Interviewing Candidates
Over my career I’ve participated in probably over a hundred interviews. No matter what the position these are the four things I really look for. A resume is a piece of paper, I can usually gauge in five minutes if the candidate has what is needed for the given role.
The What
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Humility I don’t know is not only an acceptable answer, it is almost always preferred to me over trying to BS a question.
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When to ask? When to search? Based on my previous item I want to see that the candidate will in fact know when to Google around, and do some trial and error. As opposed to asking a colleague or boss. Time is valuable. That means spending several hours of their time researching and trying is preferable at times. At other times its a complete waste. Having the sense when to inquire and when not to is extremely important.
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Self-Starter I’m a person that never really needed someone to stand over my shoulder. I don’t expect my employees to do the same. I don’t expect to babysit. For more junior employees I expect a manager will be involved ensuring they are where they need to be.
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Skills The last thing I look for is the actual skills. Depending on the timeline I would often prefer the better overall candidate who may have similar but not the exact skills. Learning new skills takes time, but intelligence, knowledge, and experience are more valuable.
The How There are some specific questions I ask and subjects I mention to attempt to verify these items. A big thing I will always do is ask questions in a domain or specific discipline that the candidate does not have experience in. I tell them they can ask me questions and I will help them where I can. If they just give up on the spot, next! If they try to BS their way through it, next! I want to see them take their existing experience and try to investigate the problem