Tag: interview advice | Artisan Creative

Episode 8: Onborading

Wednesday, December 13th, 2023|

Congratulations!! You’ve hired your newest employee, now let’s talk about Onboarding them.

Let’s do a Pulse Check

What is the onboarding strategy?
Is the infrastructure (the SOPs, training manuals, LMS, etc.) available to teach and onboard?
What additional resources do you need to successfully onboard and train?

A robust onboarding & training program creates ongoing engagement, a sense of belonging and continues to highlight your employer brand as well as enhances your new employee’s experience.

It’s critical that their first few months are connected, welcoming, and inclusive and that resources are being allocated to onboard and train them, regardless of their experience or seniority.

Even a senior-level candidate with years of experience requires onboarding and training. Although they may know how to do something, they still need to learn how to do that work within your company’s environment and culture.

Candidates are not mind readers and it is an unrealistic expectation to assume a brand-new hire knows what you are expecting without clear and open communication.

Create a feedback loop and touch base often.

The same three principles we just reviewed for hiring also apply to onboarding

Prepare your onboarding before your candidate starts. This is especially crucial for a remote team member as it takes extra planning to make them feel connected and included.

Send a welcome kit to their home with branded swag/plant for their desk
Make sure all their equipment. Logins and access are set up on day 1
Organize an in person (or remote) welcome lunch to get to know the rest of the team members.

Reviewing your processes, SOPs and products through your new hire’s eyes, can create opportunities for improvement and enhancements that you didn’t expect.

Create an orientation and shadowing program to review technical know how and to learn about the culture,
Stagger the training. Too much info at once is too much
Tailor the program to their learning style (Visual, Kinesthetic, Auditory)

And

Be Present, Open, Inclusive, and Build trust
Make yourself available to the candidate for any questions
Do an end of week wrap to hear of any challenges, opportunities, or feedback

Having an unwavering commitment to building trust, with a focus on preparation, creating processes, and having the presence of mind to do so are the foundations needed to transform your hiring practice.

Happy Hiring!

Watch the previous episodes in this series:

Episode 0: Introduction

Episode 1: Transforming Your Hiring Mindset

Episode 2: Writing Impactful Job Descriptions

Episode 3: Recruitment & Sourcing Strategy

Episode 4: The Candidate Experience

Episode 5: The Interview Mindset

Episode 6: Interview Timing

Episode 7: The Follow-up

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Episode 6 : Interview Timing

Friday, November 17th, 2023|

At this stage of the game, you have set clear expectations for the role, you’ve written an amazing job description, prepared before and during the interview, and had your first interview with a candidate.

Now it’s decision time and time to choose whether that candidate is a good fit and ready to move to the next stage, or not.

It’s only natural that you may want input from other stakeholders to help you with the decision. You may feel a second or third interview and perspective is needed before you can make an offer.

If that is the case, then be mindful that your candidate may have other interviews scheduled elsewhere too. And if your decision-making process takes too long, you may risk losing your candidate to timing.

I am a fan of including key stakeholders in interviews. Remember that your candidate is also interviewing your company, so a couple of interviews with other stakeholders will give them additional insight into the culture, team environment, and product.

However, be mindful of the intention of multiple interviews, the impression it can leave, and the impact it may have.

Time is a valuable asset for everyone—including your candidate. The days when candidates had to jump through multiple hoops to show their interest in a job are over. Today, companies have to do the same.

So without clear and open communication, a lengthy interview cycle can imply that you are not serious about a hire, or are indecisive, or that you have doubts about their candidacy, and that their time is not valuable. This is not the way to build trust.

So please set expectations with the candidate upfront, or if working with a recruitment firm let them know what the interview process in your company is like, so they can inform their candidate ahead of time.

A simple statement can set the tone: “Our process includes X interviews with Y stakeholders. We value your time and promise an expeditious yet thorough process to give us both a strong sense of connection, understanding and requirements.

If multiple rounds of interviews are necessary, or assessments are required, please find out where the candidate is in their interviewing journey with other companies. Are they awaiting an offer, or have they just begun their job search?

Be ready to pivot and adjust your approach if you really like this candidate and they are your front-runner.

