The Do’s and Don’ts of an interview with Recruiters

Read time - 02:36

If you live in South Africa, you should probably know that being invited for a job interview is almost a privilege. Unfortunately, some candidates do not see it that way and have a knack for blowing their own interview opportunities. We have all heard cringe-worthy stories about candidates sleeping during interviews or not even showing up at all.

As a company, we help our candidates to avoid these interview mistakes. We've spoken to some of our top consultants and they shared some of their candidate experience in an interview and how you can avoid them.

1.  Do not show up drunk.

This may sound cliché but it seems some candidates do not get the message and actually show up drunk in an interview or reeking of alcohol. No recruiter will want to sell you to a client in this state and will deem you a waste of time and resources as you are bringing them and their brand into disrepute.

2.  Not knowing your CV or lying about the contents in it.

This is always a bad idea. Interviewers always expect you to know your CV chronology by heart. When a company discovers that you are lying, you will be disqualified and future opportunities may be denied. CV fraud is high and you do not want to come across as a CV fraudster. At the end of the day, it is your CV, it comprises of your life and work experiences there is no reason as to why you should not know it by heart.

At Communicate, we conduct thorough interviews, screenings, reference checks, verifying skills and experience. We are contracted to MIE, a background-screening agency to verify qualifications, criminal, credit, fraud, and ID records. So if you are laying – it is likely we will know, and what are the chances we will call you for future opportunities?

3. Not being prepared for the interview.

Almost all our consultants stressed this point. Come prepared! You are being sold to a client, look the part! Look like you want the job!

4. Using an agency to get a counteroffer.

If a recruiter discovers that you are using them just to get an offer at your current company, they might not represent you as you are wasting their time and resourcing. Recruiters are less likely to represent people who job-hop and are prone to making counteroffers. Recruitment agencies are not there to help you get counteroffers from your employer. During an interview, do not come across as someone who is likely to take one.

5.  Arrogance.

There is nothing wrong with having a higher sense of self and the same can be said about confidence. The problem comes when it borders into arrogance which infuriates the interviewer. No matter how educated or senior you are, you still have to respect your interviewer. They are your potential gateway to landing the next job.

6. Language barriers.

In South Africa like in most countries, English is an official language and medium of instruction. When invited for an interview unless otherwise stated, you are expected to be articulate and or fluent in English. So brush up on your English and industry jargon before going in an interview. How else will an interviewer sell you to a client if they do not understand the language you speak?

This may read like another one of those tired articles giving advice to candidates about what not to do during an interview but we would not stress the message enough if candidates actually understood the importance of brushing up on the language.

We have over 3 decades of experience in Connecting Great People with Great companies. Part of our process is to prepare our candidates before sending them out for interviews with our clients. Visit our website to find out how we can help you.