What's your thought on phone interviews?

[Shea Zellweger]

I'm sure most of you have seen studies that indicate somewhere between 75-95% of communication is nonverbal. It has been my experience that when speaking to people with whom I do not have a previous relationship, the telephone is the hardest. In person, I can read their body language. Via letter or email, they have a chance to organize their thoughts and elaborate in ways that are not as easy in live conversation. So it always kind of baffles me when someone schedules a "phone interview," and the few that I have participated in have included multiple awkward pauses and "crosstalk" as one is never really sure if they other person is done speaking or just pausing for a moment.

Do you have experience with phone interviews? What do you think of them?

[Roland Hearn]

Yup, you ave articulated exactly how I feel. I hate the phone for those reasons. Give me face to face conversation every time.

[Susan Unger]

I didn't mind phone interviews. My previous church was too poor to fly all the candidates in for an interview of pastoral candidates. But one member did have free long distance with a speaker phone. I thought, given the circumstances, things went well.

But then no interview [whether face to face or over phone] is perfect. One can't really know the candidate/church until one has been there a while.

[Shea Zellweger]

I didn't mind phone interviews. My previous church was too poor to fly all the candidates in for an interview of pastoral candidates. But one member did have free long distance with a speaker phone. I thought, given the circumstances, things went well.

But then no interview [whether face to face or over phone] is perfect. One can't really know the candidate/church until one has been there a while.

Susan,
how would you feel about a video-interview? there are plenty of free programs out there, and I'd imagine at least one person in the congregation has a webcam and highspeed internet. I would think with the availability of the technology, that's really the logical next step, and could be a great money saver even in those churches that can afford to fly all the candidates in. How would you feel about something like that?

[Ryan Scott]

Yeah, these days I'd probably insist on Skype, at the very least. I'm not great on the phone to begin with - it's a little easier if you can see people.

[Susan Unger]

Susan,
how would you feel about a video-interview? there are plenty of free programs out there, and I'd imagine at least one person in the congregation has a webcam and highspeed internet. I would think with the availability of the technology, that's really the logical next step, and could be a great money saver even in those churches that can afford to fly all the candidates in. How would you feel about something like that?

If we had known of such a possiblity 5 years ago, I think we would have liked it. At that time and in that place I don't know if anyone had high speed internet at that church. I know they do now.

[Jeremy D. Scott]

I can't stand the phone on a number of levels. Interviewing is one of them for sure. (Conference calls are another, but they're not as limited as interviewing.) For those who haven't been the one being interviewed in a phone interview, consider this: the single individual being interviewed is a lot easier to picture than the whole group of people sitting around a table together, seeing each other's reactions, facial expressions, etc. It's a very uncomfortable situation, and pretty unfair in using as the sole means of making a decision.

(Disclosure: I've only been subject to one phone interview. I "got the job.")

[Cam Pence]

you can do them in your underwear....that is until skype.....blasted skype :(

[Gary Creely]

I'm sure most of you have seen studies that indicate somewhere between 75-95% of communication is nonverbal. It has been my experience that when speaking to people with whom I do not have a previous relationship, the telephone is the hardest. In person, I can read their body language. Via letter or email, they have a chance to organize their thoughts and elaborate in ways that are not as easy in live conversation. So it always kind of baffles me when someone schedules a "phone interview," and the few that I have participated in have included multiple awkward pauses and "crosstalk" as one is never really sure if they other person is done speaking or just pausing for a moment.

Do you have experience with phone interviews? What do you think of them?

I think they have their place, and are very useful in that context. For instance it allows fo the exploration of a larger number of candidates. With a resume and a phone interview you should be able to do a pretty good job of weeding out the one you have no interest in. I would not call them a replacement for a face to face interview, but they certainly can help maximize your resources to only interview top prospects.

[Shea Zellweger]

I can't stand the phone on a number of levels. Interviewing is one of them for sure. (Conference calls are another, but they're not as limited as interviewing.) For those who haven't been the one being interviewed in a phone interview, consider this: the single individual being interviewed is a lot easier to picture than the whole group of people sitting around a table together, seeing each other's reactions, facial expressions, etc. It's a very uncomfortable situation, and pretty unfair in using as the sole means of making a decision.

This has been my experience as well. I've had a total of 5 phone interviews in my life, 4 of them church-related, and only 1 of the 5 was a 1-on-1 conversation. The other 4 were particularly frustrating for me because I'm talking to a large group of people who have just gone around the table and introduced themselves, and now I'm supposed to remember their names and what their voices sound like. I'm good, but I'm not that good. I got the job that wasn't church-related, had three rejections from churches, and am presently waiting to see where the last one goes. Something tells me I'm not a very good phone conversant.

[Norayr Hajian]

I'm surprised that no one thought of hosting a conference call to discuss this topic.

[Billie Goodson]

From a corporate standpoint, both my current employer and past employer conducted phone interviews. The phone was the first step and based on some initial questions asked/answered they moved to an on site interview. The phone interview really helped set the structure and expectations for the on site interview later. I see Jeremy commented on teleconferences also -- considering that I spend probably 6 hours a day in teleconferences, then a phone interview probably should have been a requirement. I could see the skype/webcam thing getting huge for churches with restricted funds. When we get to an entire service via webcam...that will be something else.

[Billy Cox]

I'm sure most of you have seen studies that indicate somewhere between 75-95% of communication is nonverbal. It has been my experience that when speaking to people with whom I do not have a previous relationship, the telephone is the hardest. In person, I can read their body language. Via letter or email, they have a chance to organize their thoughts and elaborate in ways that are not as easy in live conversation. So it always kind of baffles me when someone schedules a "phone interview," and the few that I have participated in have included multiple awkward pauses and "crosstalk" as one is never really sure if they other person is done speaking or just pausing for a moment.

Do you have experience with phone interviews? What do you think of them?

I have been on both sides of phone interviews.

From the point of view of the interviewer, the purpose of the phone interview is to evaluate verbal skill. Believe it or not, some people have a prize-winning resume but they can't talk their way through it.

I wouldn't want to make a hiring decision based on a video conference unless the job requires video conferencing. Most people appear wooden and lifeless on camera unless they have training in camera presence. I personally would be dubious about a company or organization that interviews by video conference in lieu of an in-person interview.

From the interviewee's point of view, I have come to appreciate the phone interview, especially in those instances when I was under time pressure to get another job. A phone interview can easily establish whether it is worth my time to get all dressed up for an in-person interview.

[Billy Cox]

I could see the skype/webcam thing getting huge for churches with restricted funds.

I'm trying to envision a church with *unrestricted* funds. ;)

[Tinker Boyd]

We interview people from all across the US so phone interviews are a necessity. Even as the interviewer I also want to be able to read the candidates body language. One thing that does seem to help is that we ask the candidate some friendly non-interview type questions at the very beginning to help them relax. Once they seem to relax we start the interview and listen to their voice. Do they sound bored, interested, enthusiastic, pre-occupied etc? We do bring in our top 1-3 candidates from there for in person interviews. I often wonder how many potentially good employees we've missed out on because they just couldn't get comfortable not being able to see us.