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IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION, VOL. 33. NO. 2. JUNE 1990

Good Interviewing is Good Business

Part II: Strategies for Applicants
(This article is the second part in a two-part series.)
GILDA CARLE

Few professional circumstances test our speech communication

?kills more rigorously than do employment interviews. Many of us
in management see interviewing and hiring as our most important
responsibility. Similarly, many of us who seek career changes
know that a successful interview with prospective employers i s our
only means for gaining desired opportunities.
The following i s the second of two articles on communication
skills for interviews. The first part emphasized the responsibilities
and concerns of interviewers. This part emphasizes the candidates
perspective and offers advice on responding to questions and
making the desired impression.
The author, Dr. Gilda Carle, i s a consultant in New York and
conducts seminars on various topics related to professional and
business communication.

Susan Dressel
Associate Editor-Issues

in Speech Communication

Abstract-The job interview tests the congruence, or fit, of personalities, attitudes, and values between the candidate and the employer.
Successful candidates treat themselves as a product that must be
marketed. Keys to the marketing process are researching the companys
needs, engaging the interviewers attention, communicating in a nonthreatening manner, asking relevant and incisive questions, envisioning
for the interviewer the benefits of hiring the candidate, and enlisting the
interviewer to act on the candidates behalf.

HEN INVITED to a job interview, the candidate can be

reasonably confident that the prospective employer sees
a satisfactory match between the job requirements and the
candidates credentials on paper. The company would probably be just as comfortable employing this applicant as it would
any of the other invited candidates. The issue that will
determine the final outcome is the congruence or fit of
personality, attitudes, and values between the candidate and
the interviewer, or, more specifically, between the candidate
and the company.
Until the offer is in hand, knowing how to secure a job can
be as important as knowing how to perform it. While a
resume reviews what an applicant has done, the interview asks
the candidate how it was accomplished. A brief sixty-minute
interview can land or lose a job for any interviewee. Beyond
the resume, the moment of truth arrives with the candidates
ability to persuade the prospective employer face-to-face that,
for this interviewer, he or she will make a better employee
than the other applicants. Such persuasion requires the
applicants ability to sell.
For many professionals, the word sell holds a negative
Gilda Carle is with Interchange Communications Training, Yonkers, NY.
IEEE Log Number 9034852.

connotation, particularly with regard to selling ones own

capabilities. What often comes to mind is the used car
salesman or the pushy, fast-talking huckster interested only in
taking a customers money. Even the dictionary defines
selling as cheating, tricking, and betraying.
Selling is mistakenly thought of as something done to people,
usually against their wills. Yet, today, whether engineer or
entrepreneur, whether Lee Iacocca or Frank Perdue, everybody sells. Everyone wants to influence decision makers to
accept their ideas, services, or products.
Selling is especially necessary for job seekers. Much
preparation is required to insure that the application results in a
job offer. The sellers must convince the buyers that they have
the talent, the know-how, and the technology that sets them
apart from all the rest. According to recruitment specialist
Robert Half, 47 percent of the shortcomings of candidates
involves their failure to research a firm in advance and to
prepare for the interview. Another twenty percent of candidates errors concerns their failure to sell their strengths
and accomplishments. These findings suggest that nearly 70
percent of an interview requires skills beyond technical
training, education, experience, and ability. This large percentage often offends professionals who have spent much time
developing the talent directly related to their specific field. But
the truth is that any candidate must show himself or herself as
outstanding when compared with the increasing competition.
And this is what we call selling.
One way to offset the negative implications of the term
selling is for the candidate to view himself or herself as a
product and the potential employer as a customer. As a
product, the candidate must avoid reiterating the major points
outlined on the resume. That would be analogous to Chrysler
outlining to customers the basic parts of its automobiles: four
wheels, an engine, brakes, and seats. Job applicants often
make this mistake when they are asked to describe their
backgrounds; they list their component parts, which, if the
interviewer had reviewed the resume, would be unnecessary
repetition. Besides, once the list has been reiterated, it is the
interviewer who must then independently discover the potential worth of the applicant to the organization.
Lee Iacocca sells his products not by outlining their
features, but by exciting customers with the traits of dependability and comfort that the features can offer. In other words,
the salesperson sells the benefits of a product, benefits the
consumer would not want to be without. In the same vein, the
candidate must show how the company will benefit by hiring
him or her instead of the other applicants who have looked