In our experience, we have had situations when a client was really excited about a candidate, but other stakeholders in the decision-making process were unable to conduct the follow-up interview for a couple of weeks due to vacations, tradeshows, and other deadlines….and during that time, the candidate accepted another offer.

Don’t lose your top candidate to TIMING. Create a process for fluidity. If needed, conduct multiple interviews on the same day or if multiple days are needed, then

make the interview a priority, and clear your and any other stakeholders’ calendars so everyone is committed to continuing the process smoothly without unnecessary delay.

If hiring is truly a priority….make it be one.

Let’s do a Pulse Check

Can you make interviewing a priority at your company?

How many rounds of interviewing do you need before a decision is made?

Who are all the stakeholders that need to be part of the decision-making?

Watch the previous episodes in this series:

Episode 0: Introduction

Episode 1: Transforming Your Hiring Mindset

Episode 2: Writing Impactful Job Descriptions

Episode 3: Recruitment & Sourcing Strategy

Episode 4: The Candidate Experience

Episode 5: The Interview Mindset

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Episode 2: Writing Impactful Job Descriptions

Monday, October 9th, 2023|

Once you’ve clarified why you are hiring, the next step in the hiring roadmap is to determine who the ideal candidate is.

And specifically, what are the core technical skills and interpersonal skills, that are missing within your current team that you need to address?

These answers will help determine the requirements the role needs and support the details needed for writing a viable and accurate job description to clarify the day-to-day responsibilities.

Equally important is to define the hard skills or IQ the role needs (the technical know-how, the programs, the education), as well as needed soft skills ( the communication skills, leadership skills, the EQ for the role).

Think of creating the job description as a marketing opportunity for your company. This document promotes your company to potential candidates and creates a strategic roadmap for hiring and retention success.

Writing this impactful job description is a critical step in the recruitment process, however, it is too often considered an admin task that is rushed, copied from other roles found online, or relegated to ChatGPT so it can be done quickly and posted on external or internal job boards.

Yes, you can use AI to start the foundation of the requirements, however, you’ll have to customize and tailor it so it is unique to your company, conveys your voice, and your message, builds trust, AND supports your employer Brand. Otherwise, your role (and company) will sound like hundreds of others on the web and will get lost in the noise of other job posts out there.

A good job description should demonstrate what success can look like for a candidate, clarify potential, and growth opportunities, list the company values, perks, and your company’s unique offerings.

Unfortunately, many job descriptions read like a laundry list of wants and todos, and rarely differentiate between what is a MUST HAVE. Many job descriptions focus only on what the company needs and neglect highlighting what a candidate may want.

If the salary is not aligned with the years of experience you are asking for, determine whether you can offer better benefits, sign-on bonuses, or early reviews to boost the overall compensation package. Or if the salary parameters are not aligned, consider if you really need someone with all the skills listed, or can you hire someone more junior who may not have that experience and whom you can teach, mentor, and groom?

Clarifying these parameters helps define the expectations, goals, and success metrics for any job opening. In fact, without these, you may elongate the hiring process by sifting through unqualified applicants and waste your and your team’s most valuable asset, your time!

Once you are clear about the must-have skills that are needed, you can build a process or create a toolkit to evaluate the applications that are being submitted or the interviews you are conducting.

Geoff Smart, the author of the book WHO, suggests creating a Scorecard and details his process for it in the book.

You and your team can determine and rank the hard and soft skills you are looking for and plan how you’ll move an applicant through the hiring process.

Regardless of the hiring framework you use, the recruitment tools you have, or the assessments you may have in place, these preparation steps will help determine the years of experience you need and the seniority level the role requires and that will directly correlate to the salary and the length of time it may take to find the right candidate.

Only you can decide what qualities and experiences are a must-have, what you are willing to teach on the job, or when to extend an interview or reject an application.

Let’s do a Pulse Check

How do you define and differentiate your company to applicants?
How do you differentiate between the must-haves vs. the nice-to-have skills & qualifications, as well as hard and soft skills?
How do you define what success looks like and what it offers a candidate?
How realistic are the must-haves in the job?

Watch the previous episodes in this series:

Episode 0: Introduction

Episode 1: Transforming Your Hiring Mindset

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Episode 1: Transforming Your Hiring Mindset

Monday, September 25th, 2023|

In his book” The Speed of Trust” Stephen R. Covey says “Trust is the one thing that changes everything.”

