Useful tips and tricks for a successful interview

"You are sitting in an office opposite the first candidate you have to evaluate. Where to start?" An interview is not just a formality, it is a key stage that determines the future of your company. Preparation begins long before meeting potential employees. Conducting a successful interview is both an art and a science. By following these steps, you will be able to select the best employees who will bring success to your company. Vladislav Tsymbal, an independent expert in the field of online trading and business automation.

Glossary

• 🎯 HR (Human Resources): management process related to hiring, training, development and motivation of personnel.
• 🧩 Interview: The process of assessing a candidate for a vacancy through a personal conversation or video call.
• 📄 Resume: A document in which the candidate briefly introduces his professional skills, work experience and education.
• 🔍 Job Profile: A description of the key skills, knowledge and attributes required to perform the responsibilities of a specific position.
• 🛠 Hard skills: Technical or professional skills that can be measured and certified.
• 🤝 Soft skills: Personality and interpersonal skills such as empathy, adaptability, and stress tolerance.
• 👥 Company culture: the set of values, norms and behaviors that are supported in the company.
• ✉️ Cover Letter: A letter from the candidate to the employer, in which he explains his motivation and suitability for the job requirements.
• 📑 Fake-up questions: awkward or too personal questions that should not be asked during an interview (for example, about family status or religious beliefs).
• 💼 Feedback: information about the interview results that is provided to the candidate, even if he was not hired.
• 🌐 Remote Interview: An interview process conducted using video over the Internet (such as Zoom or Skype).
• 🧘 Competency: Integrate the knowledge, skills, and behaviors needed to effectively perform tasks on the job.
• 🎤 First Contact: Initial meeting or call with the candidate to determine interest and suitability for the position.
• 📝 Performance Review: The process of evaluating a candidate's responses, behavior, and overall impression of a candidate after an interview.
• 👔 Onboarding: the process of introducing a new employee to the company, which includes meeting colleagues, training and adaptation.
• 🕵️ Screening: the stage of screening candidates based on their resume and preliminary data, before the main interview.

The main purpose of the interview in the online store

When I first started interviewing my employees at an online store, I immediately realized how important the process of getting to know candidates personally was. In this part of the article, I want to share my observations and recommendations that helped me effectively conduct interviews to find the ideal employee.

Purpose of personal interview

🛠️ Preparing for a meeting

I always pay special attention to preparing for an interview. Before meeting with an applicant, I carefully study his resume, check his professional skills and experience. This helps me formulate key questions in advance and understand what aspects need to be addressed.

👥 First impression is key

Getting to know the candidate in person allows me to better understand the candidate. I think it is important not only to ask professional questions, but also to pay attention to personal qualities. For example, how a person behaves in stressful situations, whether he is able to work in a team. One of my approaches is to create a relaxed atmosphere so that the candidate can open up and show their true personality.

To achieve this goal, I have developed the following questions:

How do you deal with conflict in work? What have been your most significant projects in the past? What motivates you to achieve better results?

These questions help me better understand the candidate's inner world and his approach to work.

📊 Consideration of technical and personal aspects

During the interview, I pay attention to both technical and personal aspects. For example, I test skills in working with certain programs and tools, as well as assess the level of communication skills and ability to work in a team. I believe that combining both sides allows me to create a complete picture of the candidate.

Table of useful and unhelpful practices

Personally, I was able to assemble a well-coordinated team thanks to the fact that I used my own experiences and methods. I encourage you to pay attention to all aspects of a candidate's personality in order to create teams where each employee will fit the corporate culture and bring maximum value to your online store.

Effective preparation for an interview

Preparing for an interview is an important step to avoid misunderstandings and improve the quality of the hiring process. In my practice, I have always placed great emphasis on careful preparation. I believe that proper preparation allows not only to improve first impressions, but also to evaluate the candidate more objectively.

📃 Thorough examination of resume

Before an interview, I always carefully studied the applicant's resume. This not only saves time during the conversation, but also allows you to ask more targeted questions. For example, there was a case when a young man applied for the position of manager. When reading his resume, I noticed that it mentioned participation in various volunteer projects. This allowed follow-up questions to be asked about the communication and time management skills he was developing through these activities.

It is important to study a resume so that you do not ask unnecessary questions, and the interview is structured and productive.

🌐 Checking social networks

I also paid attention to checking the candidate's social media page. This is important for creating a more complete picture of a person. For example, one of the photographs with a weapon and the caption “evening at the house” allowed me to understand the candidate’s mentality and refuse an invitation to an interview. Personally, I recommend HR and entrepreneurs to take this aspect into account:

A future employer will definitely look at your accounts, so be careful with the content.

