In the current COVID-19 pandemic, it’s more and more likely that you will be interviewed remotely.
Now we all understand that job interviews under normal circumstances can be tough.
It might feel that being interviewed for a job over Zoom or Microsoft Teams is a huge challenge.
Of course for every downside of remote job interviews, there’s an upside.
Here’s the thing, with remote job interviews like any job interviews, you can focus on the struggle.
Alternatively you can decide to take control of the situation and focus on the opportunities.
So what are the realities of remote job interviews:
- They can feel a little more impersonal
- Things will go wrong
- It’s harder to gauge the reactions of the hiring manager or panel.
- You will need to spend slightly more time preparing.
And how do you overcome them?
- Think about how you will build rapport in those first few minutes. Have some small talk ready. Asking a question is good.
- Accept the imperfections of the tech and recognise that these are just variations of different challenges you face when going to a face to face job interview.
- Glance down at the screen periodically at the screen to check in on the hiring manager is reacting. The body language is usually something you can gauge.
- Accept that you will have to spend a bit more time preparing. Especially practicing and getting comfortable with speaking to the camera when answering questions.
- Recognise that hiring managers are a lot more forgiving when tech drops out or something similar. Chances are they have experienced similar issues themselves when interviewing candidates.
The Bottom Line: Remote job interviews present opportunities and challenges. Accept this and know that you can handle whatever happens without compromising your chances of being offered the job.