0361-1434/90/0600-0067$01.00

0 1990 IEEE

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IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION. VOL. 33, NO. 2 , JUNE 1990

sufficiently attractive on paper to warrant an interview. Where

is a candidate to begin?
FORSTARTERS:
HOMEWORK
COUNTS
Products dont just happen; they are designed to fill a
specific need that has already been determined. Each resume
should be accompanied by a letter of application that emphasizes how the applicants major strengths fit the job requirements. Key terms from the advertisement should be repeated
in the letter, and even underlined, to make it easier for the
screener to match the applicants qualifications with the job
requirements.
When an applicant receives an invitation for an interview,
based on the letter of application and the resume, the
interviewer has already decided that the potential employer
needs the skills that applicant appears to offer. But it is up to
the applicant to discover pertinent information about the
company so that the congruence of requirements and capabilities can be discussed during the interview. It is also imperative
that the applicant thoroughly explore personal strengths and
limitations because these will certainly be questioned. Self
knowledge, as well as knowledge of the potential buyer, gives
an advantage for selling the interviewer on the applicants
ability to match all requirements.
Where can an applicant find information about the company? A number of reliable sources, many of which can be
found in the library, can educate a candidate about a company.
Some of these sources are listed below.
RESOURCES FOR JOB SEEKERS

Business Periodicals Index

Dun & Bradstreets Million Dollar Directory
MacRaes State Industrial Direciory
Moodys Bank & Finance Manual
Moodys Handbook of Common Stocks
Moodys Industrial Manual
Moodys Municipal & Government Manual
Moodys OTC Industrial Manual
Moodys Public Utility Manual
Moodys Transportation Manual
Standard & Poors Corporation Records
Standard & Poors Register of Corporations, Directors and Executives
Siandard & Poors Standard Corporation Descriptions
Thomas Register of American Manufacturers
Value Line Investment Survey
Wall Street Journal Index

Corporate profiles and annual reports are also useful. In

addition, if a candidate must travel to an unfamiliar community, it is wise to arrive at the destination earlier than expected
and read a local newspaper to become conversant about
community affairs.
The homework an interviewee does may seem arduous and
time-consuming. But the knowledge gained will help the
interviewee clearly demonstrate a sincere interest in working
for the company and a dedication to getting the job. Successful
job seekers attest that homework pays high dividends.
How

TO

ENHANCE
A N INTERVIEW

After learning a good bit about a particular organization, the

candidate should follow a four-part approach to selling the
interviewer. summarized in the chart below.

Applicants Method

Objective
Ho Hum
Whdt Cdn
Apphcdnt Offer

~~

Engage

Reldte

Empharize

Communicate

For Example?

Envision

Illustrate

So What?

Enh\t

I-

Activate
~~

Part I: Engage the Interviewer

Engaging the interviewer at the outset sets the stage for what
will follow. Interviewers who have been consecutively meeting and greeting a series of applicants may regard subsequent
interviews as a Ho Hum ... routine. The candidate must,
therefore, take the initiative to engage the interviewers
attention immediately, creating good will through receptive
body language, focused eye contact, and a light, but sincere
attitude, all relating a blend of personal vulnerability and
professional seriousness.
Because the applicant does not have the position power that
accompanies being part of an organization, he or she must rely
on personal power. Personal power requires that the applicant
find an assertive way of relating to the interviewer that is
professional and nonthreatening.
Professionalism involves not chewing gum or smoking, not
sporting an overcoat or sunglasses, and not reading or picking
up objects on the interviewers desk. A job seeker must project
a professional image, one that extends beyond clothing to
attitude and manner. It may be hard for professionals to
believe, but body language accounts for 55 percent of the
impression a candidate makes. Image begins with a firm and
confident handshake. But energy and vitality can also be
projected through such action words as: Establish, develop, participate, initiate, and innovate. These
terms suggest a person who gets things accomplished.
Applicants can build interviewing muscle if they practice
selling themselves in 30-second time slots, similar to media
commercials with which everyone is familiar. Candidates
must also keep in mind that a listener may taken a mental
vacation after only 7 seconds. Although an interview is
scheduled to last 60 minutes, it may be the first 60 seconds
during which judgments are formulated to determine an
applicants future with that company.
Part of preparing a 30-second commercial on oneself
requires organizing and focusing key points concisely and
eliminating unnecessary information. Thirty seconds flies by
quickly. Job applicants can study television and radio advertisements to understand how professionals sell their benefits in
very short time frames.

Part II: Emphasize the Match between Qualifications

and Requirements
After a candidate has attracted an interviewers interest, it is
time to sell the benefits that set this candidate apart from the
others. Now that the candidate has successfully nudged the
interviewer from the Ho Hum ... fence or routine, it is
necessary to address the interviewers main concern: How

