to say “What exactly do you do, anyway?”. It’s a bit silly this merits mention, yet here we are. Maybe some people are so over-eager they forget their manners.
It’s really, really easy to make the first introduction. We’ll even provide a template for you to get started:
“Hi, nice to meet you. Thank you for taking the call, we really appreciate the time you are taking to give us a chance to learn about you and explore if we might be a fit for one another. My name is ___ and I do ___. I come from a background working in ___ for ___ years. My current responsibilities include ___, although my very favorite projects involve ___. I’d love to hear more about your experiences and what you like to do.“
Your critical communication job during the first interview session, especially if you are at the front of the line, is inviting the candidate to become comfortable in talking about himself. You start by setting the example and sharing who you are. Be friendly and don’t blow it!
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