面试官心声:成功求职者必备的6大素质
Alex Malley FCPA is the chief executive of CPA Australia and the host of the Nine Network television series The Bottom Line. Alex is also a regular contributor to The Huffington Post . What I have learned, after years of experience interviewing people at all levels and walks of life, is that interviewing a job applicant is not dissimilar to interviewing aprospective house mate. You are going to spend a lot of time under the same roof as this person. Accordingly, you need a confidence that they will fit in with the other house mates, that they are all they seem to be, and they are there to make an enduring commitment. To help me with this, there are six characteristics in a conversation with a job applicant I mentally tick-off in order to identify the right person for the job. These tips can be useful for both the interviewer and interviewee. 1. Are they interesting? My test for this is not about the depth of a person’s ability, but the breadth of their curiosity in life. Do they have genuine outside interests? Do they have friendships spanning different lines and backgrounds? I have often found people are more interesting than they project themselves to be. As a chief executive or interviewer, I should not have to work hard at finding out what makes you interesting. An applicant that leaves me wanting to know more about them gets a big tick in my book. 2. A holistic perspective One of my great frustrations as a chief executive is people that think solely about the department or section they work in, rather than at the very least showing an interest and appreciation for all departments and how the business in total comes together. So, when it comes to a job candidate, I look for their intuitive interest in the whole of the business above and beyond the role they are applying for. 3. Passion It does not matter what the passion, but it is a shut door for me if I do not recognise the applicant’s emotional connection to something or someone in their life. Without passion, people simply exist, they don’t live: selfishly I want to live with people, not merely exist with them. 4. Open about their mistakes The only way I have learnt anything in my career is from the mistakes I have made. In some ways, I am proud of them, but even more so, that I have learnt from them. So anyone who in a good, healthy and open conversation claims to being mistake-free, I would prefer it if they went and worked for a soul. 5. Opinionated Admittedly, I am not an avid reader, but I am highly aware of the issues going on in my country and the world. What I expect from an interviewee is a natural and comfortable perspective on significant issues relevant, or not, to our business. 6. Leadership I look for someone who can tell me a story about a vision they have set, and their journey to achieving it. And, most importantly, I want them to clearly articulate how they mobilised people to achieve those outcomes. These sorts of leadership qualities are something I look for in applicants - at all levels. |