What used to make me blush with shame as a Junior Recruiter now only brings a compassionate smile to my face: I try to get more details about specific skills in the course of an interview, and the candidate replies: „Well, haven't you read my resume?" Wham! What for an arrogant, stupid answer. And the best way for the candidate to spoil his chance.

The best way for a candidate to spoil his chance

The candidate in fact just missed the perfect opportunity to put his skills into context and present them in the best light. After the first ‚warm-up‘ exchange of courtesies of a classical interview scheme, the candidate is often being asked to quickly present his background. This constitutes for me, as a recruiter, an opportunity to ask the first targeted questions. I often mostly observe if the candidate is able to provide a sensible and coherent overview or if he gets stuck at some point.

The purpose is to check to which extent he matches the sought profile: as a recruiter, I know the expectations of the line manager or his client. I have had a detailed briefing about the required technical and personal skills. And in the interview, I am therefore looking to get some precisions about the sought competencies. Which is why I expect the candidate to help me determine his level of knowledge and expertise: does he have a precise vision of which elements he can put to use in this new position?

„Overselling" looks desperate

At this point, candidates often make the mistake to provide in one fell swoop, on a keyword, all possibly relevant elements. They drift off, loose themselves in details which they have not been asked to provide. They get caught in what we call „overselling", which always conveys the image of a desperate candidate. It also drives the listener - in this instance, the recruiter - to boredom, because the flow of speech is in most cases not to be stopped. Such a behaviour unfortunately turns against the candidate, no matter how interesting his explanations.

Decisive is a maximum overlap

It is not a question of finding the most qualified candidate. No. A recruiter is looking for the candidate with the maximum overlap. Caution: it does not necessarily mean the maximum level of knowledge in a precise area. It depends on many criteria, that go beyond specific and precise skills.

This is why I advise candidates to observe the following rules. These will enable him to find the right balance between underselling and overselling:

• Rule 1: Check the match
  Make a careful upstream analysis of both the job description and the company. Think about what you can bring to the position and what are the things you want/need to learn. You will not want to apply to a position from which you already know every single thing. This mean you will in fact do not match 100% to the profile. The mach should nevertheless be over fifty percent. From this threshold, you have a real chance. The rest is up to you.
• Rule 2: Think outside the box
  During the course of the interview, and especially in the freestyle phase, identify the overlap points between your education and experience and the sought profile. Talk beforehand with friends and colleagues. An external view sometimes help identifying the best possible match with the sought profile. Look beyond your work environment, consider the context of another business sector or another department.
• Rule 3: Look proactively for the overlap
  Do not think that the interviewer will point out all the relevant matching points for you. You are the one that has to highlight, one after the other, every overlap between your current job and the position to be filled - the ball is in your court. The matching points should ideally be emphasized in such a way, that your interviewer cannot possibly miss them.
• Rule 4: Listen, question, deepen
  Listening in a careful, active manner will enable you to better identify the direction the interviewer is giving to the discussion and how you should react. When discussing a topic and whenever it makes sense, make sure to provide further details to contribute building the right image.
• Rule 5: Reveal your personality
  Use the chance to highlight your knowledge and skills, even if you do not perfectly match the sought profile. It is in your own interest to support the employer or recruiter in the tricky task of finding the perfect overlap. Ultimately, the decisive element is the candidate's personality: far-sighted employers will in the end choose an individual with a backpack of expertise and experience - and not an experience with whatever individual in the backpack.