In Hiring, building trusted relationships starts before the recruitment and interviewing phases begin.

It starts with the preparation you do before you set out to hire that builds trust sets the stage for WHY a candidate chooses your company instead of a competitor’s.

In any hiring climate, You want to be a candidate’s First choice and highlight WHY joining your company is a good career move for them.

Not only are YOU interviewing a potential candidate, THEY are also interviewing YOUR firm, and in that vain they are reviewing YOU, and checking out your company’s reputation.

It is no longer a one-way responsibility on the candidate’s shoulders to promote their skills, YOU have to do the same.

What prospective candidates learn about your firm via your digital presence helps establish your employer brand and builds trust between your company and their decision to apply. Clarifying your purpose, identifying your values, and highlighting your culture, and being a subject matter expert in your industry builds trust with applicants.

Building trust includes the communication you have with them from the time they apply, throughout the interview phase to the final step of an offer.

Trust is also built (or broken) in how you lead, how you give feedback, how you interview, and how you,= as a leader, show up.

I am going to ask you more questions to get you thinking about “why”…..

You don’t need to have the answers now….this is to transform the hiring mindset. There is a worksheet in the resources section to work on this when you are ready.

Trust is a critical component here and ties right into why you are hiring now:

Why is this role open?

Is it because of growth?
Or is it because of attrition?

If it’s because of growth:
Are you hiring because your workload is too much and your team is already tapped?

Or is your team missing key skillsets to address the new work?
Is it to offload some of the things that you are doing yourself that you just don’t want to be doing anymore?
Is there an influx of projects, however, you don’t have enough staff to be able to handle them, or are deadlines being missed or opportunities being lost?

However, if it’s for attrition:

Did an employee leave?
Or did you let somebody go?

These are very different questions to ponder and the answers may shed light on a deeper issue to address with the next hire:

If somebody left:

Why did they leave?
Was there a cultural nuance that you need to be aware of?
A team dynamic or leadership issue to be aware of?
Was it because of salary/benefits?
Did they leave for a better opportunity? What does that mean? And how can you message and build trust that they can grow and flourish right here and that your workplace is that better opportunity?

Or did you let somebody go?

Why was that?
What was missing in how they did their job?
What was missing in their technical or communication skills?

Contemplating these questions will help you determine what your team needs now, who will be the right candidate, and how your employer brand is perceived… then start building trust with your messaging as you embark on the hiring journey.

Let’s do a Pulse Check

What does your employer brand convey?
Can an applicant get a sense of your culture from your digital presence?
How is trust established via your online communication?

What the previous episodes in this series:

Introduction

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Introduction : Transforming Your Hiring Mindset

Saturday, September 9th, 2023|

Do you remember your first job interview and how you felt?

I did. I was excited. I was prepared. I even bought myself a new outfit. And I was confident that I was just going to ace that interview.

However, things changed when the interviewer showed up …late, unprepared, rushed… and then grilled me question after question without creating any space for me to ask my questions. And then they cut the interview short because they had to run to their next meeting.

The irony is, I did get an offer from them after all, and turned them down, and instead accepted another position and ended up staying at that job for close to 10 years.

That first interview was 30 some years ago, and I still remember the feeling I walked away with. Unheard.

And perhaps that’s why I am here with you. A seed was planted that grew into a passion that both the candidate and the hiring company have a win-win relationship.

For the past few decades, my team and I have worked with hundreds of companies and business owners on their recruitment objectives and have gathered great insight into when interviewing and hiring go well, and when they don’t.

Whether you have an in-house HR and recruitment team, work with an outside recruitment agency, or you yourself are reviewing all those incoming resumes, there are several critical steps to implement throughout the hiring process to create success and become a skillful interviewer.

Usually, we expect the candidate to come prepared, be open, be engaged, have high energy, and be communicative. We want them to not only have researched the role, know about our company, and be enthusiastic, we want them to want the job!

Today, we are going to flip the script and focus on us as the business owner, hiring manager, or department head who maybe deciding when it is the time to hire, or greenlighting the budget and salary, or perhaps conducting the first or final interview.

