It was 20 years ago that Arlene Hirsch sat at the head of a conference table in a Chicago law office. But she’ll never forget how much she hated that job interview.
When Hirsch had applied for the position of office manager with the law firm, she expected to weather a tough, thorough job interview. But she didn’t expect to sit in a room filled with 20 of the firm’s lawyers, all firing questions at her at the same time. And she most definitely didn’t expect to watch as one by one, these original 20 lawyers left the room, only to be replaced, one at a time, by other colleagues.
“It was terrible,” said Hirsch, who now runs her own career-counseling service in Chicago. “I ended up answering the same questions over and over again. I was getting offended whenever someone left the room. I never did get the job. But that interview was one of the things that motivated me to change careers.”
Few job interviews are this stressful. But Hirsch’s story proves a point: All job interviews are nerve-wracking. But panel interviews, when two or more company executives grill job candidates at the same time, are the worst of all. It’s hard enough to make a good impression on one interviewer. Trying to do the same with two, three or more is a real challenge.
“The anxiety level during a panel interview goes straight up, that’s for sure,” agreed Sander Marcus, one of the owners of Friedland & Marcus, a career-counseling agency based in Chicago. “A panel interview can feel like a firing squad.
“Panel interviews are more common these days because executives are so busy,” Hirsch said. “By getting all their executives in one place at the same time, companies can make more expedient hiring decisions. Of course, this is not an ideal situation for the candidate. . . . It’s easier to feel intimidated and be less communicative.”
There are ways job seekers can prepare for multiperson interviews. Hirsch, author of the “Wall Street Journal Premier Guide to Interviewing,” advises job hunters to find out the names and job titles of everyone who’ll be in the interview room. That way, candidates can think up responses that are tailored to each individual. Candidates who do this show employers that they know specific information about their companies.
Today’s job hunters have an advantage: the Internet. Many large companies run their own Internet sites. By logging on, job seekers can learn about company histories and key personnel. Some sites even include short biographies of company executives.
Robert Meier, owner of Absolute Career Services, which has offices in Chicago and Oak Park, knows a little about the pressures of panel interviews. He recently helped one of his clients survive a series of 10 interviews with Johnson & Johnson. During the final interview, 10 company executives fired questions at Meier’s candidate. Meier told this client to memorize his resume before setting foot into that panel interview. This makes sense; a good resume includes all the highlights of a candidate’s career, highlights that a job seeker wants to make sure to air during a panel interview. Without memorizing these highlights, the candidate, for example, might forget to mention his role in developing a new product.
“You need a script. That’s what your resume is,” Meier said. “You can refer back to it during the interview. You’ll be nervous during a panel interview. If you have to be improvisational, you’ll forget things. Unless you’re Robin Williams, who’s a genius at it, you will not do well at improvisational speaking.” Marcus offers a final pre-interview tip: practice. This may seem obvious, but candidates should spend some time imagining they’re discussing their career accomplishments in front of six stone-faced executives.
Jean Davis, a career counselor in Evanston, says the most important thing candidates can do during a panel interview is to pay equal attention to everyone in the room. This means making eye contact with each executive.
“The first person who feels slighted is the one who can sabotage you,” Davis said.
In addition, interviewers want to know that job seekers are listening to what they’re saying, Meier said. Candidates that repeat interviewers’ questions show that they are. This is especially important during a panel interview, when executives are often firing off several questions at once.
Meier also recommends that candidates be as upbeat as possible during even the most stressful of panel interviews. Often, executives schedule multiperson interviews to see how candidates react under pressure. Those candidates that remain in control and upbeat have an edge.
While panel interviews may present more challenges, they do give candidates a chance to meet several of the people they would be reporting to, a good way to learn about the corporate culture. This helps candidates decide if the company is the right fit for them.
