1. Interviewing Tips / Importance of Soft Skills
Jennifer Lemson Recruiter III
Spectrum Health

2. Interviewing The most important thing: LIKEABILITY
What is likeability?
Everything your mom has been trying to teach you…yes it is important!!
Be courteous
Smile
Extend your hand when greeting someone
Do not eat, chew gum or have anything in your mouth during interviews.
Nobody wants to hire someone that they don’t like! And nobody wants to work for someone that they don’t like!

3. Interviewing
Don’t talk too much, but don’t give short one-sentence answers either. Find a happy medium.
Know something about the organization that you are interviewing with
Don’t be late
Lean forward slightly…don’t slouch
Talking too much: It’s okay to take a minute or even two to think about your response. It’s not natural to have a response automatically and as a recruiter we almost expect there to be a pause.
Not knowing anything about the organization: Spend time online in advance of your interview. Look at the “about us” section. Another good place to look is the newsroom or area dedicated to the media. You want to be current on what’s happening with the organization.
Being late: Just don’t do it.
Leaning forward slightly shows that you are interested in what is being said. Slouching shows you could care less.

4. Interviewing If on a phone interview…smile Make eye contact
It’s ok to pause while thinking of an answer to a question.
Dress professionally
Be prepared to answer behavioral based questions
Follow up an interview with a quick or hand written note
Not being able to answer behavioral based questions: Be able to answer questions such as “tell me about a time you were in a stressful situation and how you responded”. It’s helpful to think of the STAR model. Situation, Task, Action and Result.
Unprofessional appearance: Wear a suit. It doesn’t have to be a $500 Gucci but it should be cleaned, pressed and fit well. Be mindful of jewelry, showing too much skin or wearing too much cologne/perfume.

5. Examples of Behavioral Based Questions
Tell me about a specific time when you were in a stressful situation and how you responded to it?
What do you do when your schedule is interrupted? Give an example of how you handle it.
Tell me about a difficult situation with a co-worker, and how you handled it.
Tell me about a time when you had too many things to do and you were required to prioritize your tasks.
The logic is that how you behaved in the past will predict how you will behave in the future i.e. past performance predicts future performance.

6. 7 essential questions to ask in an interview By Michael Kingston
Why is this position vacant?
What have your most successful candidates brought to the company?
What does success look like in the first 90 days?
What challenges is the company currently facing?
How do you retain your top talent?
Why do you work for this company?

7. Soft Skills Soft skills are characteristics that make us more likable.
Likability is an important factor in the hiring process.

8. Important Soft Skills to Develop By Miriam Salpeter
Listening: No one wants to work with someone who isn’t a good listener. How can you show you’re a good listener? Follow directions carefully when you apply for the job. Practice listening actively when you talk to people.
Adaptability: Being flexible and having a good attitude while welcoming the unexpected is a valuable skill.

9. Important Soft Skills to Develop
Teamwork: It’s hard to find a job description that doesn’t mention working with a team. You can practice being a team player by actually joining a team outside of work.
Judgment: You can’t teach someone to have good judgment. If you’ve ever posted something on Facebook and lived to regret it, you could probably use some extra practice on the good judgment front.

10. Important Soft Skills to Develop
Strong work ethic: Are you willing to work until the job is done? Do you pitch in and show initiative, even when it’s not necessarily your job? If that doesn’t describe you, think about how you can change.
Communication: Probably the most important of all soft skills. Employers evaluate this from the start. The interviewer will know right away if you can communicate well by how you introduce yourself and how you address questions. Prepare what you will say in an interview.

11. Final thoughts First impressions are everything Be LIKABLE
Practice for your interview
Be prepared to answer Behavioral Based questions

12. Questions?
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