This series is divided into the 3 phases of hiring to transform the hiring mindset and set the stage for a successful hiring practice that will set you apart from your competitors. The three phases are:

The Preparation required before interviewing & hiring can begin
The Process for set-up, and follow-up on applicants and interviewees
The Presence of mind is needed during the interview and onboarding.

Together we will review the importance of establishing trust in your employer brand, writing impactful job descriptions, becoming a skillful interviewer, and creating follow-up procedures to transform your hiring practice.

So, let’s start at the beginning of the hiring journey before you decide to hire!

Enjoy the first of our 9-part series.

Katty Douraghy | President | Artisan Creative

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Tips for a Successful Video Interview

Monday, February 13th, 2023|

The ease of technology and virtual offices have made video interviews a necessary step in the overall interview process. Sometimes a video interview can pose additional challenges due to technology mishaps or the inability to see the other person’s reaction well, adding to the pre-interview anxiety.

No need to worry! Whether it’s Zoom, Teams, or a pre-recorded video resume, the tips below can help create success in your job search.

The main intention of any interview is to do your best so you can advance to the next stage.With over 25 years of helping candidates prepare for these types of interviews, we’d like to share some best practices with you:

The Video Interview

No matter the technology used adhere to this mantra: Test, and Test again. Test your device’s audio and video connections before the actual interview. Don’t wait until the interview day to download!
Confirm time zones in case the interviewer is in another state or country.
Practice ahead of time on screen and record yourself if possible. Pay attention to your posture, voice, lighting and background and adjust as needed.
Check the lighting and move your computer as needed so that your face is illuminated without any shadows. Get an external light such as a ring light if the room lighting is low.
Make sure your head and shoulders appear in the video frame – don’t get too close or move too far away from the camera.
Position the camera at eye-level and make eye contact with it! If you only watch the screen itself you’ll look like you’re not making eye contact with the interviewer.
Research the company, follow on social, and look up your interviewer’s Linkedin profile. You may find some things in common!
Ensure that you are in a quiet place.
Make sure your device is fully charged or plugged in during the interview
You’ll be using your voice and tone to communicate— be sure to speak clearly and succinctly.
Be friendly and smile while talking.
Be prepared to ask engaging questions about the company culture and the team.
Have your resume close by so you can refer to it.
Listen well and avoid talking over the interviewer.
Don’t discuss salary or benefits at this stage.
This is your first opportunity to connect and shine.
Dress and groom as if you were interviewing in person. Dress for the job you want!
Pay attention to your surroundings—especially the background. Select a clean, neutral, and distraction-free backdrop like a wall, or screen.
If you live with a roommate let them know you’ll be on camera to avoid unexpected noise or interruptions.
If applicable, have your portfolio loaded on your desktop in case screen sharing is needed. Make sure you have a clean, uncluttered desktop and if needed, change your desktop wallpaper to something creative but professional.

We wish you all the best in your next job interview! Be sure to check out all our interview tips on our blog.

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Prepping for your next Interview

Friday, January 13th, 2023|

Interviews can be a nerve-wracking experience! Preparation helps calm those nerves. In order to help you through your next interview, we’ve compiled a list of things to consider to get that job offer.