📝 Making a list of questions

To ensure the interview went smoothly, I always prepared a list of questions in advance. This not only helps maintain the structure of the conversation, but also ensures that all the necessary topics are present. For example, I always included questions about the candidate’s motivation, professional achievements and expectations from the new position. This allows the candidate to speak openly and show their interest.

🤝 Preparing to answer the applicant's questions

It is equally important to prepare to answer the questions of the applicant himself. How often do wages increase? Are there any bonuses? Are student leaves or sick leave paid? You need to have this kind of information at your fingertips to ensure honest and clear answers.

🧑🤝🧑 Selecting a Helper

I I always preferred to conduct interviews together. This allows you to more objectively evaluate the candidate, divide responsibilities and discuss the results after the interview. It is important that your assistant is trained and able to ask meaningful questions that will help uncover key aspects of the applicant's personality and professionalism.

📋 Assistant Instructions

Instruct your assistant in advance. Tell him about the position, the purpose of the interview and the aspects that need to be paid attention to. For example, if you are looking for an employee for an online store, it is important to look for experience in e-commerce and ability to work with content management platforms.

Results and recommendations

At the end of this section I want to give a summary of the key points:

I hope that my recommendations will help you conduct an interview at a high level and choose a truly worthy candidate.

Developing the right questions

I believe in asking For candidates, trivial questions are a road to nowhere. Let's talk about what questions I think are best not to ask.

What questions should not be asked

When I first started my career in HR and entrepreneurship, I also tended to ask questions like: “Where do you see yourself in 5 years?” or “Why did you leave your previous job?” Quite quickly, I realized that such questions did not lead to deep and useful answers.

❌ Resume Questions: Asking for information that is already written on a candidate's resume is not the best option. When I asked, “What are your top qualities?”, I received rote answers like “smart, communicative, and a team player.” This simply repeats what I already saw on the first page of the resume.

❌ Personal Questions: Personal questions may cause a negative reaction from the candidate. People don't like it when strangers invade their privacy. The exception is when I'm intentionally conducting a stress interview, for example for a position in a call center or online store, where it is important to understand how people behave in stressful situations .

From my own experience, I am convinced that these standard questions do not lead to the desired results. One of my first interviewees automatically answered all such questions with ease - and this did not give me any answer about his real abilities and character.

Correct questions

Now I want to share what questions I replaced with outdated platitudes.

🔍 Biography: Ask the candidate about his life's journey. People love to talk about themselves, and they will appreciate your interest.

🔍 Professional Skills: I have learned that it is important to ask specific questions about your specialty. For example, a sales manager can be asked to sell you a fountain pen by role-playing.

🔍 Dedication and flexibility: “Are you ready to work overtime?”, “Will you go on a business trip? " These questions help to understand how committed a person is to his work.

🔍 Hobbies: I've found that asking about hobbies can reveal a new side to a candidate. Hobbies show personal qualities and can be useful for work.

🔍 Achievements and Goals: Interview the candidate about his or her accomplishments. This gives an understanding of how ambitious a person is and what he wants to achieve in the future.

🔍 Financial motivation: Clarify the candidate's interest in salary and career prospects.

So, I would like to give an example. I once interviewed a programmer. Instead of asking standard questions that required memorized answers, I asked him to talk about the most challenging project he had completed. This approach allowed me to assess his skills and motives much more accurately than trivial questions.

I strongly recommend remembering that an interview is not a test, but a dialogue. Asking the right questions will help you and your candidate better understand each other and create a productive working relationship.

Tips for a Successful Interview

Establish a Friendly Atmosphere

In the first minutes of an interview, it is extremely important to create an environment that helps relieve stress. I always start with a simple question, such as how the candidate got there and how he is feeling now. Little things like offering tea or coffee can help lighten the mood and create a more comfortable atmosphere.

Offering the candidate tea or coffee and discussing the weather are simple steps that will help establish friendly atmosphere.

From experience I can say that such approach significantly reduces candidate stress and allows for more honest and open responses.

Usage candidate's name

When I interview, I always start by calling them by name. This helps create the feeling that the candidate is a valued and welcome guest. I myself always introduce myself and try to remember the candidate’s name, which adds confidence and comfort.

Calling by name immediately creates a favorable feeling of importance and respect.

Thus, we immediately build trust and We reduce the candidate’s stress level.

Attention to detail

A detailed assessment of a candidate begins with an analysis of his appearance and behavior. I always pay attention to how a person is dressed, how he answers questions and behaves. Appearance and manners can say a lot about a candidate and his attitude towards work.

Little things like wrinkled clothing or poor nonverbal communication can make it clear how serious a person is about the interview and the potential job.

Experience has shown that attention to detail helps avoid hiring mistakes.

