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Step 5 - The Initial Interview

Last month, we covered the relationship between different objective assessments and how they relate to each other.  This month, we take that information and incorporate it into the Initial Interview.  I want to address two topics that will vastly improve the quality of your sales interviews:  multiple interviewers and drilling down. 

I have sat through many sales interviews and seen varied interviewing styles.  Interviewing style is simply a matter of personal preference and communication pattern.  The first key point is to have multiple interviewers simultaneously in the initial interview.  When I say multiple, I mean 2-4 people participating in the interview with the sales candidate.  Any more than that and you risk the appearance of being indecisive.  Besides, sales interviews are tough enough.  Placing an entire department across from a sales candidate creates an unnatural amount of pressure on even the most talented salesperson.

The EEOC recommends multiple interviewers.  The main reason is that it helps dilute natural biases that are present in every person.  An interesting validation of this effect is the points of data that different people will retain from the same interview.  This triangulation approach is effective at seeing the candidate through different perspectives.  A secondary benefit is that multiple interviewers help to create a natural amount of pressure for the candidate.  This pressure is consistent with selling.  You will be able to observe how each candidate handles eye contact, name recognition, communication clarity and many other facets of selling through this approach.

The second item I mentioned is the most important aspect of a successful sales interview.  All too often, I see candidates masterfully answer direct questions with indirect, or ambiguous, responses.  In some cases, they may even avoid answering the question by gently navigating to a different topic during their response.  Tactics for drilling down through this ambiguity is the topic of our Application in Action article this month.

Let me provide some background to this topic.  The “muddy the water” approach is a common tool in our society today.  You need look no further than a lead newspaper article or a top of the hour radio news update.  “Most people agree…”  “Some experts believe…”  These lines are effective at eliciting an emotion or influencing an opinion simply due to an unsubstantiated statement disguised as a truth.  Sales candidates will often incorporate a similar approach.

To combat this move, I like to ask questions pertaining to a candidate’s qualifying skills and approach.  Many times, what comes back is selling the company’s “value” to the “right” prospect.  The answer sounds impressive.  Yet, it does not begin to provide us with details about their technique for accomplishing this noble feat.  The interviewer must drill down further through the candidate’s response to discover if this is actually a skill they possess or an ideal they proclaim (but rarely accomplish).

A quick reminder – the goal is to put some pressure on the candidate in the interview.  If they have provided an ambiguous response to your question, interrupt them and reframe the question.  This technique will jolt them out of their pre-canned response and force them to incorporate specifics into their answer.  One approach to help you remember this point is to imagine that you need to provide a summary of the candidate's responses to a person who will not be present in the interview.  Do you have enough clarity and detail to describe the candidate’s answer to that person who did not attend?  If not, you best drill down on the candidate’s response before moving on to your next topic.

Next edition – Select and Develop

Click here for the next article - Drilling Down

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