Do Research
Being prepared for an interview is a given, but how well do you really know the position and the company? It’s useful to make notes and bullet point any relevant information before your interview. Do your research and check out Linkedin, reviews and social media posts to learn a few facts about the company. This shows your interest in the product offerings and culture of the company
Watch your Body Language
We can’t stress how important body language is. If you don’t believe us, watch this TED Talk by Amy Cuddy (it has over 22 M views!!) We are not saying you should walk or Zoom into an interview with attitude, but what we are saying is that subtle language such as posture and hand movements can make all the difference between appearing shy or confident. Sit up straight, make eye contact and use open hand gestures. Check out our Zoom interview best practices blog too.
Be Grateful
Gratitude can go a long way so thanking the interviewer for meeting with you and following up with a thank you note will show how interested you really are. You could be up against several candidates and if you’re the only one to follow up and thank them, you’re already ahead of the rest.
Questions
Even if the interviewer has answered everything for you, ask another one! There’s nothing worse than being in an interview and not having any questions prepared or forgetting to ask something. Take in a list of questions and refer back to your notes when they ask you. If they truly have answered everything, at least they can see how prepared you were, but make sure you leave knowing as much as possible about the job and company.
Stand Out
How can you stand out – what is your unique ability? Winnie Hart of Twin Engine branding has a wonderful series of e-books to help define what makes you stand out. Whatever your unique skill set, ability, or qualification, bring it up as a topic of conversation to help the interviewer remember you.
Avoid Negative Talk
This one is absolutely a key point to avoid using negative language. Refrain from saying “I’m not” or “I can’t” and say phrases such as “I’m strong with” or “I can”. Also, avoid speaking negatively about a previous role or boss. Be truthful about why a role came to an end, however, do it with professionalism.
Infuse Enthusiasm
Be sure to show your enthusiasm about the role, the company, and the opportunity presented to you. Everyone wants to work with people who share the same excitement and passion about a project or product, so show your personality, and communication style. This is one of our core values here at Artisan Creative too.

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Avoid Doing These 6 Things During a Job Interview

Tuesday, September 13th, 2022|

Interviews necessitate that you make a good impression, however nerves or being unprepared can hold you back from presenting yourself in the best light. Here are six things to avoid during any job interview to ensure a successful conversation.

Being unprepared. Anticipate questions about your resume and experience, and have answers for the most common interview questions. Do your research to get an idea of company culture, products, and where your skills may translate. A quick search of the company’s website and social media channels will prepare you.
Being unprofessional. There are simple things you can do to solidify your impression as a professional. Arrive on time, say thank you, be respectful to all, and have a positive attitude. Dress professionally, and make eye contact. Turn off your phone and other notification so you can be present.
Discussing salary. Don’t bring up salary in the first interview. Only discuss it if the interviewer asks you about it first. Otherwise best to focus on the role and company culture and discuss salary in follow-up interviews. If you are working with a recruiter, they will have shared your parameters ahead of time, so leave the negotiation to your recruiter.
Being distracted. Let your friends or roommates know you are in an interview! Don’t get distracted by the chatter in the room. Pay close attention and listen! What is your interviewer asking you? If you’re not paying attention and either answer the wrong question or ask them to repeat it, you imply that your attention span or attention to detail is low. Show that you can follow directions and keep an open mind by simply listening. Listen well. Communicate even better by being concise, articulate, and to the point.
Putting down a former boss or company. Even if your former employer was a nightmare to work with, nothing will make you look worse than speaking ill about them. You also never know who knows who! If a previous job situation was truly terrible, practice explaining what didn’t work for you in that position in a positive way.
Being late. ABOT: Always Be On Time. If you don’t know where the company is, map it out before driving (or taking public transit or an Uber) so you know how long it’ll take to get there and can plan accordingly. Emergencies do happen, so if there is an outstanding situation for being late, like a car accident or a sick child, have `the hiring manager’s phone number so you can call and let them know what’s going on.

Good luck with your next interview.

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5 Steps to Building Resilience in Your Job Search

Tuesday, June 23rd, 2020|

If you’ve recently lost a job or are getting frustrated with the long application or interview cycles, a key attribute that will help you stay in the game is resilience. Studies have shown, that with the right habits and mindset, you can develop a more resilient approach to your job search. Here’s how to do it:

1. Reflect, Then Keep Moving

In the aftermath of a job loss or during a difficult job search, it is normal to experience sadness, anger, and loss. Acknowledging these feelings is the best way to move through and continue on. Avoid getting stuck in the past, learn from your previous experience, develop a positive mindset, and become more conscious of new opportunities and things to be grateful for.

2. Take Stock of Yourself

Now is the time to be a good friend to yourself and emphasize your strongest qualities. Gather evidence of your past achievements, think about the things you love to do and are best at, and do some research to discover what new avenues may be open to you in a changing marketplace. If you haven’t updated your online portfolio or your LinkedIn profile in a while, make sure they showcase your best work in a way that’s exciting and relevant. (This may make you feel more optimistic and become more resilient, too.)