You pass too interview

It must be remembered that an interview is a two-way process. The candidate also evaluates you and your company. I always strive to represent our company in the best possible way, answer questions honestly, and demonstrate our values and goals.

You need to understand that the candidate also evaluates the company and makes a decision about whether he wants to work with you.

This approach helps create mutual respect and understanding, which is important for long-term cooperation.

Answer candidate questions

Being open and transparent in your communication is the key to trust. If I see that a candidate asks a lot of questions, I am always ready to answer them honestly and frankly. This provides an opportunity to establish trust and show our openness.

During an interview you need to be extremely frank. This helps avoid misunderstandings and establishes lasting cooperation.

Communicate as equals, but with a little distance

At the end of the day, it's important to set boundaries while maintaining a friendly environment. I always show candidates that we are equal, but my role as a leader requires certain standards.

Balanced communication is the key to successful interactions. While showing respect for the candidate, you must also respect the chain of command.

So , conducting a successful interview is an entire art, where every component is important: from the atmosphere to the content of the conversation. By following these tips, you can create an effective and efficient candidate selection process.

Conduct your interview online

When was my first time I had to conduct an online interview, I realized that this is a completely different level of responsibility and attention. In conducting this meeting, I based myself on several key aspects that I believe will help you too.

😎 Preparing for an online interview

I can confidently say that preparing for an online interview requires more effort and attention to detail. Here are the basic steps I always follow:

• 📱 Technical check: Make sure that all technical means work without failures. Check your internet connection, camera and microphone.
• 📅 Timing: Schedule the interview time so that it is convenient for all participants, avoid time slots when There may be network outages.
• 📔 Documents and resume: Ask the candidate to send a resume and scans of educational documents in advance. This will allow you to prepare questions and check the data.

🗣 Conducting an Interview

I am convinced that conducting an online interview requires more concentration, to compensate for the lack of live communication. Here's what I recommend doing:

• One-time communication: Avoid multi-day correspondence. Conduct all questions and discussions in one session, this saves time and simplifies the process.
• Platform Selection: Use convenient and reliable video calling platforms such as Skype or Zoom. This will allow the interview to be as productive as possible.
• Questions: Ask questions that would help you learn not only about the candidate’s professional skills, but also about his personal qualities . For example, how he copes with stress, whether he works in a team and what tasks are easiest for him. This makes it clear how suitable the person will be for your company.

📋 Interview Questions

I always try to prepare questions that will help to evaluate the candidate in a comprehensive manner :

• Professional skills: Tell us about your experience in a similar position.
• Social skills: How do you deal with conflict in a team?
• Personal qualities: What problem was the most difficult for you and how did you solve it?

📞 Follow-up

Don't forget to check the information received from the candidate:

• Recommendations: Call former employers to confirm resume details.
• Document verification: Check the authenticity of documents, especially when it comes to education and certificates.

📊 Table of useful tips

I am confident that by following these tips, you will be able to conduct a successful online interview by identifying the most important qualities of a candidate.

Assessing a candidate after the interview

Conducting an interview is only the first part of the whole selection process. When the candidate leaves and I promise to call him back, an even more interesting stage begins - deciding whether the person is suitable for the position or not. At this stage, it is important to weigh the pros and cons by comparing the information collected and analyzing every detail of the interview.

Key Qualities and Experience

🔍 Rate the key qualities of the candidate:

• ✅ Work experience
• ✅ Having good recommendations

I believe that one of the most important criteria is always work experience and positive recommendations. For example, when I conduct an analysis, I carefully examine how the candidate answered questions and how confident he was throughout the interview.

For example, if a person answered all questions clearly and competently, formulated his thoughts clearly and demonstrated calmness and politeness, this indicates his serious intentions. In my experience, these candidates often turn out to be the best employees.

Analysis of candidate answers

🔍 What to pay attention to when analyzing answers:

• ❌ Confused answers
• ❌ Monosyllabic answers
• ❌ Answers “I don’t know” or “I don’t know”

I am convinced that candidates who are confused in the answers or answer in monosyllables, raise reasonable doubts. For example, when a candidate responds with something like “I don’t know” or “I haven’t thought about that,” this may indicate lack of preparation or low motivation.

Stressful situations

🧠 Remind yourself that everyone is different and behaves differently. differently in stressful situations.

Remembering exams at a university or school, we have all been in this state: you study hard, but standing in front of the professor, your mind goes blank. I encourage you to think about this - even talented and skilled people may not perform their best under pressure. Therefore, it is important to weigh all factors and take into account that stressful situations can distort the idea of a person’s real qualities.

