I have recently been doing an increasing number of phone interviews. I want to make sure we bring in the best candidates while saving my colleagues time by screening out candidates who can’t make the grade.
Click through to see a review I did of a webcast from O’Reilly.com. This review was originally posted at SNAPGH | System and Network Administrators of Pittsburgh. Here it is posted in its entirety.
O’Reilly offers a large number webcasts across a wide swatch of topics including systems administration. A recent webcast that caught my eye was Conducting a Technical Interview by Elecia White. I attempted to participate live, but ended up having to watch the recorded screencast. I will talk a bit about the webcast itself, about O’Reilly’s webcasting, and then tack on my thoughts about technical interviews from an interviewer’s perspective.
The Webcast
Link: Conducting a Technical Interview by Elecia White
A webcast like this is very useful. No one teaches a sysadmin how to interview. For my first phone screening, my boss sat in the same room and gave me a few pointers. After that, I was on my own. I’ve picked up a few tips and tricks, here and there from colleagues. I hoped to pick up a few more from this webcast.
Elecia covered every topic I expected, including:
- interviewing at a big company
- phone screening
- diversity
- in-person interviews
- discrimination
In the section on big company interviews, she mentioned they asked candidates to present on a topic of their choosing. This gave the candidate the opportunity to talk about a topic in which they were particularly knowledgeable. A colleague of mine had recommended something similar in the past. You might even learn something new from the candidate.
Another other big tip was touched on a couple times. The goals of an in-person interview are 1) can they do the job and 2) can you work with the person. Elecia reiterated this later on when talking about the differences between 1) technical ability and 2) interpersonal skills. I would argue that if they have the skills, certain allowances can be made for poor interpersonal skills. However, some companies pride themselves on their atmosphere and culture, and a single employee who does not fit in could have a large negative impact.
I find my questions fall into 2 categories: technical questions (How does TCP differ from UDP?), and work management questions (Tell me about the project you listed on your resume). Technical questions help you with the first goal and answer the question, Can the candidate do the job? The later, work management questions, help you with both goals by also answering, “Can I work with this person?” All this presupposes you are conducting interviews for a technical position. I have very little experience hiring for a management role, but I am sure there are a whole number of questions about resource management.
O’Reilly Webcasts
I had hoped to be able to catch the webcast live, but circumstances arose and I had to watch the recording. O’Reilly does a great job of using technology to enable the audience to interact with the presenter, and Elecia did a great job incorporating the audience into the presentation at every possible chance, taking questions after every couple of slides instead of at the end.
I was dissatisfied with the playback controls. The slider allowed you to rewind, but it was small and not very granular, and I repeatedly found myself rewinding minutes when I only wanted to catch the last couple sentences. I also would have preferred if the slides had been available separately. Rewatching the screen cast required I progress at a set speed, making it hard to skip around.
My Thoughts
I have been doing an increasing number of phone screenings. I want to make sure that I weed out the unqualified candidates, while bringing in candidates with the potential of getting hired. Sometimes this is easy, usually it is not. Obviously, everyone I recommend for in-person interviews is not going to be hired. What then is an acceptable rate? I do not know and I do not want to waste my colleagues’ time. I also want to make sure we eventually hire someone.
I interview people with a large variance in experience and ability. Sometimes I am screening for a junior role that requires less critical thinking and management ability, but still requires the candidate show potential. Other times I am screening for a senior position where critical thinking and project management are requirements. This precludes me from having a script with set questions. Perhaps I could have a script for each position we are hiring for, but often candidates come with very different resumes. Not everyone we screen needs to know the particulars of IOS or Linux security. Some were in school not long ago, while others have been out decades. Being able to adapt your questions to each individual helps you get a better idea of them as a candidate.
Conclusion
I recommend this webcast to anyone relatively new to technical interviews, on either side of the table. A seasoned interviewer might not find it as helpful. Elecia did a nice job presenting the material and interjecting her personal experiences. Remember the candidate is in a vulnerable position and being nice and calming is helpful. Elecia says, “Don’t be a jerk.” You might someday find yourself with the roles reversed.