3. Try New Things

A sudden job loss or a long job search can give you the needed time to build new skills or to experiment with new hobbies and interests. If you read books and articles about subjects you want to learn about, attend virtual events that look interesting to you, and get out of your comfort zone, you may find yourself drawn to fresh subjects and opportunities you didn’t notice before. Be yourself, make connections, and grow your grit. New experiences can help you put things in perspective and develop a more broad-minded outlook, which is powerful for building resilience.

Masterclass, Udemy, Creative Live, or General Assembly are great places to brush up on your skills or develop new ones.

4. Express Gratitude

Our inherent negativity bias makes it easier to dwell on the negative and ignore the positive. To become more resilient, refocus your mindset and go overboard with positivity for a while. When you make a daily gratitude list, or simply remind yourself to look for the silver lining in situations, you train your brain to notice the good things around you, which will make it easier to spot your next big opportunities.

5. Reach Out

Being independent doesn’t mean being alone. Your peers, mentors, and friends will understand what you’re going through, and many will be eager to help if you give them a chance to do so. Join online platforms, browse groups on Linkedin, Groupspace, or Creative Mornings can connect with your other likeminded individuals for collaboration, connection, and communication.

You can start by contacting Artisan Creative. We have experience helping creative professionals connect with amazing companies and tune into new opportunities in a changing world of work. Let’s keep the conversation going!

We hope you’ve enjoyed the 563rd issue of the a.blog.

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20 Remote Meeting Best Practices

Tuesday, April 28th, 2020|

By staying safe at home, and seeing nearly all interviews and meetings transitioning online, we wanted to share twenty remote meetings best practices we’ve learned over the past ten years of working exclusively as a remote team.

Whether you are having ongoing daily team huddles, interviewing for a new opportunity, meeting a client or prospect via video for the first time, it’s important to keep the following pointers top of mind:

Equipment

Ensure your device and headphones are fully charged or plugged in prior to your meeting.
Whether you are Zooming, using Facetime, Google Hangouts, or another tool, test your device’s audio and video connections before the actual meeting.
Look right at the camera when you speak. If you only look at the screen itself it’ll appear as if you’re not making eye contact with the attendees.
With everyone working from home, combined with homeschooling for many others, ensure that you are in a quiet place with enough wifi bandwidth.
Adjust your device screen to ensure your head and shoulders appear in the frame – don’t get too close or move too far away from the camera.
Be stationary and mount any handheld devices such as your mobile phone or iPad so you aren’t “traveling” with your device. It’s distracting and disrespectful.

Environment

Let your family or roommate know you’ll be on camera to avoid unexpected noise or interruptions.
Practice your on-screen time and record yourself if possible.
Adjust the lighting so your face is front-lit without any shadows.
Keep an eye on your posture. Adjust your lighting as needed.
Pay attention to your surroundings—especially your background. Select a clean, neutral, and distraction-free backdrop like a wall, a screen, or a panel of curtains. Close closet doors, make your bed and clean the clutter. If you are unable to do so, use zoom’s virtual backgrounds to create a branded look. You can find many examples on Canva.
If you are presenting or screen sharing, make certain you have a clean, uncluttered desktop and if needed, change your desktop wallpaper to something creative and professional.

Engagement

Confirm time zones in case you are meeting with someone in another state or country.
Speak clearly and succinctly. Use your voice, tone, and body language to communicate and connect. Use modified hand gestures as needed or gently lean in when making a point.
There can be a slight delay in communication, so be mindful not to talk over the other person.
Mute when not speaking (just remember to un-mute when it’s your turn to talk).
Dress and groom as if you are meeting in person. Working from home still requires being professional.
If in a larger gathering, become familiar with layout views so you can fully engage with everyone.
If you are making a pitch or presenting your work, have your portfolio or presentation loaded on your desktop to screen share as needed. Practice Zoom’s presentation tools such as whiteboard, and annotation to create a bigger impact on your audience.
Be friendly and smile while talking. It lifts and warms your voice, which helps you to connect with the group.

In 2009, we decided that the benefits of a successful remote environment outweighed the stresses of the daily commute. We love it and firmly believe in the life/work integration that being a remote company provides our team. If working in a remote setting is new for you, please check out this video and our additional blogs on the subject matter.

WE hope you’ve enjoyed the 559th issue of our a.blog

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