Case Studies

I remember there was a case when a candidate came for an interview who, at first glance, gave the impression of being inexperienced and indecisive. He was noticeably nervous, often stumbled over his words, and his answers lacked depth. However, after a detailed analysis of his resume and recommendations, I decided to give him a chance. As a result, he became one of the most valuable employees in our company.

Final decision

When making your final decision, weigh all the data received and pay attention to the following aspects:

• ✅ Key qualities and experience of the candidate
• ✅ Ability to answer questions cogently and competently
• ✅ Level of interest in the position

I suggest you look at it from different points of view and consider all possible factors , including stressful situations and human factors. My recommendation is to collect all available information and analyze it carefully before making a final decision.

Table: Useful tips and mistakes when assessing candidates

This comprehensive understanding not only helps you make informed decisions, but also ensures that you hire the right candidates who will make a significant contribution to the success of your organization.

Conclusion

When I first started interviewing, I knew that selecting a team is one of the most significant aspects of a successful business. I can confidently say that my observations in this process allowed me to assemble a working team, and I want to share some key points that helped me along the way.

Firstly, I have always paid special attention to preparing for an interview. This included:

• 🔎 Carefully reviewing the candidate's resume.
• ✍️ Preparing a list of questions.
• 🗂️ Familiarization with previous projects and achievements of the candidate.

I believe that choosing the right questions is key. I usually focused on the following aspects:

• Professional competencies: “Tell me about your experience work in this industry.”
• Personality traits: “How do you deal with conflict in a team?”
• Motivation and interests: “Why did you choose our company?”

Also, technical and personal aspects should be taken into account:

• Technical skills: Paid special attention to test tasks and their implementation.
• Personal qualities: It was important to pay attention to communication skills and compatibility with the team.

I have always consulted experts and sought their opinions to evaluate candidates. For example, when I hired a developer, I invited leading engineers for a technical interview.

Recommendation table

Overall , I believe that personal stories and case studies can make the interview process much more effective for aspiring HR professionals and young entrepreneurs. I hope my recommendations will be useful and help you form a successful team that you will be comfortable working with. Good luck in selecting candidates!

Expertise Mary Kay

Mary Kay is one of the leaders in the cosmetics and skin care industry. Since its founding in 1963, it has established itself as one of the most respected brands offering high quality products. The company's main activity is the production and distribution of cosmetic products through a network of independent consultants, which allows us to maintain a high level of interaction with clients and flexibility in marketing strategies.

Main goals and objectives

Mary Kay's main goal is to recruit qualified consultants who will not only professionally distribute products, but also become the face of the company, demonstrating its philosophy and values. Key tasks of include:

• ✔️ Attracting talent with different levels of experience;
• ✔️ Providing a high level of training and support to consultants;
• ✔️ Increase in sales volumes and expansion of sales markets ;
• ✔️ Maintaining the company's image as an expert in the field of cosmetics and skin care.

Statement of the main problem

The main problem that needs to be solved is to increase quality of personnel selection. Intensive growth of the company requires expansion of the team, but not at the expense of compromises in the professionalism and compatibility of employees with brand philosophy.

Characteristics and interests of the target audience

Mary Kay's target audience includes women of different ages and social status who are interested in:

• 🌸 Aesthetics and personal care ;
• 🌸 Financial independence through the opportunity to earn money on your own;
• 🌸 Social interaction and building business relationships.

Key moments for potential clients

• 🏆 The company provides unique opportunities for career growth and financial independence;
• 🏆 High quality products, recognized internationally;
• 🏆 A comprehensive training and certification system for new consultants has been developed;
• 🏆 Support and mentoring from experienced colleagues.

Facts, figures and concrete results

• 📊 With Since its founding, the company has distributed products in more than 40 countries.
• 📊 Total sales in 2023 exceeded $3 billion;
• 📊 More than 3.5 million independent consultants worldwide;
• 📊 The company's mentoring program increased employee satisfaction at by 30%.

"We strive not only to sell cosmetics, but also to change the lives of our consultants and clients, giving them the opportunity to develop and achieve your goals." – Mary Kay Ash, founder of Mary Kay.

Overview table

Mary Kay successfully combines years of experience with innovative technologies and strategic approach to personnel selection, which allows it to remain a leader in its field and achieve impressive results.

Often asked questions on the topic: Useful tips and tricks for conducting a successful interview

Thank you for reading!

Well, our exciting journey through the world of successful interviews has come to an end. 🚀 Now I am confident that you are armed with the most advanced knowledge and are ready to conduct interviews at a whole new level. Remember, every interview is a chance to discover talented and promising employees for your business. Are you ready for this challenge? Of course we are ready. Please leave a comment about your experience - I'm interested to hear how you put this knowledge into practice.

Vladislav Tsymbal, independent expert "Elbuz"