Recently a candidate for a management position described his first experience with pre-interview questions and it created more stress for him than a traditional meeting with a person. Responding to questions without talking with a person to gauge his or her reactions and tone was challenging.
His experience with being screened by a list of pre-interview questions is not that uncommon and as employers turn to cost-saving measures, narrowing down the list of candidates electronically saves time and money.
Knowing how to answer and cooperate with screeners who send pre-interview questions before meeting in person is crucial for job applicants in today’s marketplace. The candidate mentioned above was given a series of questions developed by a search committee and his answers would be the determining factor in taking the next steps.
To those who struggle with test anxiety, responding to questions through email can turn up the volume of stress. In his case, he was given a couple of days to ponder the questions and respond, yet he still spent hours reviewing his answers and often second-guessed himself.
When answering pre-interview questions it helps to have a strategy in mind and a positive perspective. Developing rapport and sending the message you want to convey often takes more effort due to the lack of sensing non-verbal reactions. Once you send your answers it’s difficult to recant them; therefore, it helps to review them a couple of times while making sure you are sending a positive perception.
Here are some suggestions to keep in mind when faced with pre-interview questions:
• Write down your immediate answers first on a separate sheet that you can edit later. Thoughts that are captured off-hand often can be your best answers.
• Don’t over-analyze the question; instead respond by reading it thoroughly. An unnecessary challenge can be trying to guess what the employer is looking for rather than being genuine and answering it naturally.
• The questions asked will more likely resemble behavioral based questions and just as you would in an interview, answer them in a clear concise way, always backing up your accomplishments with results.
• Be sensitive to how your answers could be perceived; look for the tone and adequate information.
• Make sure your answers have a consistency that matches the content in your resume and carries through in your social networking.
• Ask a trusted friend to review your answers and look for their first response. This helps confirm the message you want to send and gives you an idea of how others could react.
• Always check for spelling and proper grammar.
• Don’t assume the interviewer knows your background; instead convey your interests and tell them why you want the job.
Have you experienced pre-interview screening using questions via email? What were the results, and did you find it more or less stressful than a traditional interview?
