Have you ever had a time when your words just kept rolling off your tongue and after they’ve left your lips you long to take them all back? But, like word vomit, you realized all too late that you’ve said what you said with no take-back. Or, do you often have times when you’re talking and mid sentence you think, Ctrl Z? (For those of you who don’t know, Ctrl Z is the shortcut for undo on your computer).
This happens to people all the time. It’s like your thoughts are spinning, your tongue is speaking, and finally when your mind catches up; you regret saying what you said. This happens in personal conversations and in business; and, unfortunately, sometimes in interviews, when you are trying to recruit TOP Talent! If you didn’t know, we are in what we call at eQ a TALENT WAR. Acquiring, retaining, and growing talent has never been so difficult or complex. What people want now is different than what they wanted then. Skillsets are different. Expectations have changed. People demand more, and contribute less. Did you know that last year CEOs rated “talent” as their number 3 concern, and this year it rose to #1? Unfortunately, this will all continue (as the baby boomers retire), until our new, fresh millennials begin contributing in a meaningful way.
Once you have a candidate in front of you that you’re pumped about, we want to ensure that you don’t mess it up. So, we’ve put together the 4 things you should NEVER say in an interview. Some of these things will get you sued (so pay close attention), while others will just make the candidate know they don’t want to work for you. Never, ever...
1. Say that you don’t like your boss, the company you work for, or are thinking of leaving. Nothing is a mood killer like this one. This is as bad as going on a date and dropping the fact that you are in a nasty divorce and are unhappy with your relationship. Not only would it be a surprise to your date, but it’s a total buzz kill. Even if you - Mr. Interviewer, are unhappy in your job – find ways to “fake it ‘til you make it” in the interview. Do not elude in any way, shape, or form to your personal issues or lack of satisfaction with the company, as doing this should get you fired.
2. Ask personal questions about child care, how old the children are, whether or not the candidate can handle his/her children while working full-time, and, worse yet, ask a mother if she will need to “pump” during the day (yes, it has happened). While you may just be trying to get to know your candidate, this line of questioning is likely to get you sued….and fired.
3. Say that you’re not sure about the role, compensation, etc. As an interviewer, you MUST know the details of the position, what the primary directives are, and what a general framework of the compensation looks like. If you cannot answer the candidate’s questions about the basics, you should not be interviewing. Be prepared. Do the prep work. Make the candidate WANT the job.
4. Say that the person currently in the role will be fired soon. This is obviously confidential information, and will likely cause the candidate to question the security of the position. Airing out dirty laundry is not a good strategy for landing your next rockstar.
There are without a doubt a number of additional things you should never say when interviewing. But, if you stick with these four (along with NOT asking questions about any protected class inclusive of: gender, ethnicity, sexual preferences, etc), you will at least steer clear of a lawsuit. If you know that your goal is to really impress the right candidate, enough so that he/she wants the position and is willing to fight for it, you’ll have to do more than just avoid these 4 things.
If you’re interested in learning how you can “Romance your Next Rockstar” – which will give you great tips that apply dating to hiring– please email me at maaronson@entrequest.com for a free e-book we wrote on this very topic. This book will help you go from avoiding a lawsuit to landing the BEST candidate in the market.
Misti Aaronson is the Executive Vice President and a partner at entreQuest. She utilizes her talents and expertise from working with countless organizations to help businesses grow through expert talent acquisition, growth methodology and development of their teams.
