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Group Interviews

Aha, you're in a panel interview. There are special techniques for handling a group of people in a more formal environment.

The difficulty in panels is maintaining the interest of all the members at all times. As an example of panel interviews, we'll take a type that many organisations use. They put a hurdle in place that all potential managers from all parts of the business must jump if they are to move into management at all. This is not an interview for a specific job, but a check to ensure that you have what it takes to make the first rung of the corporate ladder. You need to pass such panels first time and preferably easily and unanimously.

KEEP EVERYBODY INTERESTED

The panel interview is a more formal process and less of a conversation. Prepare thoroughly and try to be precise in your answers rather than more conversational. Use questions to establish quickly the role of each panel member. Try to make all the members of the panel speak, and then listen to what they say. All the clues will be there. The HR person will know when in interviews it's right to hold their tongue, but the line managers will often respond, particularly if they have already listened to a number of enthusiastic talkers who listen very little.

Let's look at possible pitfalls. 'How will you go about the technical side of a project?' This one could take you into your comfort zone and make you go into too much detail. It's always possible to check that you're at the right level: 'Is this answering your question or do you want more detail?' should get an honest response from the chairperson. If you're answering a technical question that one panel member is interested in, still check on the others: 'I'm conscious that I'm going into some detail on this. Is that OK?'

'Why do you think this is the right time for you to go into management?' Square away your current job, and then show your ambition: 'We're coming to the end of the second phase of my current project; so it's good timing from my boss's point of view. Rather than moving on to another project, I feel that I'm ready to go up a gear. I think I've shown that I'm at my best when I'm given more and more responsibility and that's what I'm looking for in my next job.'

They're almost certain to ask about poor performers, since managers have to deal with some tough situations: 'What would you do if one of your team members was really not performing?' You need to show you have the authority to handle such a situation, but don't jump in with, 'Well, sack them.' Know the rules and procedures for what has to be done. Your answer needs to show them that when you've exhausted coaching, training and all the HR procedures, you will have the assertiveness to do what needs to be done and move the poor performer on if it's necessary. 'In the end it's not just me and the team who are in a bad situation; it's also the poor performer. It's in their interests as well to resolve the problem once and for all.'

REMEMBER YOUR BODY LANGUAGE

How do you keep in with everyone? First and foremost is eye contact. Keep it flowing across the whole panel all the time. It keeps everyone involved in the conversation and gives you the chance to pick up on their reactions. It's very tempting to limit your eye contact to the person who asked the question you're answering, or, probably worse, to speak almost exclusively to the senior person in the room. And there's a sex trap here. Some men dodge eye contact with the women on the panel and concentrate on the men. Nothing can be more guaranteed to make a female manager seethe, and quite right too: it's bloody rude. And it works the other way too. Some women interviewees keep more eye contact with women panel members. The men may take this as a sign of weakness - you're obviously looking for feminine support.


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