How to Do a 2 Minute Phone Interview
A number of multi-nationals conduct short telephone interviews just to check whether or not candidates are worthy of a live interview. This helps the companies save precious time and money, because almost everyone possesses an eye-catching resume these days, and it becomes extremely difficult to judge the potential of a person through a piece of paper. Most companies look for high communication skills and enthusiasm in potential employees, and all that can be assessed over the telephone. Some phone interviews last for more than 20 minutes; whereas, others are concluded within a couple of minutes.
The key to an effective phone interview is to ask relevant questions and test the energy and confidence level of a potential employee.
Instructions
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1
Call at an appropriate time
In order to conduct an effective short telephone interview, you should call the person at an appropriate time. It is never recommended that you conduct a phone interview very early in the morning or during lunch hours. -
2
Introduce yourself
Having called a potential employee, you should initially greet him or her in a very friendly tone and introduce yourself and the company. The next step is to seek the permission of the other person for a 2 minute interview and proceed if he or she allows you to do so. If someone asks you to call at another time, you should ask for a preferred time and do as required. -
3
Ask for a brief introduction
You should start the interview by asking for a brief introduction of the potential employee. You may ask questions about the last academic degree of the person and past experiences, if any. It is extremely important to ask if that person is currently working somewhere or not, because that determines the availability of a potential employee.
If he or she is already working somewhere, you must ask when he/she will be able to join. -
4
Focus on communication skills and enthusiasm
It is extremely difficult for any human resource officer to judge the abilities and knowledge of a person within a couple of minutes. Therefore, you should focus more on the communication skills and the positive energy of a potential employee. -
5
Final interview date
If you are satisfied with the skills of a potential employee and you feel that he or she is worth an on-site interview, then you will need to set one up. Take into account the schedule of the HR department, and make sure you consult with the individual to check whether he or she is available on a specific date and time.
