Telephone Interview tomorrow

I have just been shortlisted for a telephone interview for an HE institution it is my first HR interview in 10 years - can anyone offer any advice?

  • At this stage not a lot you can do but...

    Be yourself - they have shortlisted you so like what they see.

    Be precise - don't ramble too much.

    Be interested in them and their challenges.

    Good luck
  • Hi Marina,

    Firstly well done in getting the interview - they must be impressed by your CV. I conduct a lot of telephone interviews and I find that the 'best' interviews are the ones where the candidate listens to what I am asking them and clearly answers the questions.

    I suggest to research the company - be clear on not just why you want to do the job but why you would like to work for that organisation. Then be familiar with the job description and have examples to show where you have previous experience and/or would know how to approach the areas of responsibility.

    Be clear on what you can offer to the company and role, and show your interest perhaps with some relevant questions if they have not been answered during the interview.

    I'm sure that others will have more advice to offer you. Good luck!
  • Hi Marina

    The big recruitment agencies and (I think) job boards often have sample interview questions that may help with your general prep (not sure if you've had fairly recent interviews for other types of roles, just not HR). Also, it might be worth looking up any posts on HE on this forum to give you an indication of what unique HR issues they face.

    Good luck!

    Ishbel
  • Thank you feeling a bit nervous but what will be will be!
  • Many thanks for your advice just writing a few notes now!
  • Hi Marina,

    Preparation is key - prepare for this interview in just the same way as you would a face-to-face interview. In a previous role I telephone interviewed extensively, and it is surprising how many people don't take them seriously enough - including someone running to catch a bus!

    Make sure you have somewhere quiet to sit for the interview, where you won't be disturbed.

    I tend to find that telephone interviews are very structured and a series of questions to identify specific skills sets. As Susan has already highlighted, you should be able to identify these from the job spec - then carefully match these to your career history and pick out some really strong examples.

    Make sure you know who will be interviewing you, and do a bit of research on them, as it should be a good indicator of the level of interview questions, etc. and don't forget to have some inciteful questions into the role/organisation prepared. Again, this is an area that I find many telephone interview candidates fall down.

    Most of all, they have selected you for this interview from your CV, so believe in yourself and what you have to offer. Good luck, and let us know how you get on!

    Nicola
  • Hi Marina,
    I hope the telephone interview went well today!
    Moving forward to the face to face interview you may be interested in our Interview success webinar which is free to CIPD members, more information can be found here: shop.cipd.co.uk/.../career-management-webinars-1.
    The career hub also has interview simulators and also numerous helpful hints and tips for both telephone and face to face interviews.

    :)
  • Sorry to jump on the post. I have tried to access the link Jenni, but I am getting an error message
  • No problem, if you email careersupport@cipd.co.uk i can send you the relevant information, alternatively if you type 'career management' into the search bar on the CIPD website you will be able to find the relevant information. Thank you for letting me know the link is giving an error message, I will look into why!

    I have now figured it out and amended the link accordingly, so you should be able to access the page. http://shop.cipd.co.uk/shop/cipd-training/career-management-webinars-1