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Original poster

Help - telephone interview

19 replies

admylin · 28/11/2007 11:45

I've just got back in from a morning of hell out assisting the teacher at dd's school and dh has left a message to say he's got a telephone interview next week for a job in New Zealand. Has anyone had one before? I just think the chances are quite tough as the confident hand shake, smile, posture and general impressions you give at a personal interview will be missing - any tips?
He is trying so hard to get a new job, this one has to bring us luck...

OP posts:
TheAntiCod · 28/11/2007 11:59

i did one of those, between norway and uk. it's ok, he can have loads of notes in front of him. Write down any questions you can both think of to ask, esp as in NZ, re conditions, town it's in etc..... have his cv at the ready to refer to it, and a notepad for notes. Speak with a smile as well, it makes a difference.

I found the other guy did most of the talking, but helped me a lot to have a list of questions already prepared.

TheAntiCod · 28/11/2007 11:59

i did eventually get the job btw.

Original poster
admylin · 28/11/2007 12:23

I'll get him to start on a list then. I wish we had a phone with a loud button so I could listen in.

OP posts:
MrsArchieTheInventor · 28/11/2007 12:29

I had a telephone interview with for a job with the inland revenue a few years ago (and I got the job eventually after an arduous recruitment process)

Tell your dh to write notes beforehand and prepare just as he would with a normal interview and tell him to relax for half an hour or so before the scheduled call too in order to gather his thoughts. Smiling helps, as does a cheery voice. He won't have the opportunity to sell himself visually (unless it's a video conference interview) so exaggerating his voice slightly might help.

Original poster
admylin · 28/11/2007 12:38

Thanks, he is the nervous type so will be walking around in circles before the phone call - it's at 9pm. I could get him to drink a really small glass of wine maybe to calm down. How long did your interview last? He usually - in his past interviews had an hour.

OP posts:
MamaG · 28/11/2007 12:41

DH had one
was atold afterwards that one of the reasons he got the job was because he "uh-huhed" and "mmd" and "yes"d his way through rather than sitting in silecne, listening to the interviewer speak

MrsArchieTheInventor · 28/11/2007 13:37

Mine lasted about 20 minutes but it was more of a sifting exercise. You do become aware of how often you say 'um' and 'erm' in the process of a conversation though. And tell him to have a glass of water at his side and take a drink whenever he needs to. Nowt worse than your mouth drying up when you're trying to sell yourself.

And tell him GOOD LUCK from me!! He'll be fine.

Original poster
admylin · 28/11/2007 14:36

Thanks, we need the luck, been trying to get out of Germany for over a year now and I'm just so scared he's going to come home one day and say he's signed up for another 3 years here (at the moment he's signed 'til September 2008)

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SSSandy2 · 29/11/2007 10:43

good luck admylin. I've had two phone interviews for jobs and they weren't too bad. There were in both cases a team of interviewers on the other end.

I would think of questions they might ask and prepare some answers. Dh could try speaking on to a tape recorder and you can both listen to it and see what you think? Definitely try to smile when he's speaking, at least in the initial and wind-up phase because the smile does come across the phone.

MrsArchieTheInventor · 29/11/2007 23:07

admylin - how did it go?

Original poster
admylin · 30/11/2007 10:46

Thanks for asking! It's on Sunday at 9pm our time ( I think that must be Monday morning in New Zealand) so dh has made a list with all his questions and info about his expertise etc - the salary questions will be abit tricky as it seems that salary is lower as compared to Germany but we can't figure out if the cost of living is also lower which would make it OK. For the job in question it is difference of 10,000 pounds.

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Original poster
admylin · 03/12/2007 12:27

The day after the interview. I don't think he'll be invited for the job, they aske dhim 2 questions that he hadn't prepared for and he then got all bothered and made a mes sof it. Well atleast it was good practise and he knows what he has to do for his next interview (28th of December!)so back to the drawing board for project 'Get-us-out-of-Germany-as-soon-as-possible'

OP posts:
SSStollenzeit · 04/12/2007 08:46

wait and see admylin, maybe he made less of a mess of things than he fears.

adventkerzylin · 04/12/2007 10:09

NO, I was sitting in the same room so I heard it all. The only positive thing was that he was very friendly and apoligised for being nervous but the 2 most important thing he messed up. OK NZ is abit far, now he's concentrating on his Dallas interview.

SSStollenzeit · 04/12/2007 10:29

You don't know how the other interviews went though. Maybe he came across as genuine and easy-going and the others as up themselves total prats or something.

In the end something good has to come up.

adventkerzylin · 04/12/2007 10:33

Yes, he'll get something in the end. I'm just worried that his present boss will come and offer him something great that he can't turn down before he gets a positive answer from UK or US, then I'll be doomed to stay in Berlin all my life....arghhh, no wake me up what am I saying.

SSStollenzeit · 04/12/2007 10:39

Maybe you'll be the next Regierende Bürgermeisterin from Berlin or how about Ausländerbeauftragte (that woman gets up my nose, d'ya know the one I mean?)

adventkerzylin · 04/12/2007 10:42

Yes I know who you mean but there are quite a few of them in that quailfy for getting up of noses!
No, I refuse to start thinking like that, I have to concentrate on images of suitcases, packed boxes even container ships and then it'll all be OK.

SSStollenzeit · 04/12/2007 10:52

OK race you out the door now to buy Nikolaus-Geschenke!

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