Phone interview !?

Trojan

Hey all,

I have to do a phone interview tomorrow and I haven't done one before. It's a second interview for a testing/development role.

Has anyone any tips? Not much on Monster, etc.

Cheers,
Al.

ecksor

Try not to rely too much on body language.

WhiteWashMan

they are tough al. most of the time when i do an interview you can tell how you are doing by their body language, and looking someone in the eye is always important.
just try to answer the questions as precisely as possible i guess.
you will have to do a bit more padding as well id say as you cant use any other means of getting points accross..
thats about it. onl;ly ever did one and it was certainly not a high level interview.
sorry

MiCr0

+side:
you can keep/read notes etc
+side:
you can smoke if you need to (if you do smoke that is)

WhiteWashMan

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by MiCr0:
+side:
you can keep/read notes etc
+side:
you can smoke if you need to (if you do smoke that is)</font>

just dont inhale too close to the phone
its quite loud!

Trojan

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by MiCr0:
+side:
you can keep/read notes etc
+side:
you can smoke if you need to (if you do smoke that is)</font>

Err, no I don't smoke cigarettes.

Al.

WhiteWashMan

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Trojan:
Err, no I don't smoke cigarettes.

Al.</font>

how did it go anyway al.
any tips for us people who might have to do phone interviews in the future?
since im moving to england soon i might need me

Trojan

It went pretty well, but the nature of the thing really surprised me. It's a long story but anyways...

I prolly shouldn't say the company name, but it's the biggest object in the solar system ...

I had an interview for a QA team position, which seemed to go alright, but they were real defensive about the Dev vs QA thing (I said I wanted to go into development). I thought it went well, but was really unsure.

So they rang me Tuesday and said they wanted to do a 2nd interview for it, could I come up, as their senior manager was over from US. Since I couldn't go (exams) they said they'd do it by phone.

The tricky part is, I also have an interview up there next week for a development position.

So the guy rings me today and does his damnedest to sell me the QA job. It was interesting, and he made a lot of sense. I'd certainly give it a lot more consideration now, but the dev job could be real sweet. He knew about my interview next week too.

I am a bit confused now to say the least - I have an interview on Tuesday for the dev job, I guess I'll just see how it goes, maybe I won't be deciding between the 2 at all.

Decisions, decisions!

Al.

logic1

Well I work in QA and I know a few guys working in QA for that particular "solar object". And some of them seem to think that the job is extremly repetitive and gets boring very quickly. Basically they constantly QA new releases of the OS repeating testing and bug reporting and the extra little features added which can get a bit tedious. But the dev side of things does seem to be likes alot more.

.logic.

Hobbes

http://www.collegegrad.com/book/18-0.shtml

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">

In preparing for your phone interview, there are several things you can do. To prepare for an unexpected contact:

Tape your résumé to a wall in view of the phone. It will be there for the call and will be a constant reminder for your job search.

Keep all of your employer research materials within easy reach of the phone.

Have a notepad handy to take notes.

Keep a mirror nearby

If the phone interview will occur at a set time, there are additional steps you can take:

Place a "Do Not Disturb" note on your door.

Turn off your stereo, TV, and any other potential distraction.

Warm up your voice while waiting for the call. Sing an uplifting song to yourself.

Have a glass of water handy, since you will not have a chance to take a break during the call.

Speaking of breaks, if your phone interview is at a set time, make sure you answer nature's call first.

Turn off call waiting on your phone.
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