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CARLE: GOOD INTERVIEWING

does the candidates qualifications match the requirements of

this position in our company?
At this point, the applicant must communicate with the host
by appealing to the companys needs and interests as uncovered with thorough homework. Communication emphasizes a communion of ideas and philosophies indicating the
appropriateness of the fit between speaker and listener.
One means of accomplishing this communion is by asking
relevant and incisive questions. Author Jame Thurber wrote,
It is better to know some of the questions than to know all the
answers. As part of the candidates homework, prepare
eighteen complex questions in advance to enlighten the
interviewer that the applicant is familar with the history and
goals of the organization. For example, I know that your
company has had an accelerator technology program since
1977, but that some of your projects have been discontinued.
Could you explain how your focus has changed in the past few
years? This question is open-ended and provides an opportunity for the interviewer to explain information perhaps not
provided in general sourcebooks (See Part I of this two-part
series [PCMarch 1990, vol. 33, no. 1, pp. 19-22.] for further
discussion of open-ended questions). It also emphasizes for the
interviewer that the candidate prepared well for the meeting.
While the interviewer is responding to the questions posed
by the applicant, the candidates listening skills are being
evaluated. Candidates must be careful to allow interviewers to
complete their thoughts without interruption. The general rule
of thumb for good listening is to use the ratio of two ears to
one mouth. The candidates enthusiasm about the information
being presented is also being assessed. It is a good idea to
match energy levels with the interviewer because that will
enhance the chemistry between the two parties.
Just as it is imperative to prepare eighteen questions that the
candidate might want to ask of the interviewer, the candidate
should also create eighteen questions he or she would hate
being asked. For example, one engineer was asked the illegal
question, Are you married? Having rehearsed for such
possibilities in advance, and recognizing that she wanted the
job and did not want to quote chapter and verse from the Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission, she responded with,
What do you mean? The interviewer, knowing that he had
overstepped his boundaries, covered his tracks by explaining
that the job required much travel, and he was looking out for
the stability of the candidates family life. However, he
immediately dropped the question. By formulating possible
responses to objectionable questions in advance, an applicant
can be better equipped for a difficult meeting.

Part 111: Envision f o r the Interviewer

Telling isnt everything. People remember only 10 percent
of the information they receive through words. Showing is a
better approach. It employs a stronger pitch for a candidates
accomplishments, and provides the opportunity for an interviewer to remember a large 25 percent of the information
given in the interview. This percentage is considered ,,good,,
by communication experts.
A candidate may state that as Chief Engineer in the XYZ
Company, he was responsible for saving $20,000 dollars of
his departments budget. AS the interviewers mind races to

the question, For Example?, the candidate can demonstrate

business letters, reports, company statements, statistics,
charts, articles, or brochures to which the candidate has
contributed. Examples often remain in an interviewers
memory long after the interview is over because the define the
hows of a candidates accomplishments.
Such illustrations bring a candidates accomplishments to
life by demonstrating the applicants transfer of ideas into
actions, and problems into solutions. Examples can help the
interviewer envision the benefits the candidate will bring to the
organization.

Part IV: Enlist the Interviewer to Follow Up

Now that the candidate has posed the significant benefits
and presented the fit between the candidate and the
potential employer, a conclusion is in order. Although the
applicant has motivated the host, communicated their congruent philosophies, and illustrated the hows of former performance, the interviewer may still skeptically respond with So
What? This is the candidates final chance to make a lasting
impression. The objective is to enlist the interviewer to act by
selecting the candidate.
Similar to a successful salesperson who knows when to
close the deal, the applicant should request the interviewers
action or reaction. In other words, the candidate should ask for
the job! A passive job seeker, subordinate to the interviewer,
may leave an impression of disinterest. Assertive applicants
will make that last pitch, summarizing with cogent reasons the
case for their being offered the position, and then leave with an
upbeat comment and a smile.
The image an applicant presents at parting will carry long
after the meeting. The applicant must be in control. If a
candidate has followed all the steps to enhancing the interview,
but omits this last crucial enlistment, the deal has not been
completed. Make the final image a positive one. Activate the
interviewer to choose YOU.
SUGGESTIONS
FOR FURTHER
READING
J. R. Baehler, Appearance and reality, Success, May
1987, pp. 24-26.
S. Blotnick, The Corporate Steeplechase. New York:
Facts on File, 1984.
D. Leeds, Smart Questions: A New Strategy f o r Successf u l Managers. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company,
1987.
S. K . Merman and J. F. McLaughlin, Out Interviewing the
Interviewer: The Job Winners Script f o r Success.
Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 1982.
A. Pell, How to Sell Yourself On an Interview. New
York: Simon and Schuster, 1982.
T. T. Pettus, One on One: Win the Interview, Win the
Job. New York: Random House, 1981.
Dr. Gilda Carle is President of Interchange Communications Training,
Yonkers, New York. As an image and communications specialist, she trains
experts to make public presentations and give testimony, requiring enhanced
rapport-building and interviewing techniques. She is also a keynote speaker.
Her clients include politicians, academic leaders, and presidents of Fortune
500 companies in the United States and abroad. In addition, Dr. Carle is a
professor of business management, industrial psychology, and organizational
behavior at Mercy College, Pace University, and Long Island University.