Phone Interview-How to avoid being screened out

Telephone interviews are becoming more and more common these days. Travel can be expensive and companies are practicing tighter expense management. The phone interview is now seen as a valuable tool to help in narrowing down the playing field. Job hunters should keep one key thing in mind as they prepare for a phone interview. This is your opportunity to advance to the next step, the face to face interview, so make every second count! This is also an opportunity for the interviewer to narrow the field, so their intent is to find the talent they want and screen out those that don’t make the cut.


The interviewer will likely ask questions specific to your work experience, life experiences, availability, and salary requirements. Your job as an interviewee is to provide facts that support your resume and career ambitions. Wherever possible you should use quantifiable accomplishments in support of your work performance. It is important that you sound professional and not desperate.

Preparation is the key to success!

Make sure you schedule the phone interview at a time that you can be free of distractions. It is best to do this away from work. Make sure that if you are on a cell phone that you can be in an area with good coverage, clear sound, and do not do a phone interview while driving. If called for a surprise phone interview, try to reschedule. Your simple answer can be to indicate to the interviewer that this is not a time that you can give them your undivided attention. Suggest a couple of alternative times when you can be distraction free. Make sure you approach the phone interview with the same level of energy and enthusiasm as you would the face to face interview. Research, prepare, research and prepare!

Things to have READY:

• Pen, paper, calendar

• Research you have done on the company, competitors, and position

• Your resume and the job description

• Short list of questions

Questions you MUST be prepared to answer:

• Tell me what you know about our company and our products?

• How would you add value to our business? (Help us grow or improve)

• What is motivating you to make a career change?

• If relocation is necessary, are you committed to relocate and how soon?

• Where do you see your career heading in 5 years?

Keys that will lead to SUCCESS:

• Relax and be yourself, speak directly into the phone

• Confirm the interviewer’s name and company, ask for their title if you don't already know

• Make sure that you answer questions with a high level of enthusiasm, and take time listen and think carefully for your answer, then speak clearly

• Avoid yes or no answers; elaborate and be prepared to sell yourself

• If you need more time to think, say so, and ask them to repeat a question if you are unsure. (Repeating a question and asking for confirmation is a good way of showing that you are listening and also gives you time to think about an answer.)

• Close! Re-affirm your qualifications; express your interest in the position and the company. State that you would appreciate the opportunity to meet in person to further discuss this great opportunity.

Things to AVOID:

• Smoking, chewing gum, drinking, and eating during the interview

• Poorly performing headsets and phones

• Unprofessional voice mail recordings or ring tones (your “hold music” while the caller is waiting for you to answer)

• Talking badly about past employers, competitors, or supervisors

• Rambling, stuttering, cursing (limit such phrases/words as “um”, “like” “you know” or “I think”)

• Asking any questions about compensation or benefits

(Compensation should only come up at the end of the interview process, never at the phone interview or 1st face to face interview stage.) If the question is posed, simply state that you would expect to be compensated fairly based on the position responsibilities and expectations.

Follow-up after the phone interview:

• Make sure you obtain the phone number, address, and email of the company and interviewer

• Follow-up with the company within a few days with a thank you

• Use this follow-up to clarify any answers you felt maybe you could have expanded on better during the phone interview. Also this is a great time to re-emphasize your qualifications, ask additional questions, or provide additional quantifiable accomplishments that are not on your resume. Use this as an opportunity to re-state your interest in the position!

This all sounds like a lot of work, doesn’t it? Perhaps if you don’t really want to take time to prepare, then you may not be all that interested in the new job and in most cases, this will likely be evident to the interviewer during the phone interview. Remember – Preparation is the key to success!