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Phone interview in two days
Mike Danger
"Diane..."a place both wonderful and strangeRegistered User regular
"Diane..."a place both wonderful and strangeRegistered User regular
Well, much to my surprise, not only has a job application panned out, but they want to phone-interview me (with the possibility of an in-person interview later, which is something I'll worry about when it comes to it). The job is a junior systems administrator position and -- this is the weird part -- it's only supposed to last 15 to 20 minutes.
In my experience, interviews tend to be quite a bit longer. What should I be expecting going into this? (The job requires Windows experience, understanding and basic knowledge of TCP/IP, experience troubleshooting/installing peripherals, experience w/ customer service and communication, experience w/ HTML and CSS (I have all of these) -- the preferred qualifications involve experience w/ Windows Active Directory (I don't have any), experience w/ Mac OS X, Linux, iOS, and Android (I have all except Android), and experience w/ IPv6 networks (all I know about IP I learned in a networks course I took).)
In my experience, interviews tend to be quite a bit longer. What should I be expecting going into this? (The job requires Windows experience, understanding and basic knowledge of TCP/IP, experience troubleshooting/installing peripherals, experience w/ customer service and communication, experience w/ HTML and CSS (I have all of these) -- the preferred qualifications involve experience w/ Windows Active Directory (I don't have any), experience w/ Mac OS X, Linux, iOS, and Android (I have all except Android), and experience w/ IPv6 networks (all I know about IP I learned in a networks course I took).)
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"Our DNS server is having issues, we can't get to google.com but bing.com works fine, how would you fix that?"
"How would you assign a secondary IP address to a NIC that already has a static IP so that you can connect to two networks on a single card?"
Even if you don't know the answer walk them through the obvious stuff you'd check, things like that, then offer up that you'd research further with colleagues and online resources if you can't find the answer.
Also never google shit on a phone interview, we can hear you typing.
Like @bowen said, there might be a couple technical questions to see if you have basic knowledge of what they want. I've also asked questions that are more about figuring out if you sound like a bullshitter or if you're straight forward and honest (like asking questions about stuff you may not know, and seeing if you'll own up to not knowing and talk about how you might learn about it or find the answer).
Also, saying "I don't know that system, but I'd be excited to learn it, it sounds similar to x" is a good answer to something you don't know. Sysadmins google the crap out of things in their job, so as long as you aren't dumbfounded or bullshitting, you're fine.
Keeping a notepad handy is useful, even if you just use it to jot down the interviewers names. You might want to fill a page with some stuff you might not normally remember off the top of your head (Command prompt commands including ping, tracert, and the like) maybe the 7 layer OSI model. Basically a cheat sheet (as Bowen said, they can hear you typing. It's a lot harder to hear you read), if nothing else the review should make you feel more confident and relaxed.
If possible, take your interview in a room away from your computer and your TV where you can still get good reception. If it's not possible to avoid them, turn them off. Background noise is obnoxious, and the computer is a temptation.
Personally I like to dress nice for a phone interview, like I would for a real interview. Seems to keep me in the "Business" frame of mind rather then the "Personal call" frame. It's probably stupid to do, on the other hand I've got a job now and I didn't 2 months ago.
Look up some online tutorials for Active Directory so you're at least familiar with what it looks like and basics of operations. It's pretty straight forward for the most part.
If it's an HR person interviewing you (which it might be for a 15-20 minute phone screen), forget that they are HR when you are answering any technical questions. This is for a couple reasons - First, they have probably memorized what the correct answer is supposed to sound like from previous people they've interviewed. Second, they're taking notes on what you say that will get run by a technical guy anyway. Never talk down to an HR person in any way - a phone screen is to weed out the unqualified but for many positions they also get rid of the people with no interpersonal skills at the same time.
Like bowen and see317 said, never google anything on the phone. It's super-obvious. Don't be afraid to admit you don't know something - anyone who's interviewing would rather hear that than bullshit.
Prepare in advance a list of several questions you have about the company, the team, or the position. For a short phone screen you probably won't have a chance to ask more than one, but if they ask whether you have questions you should have at least one ready to go.
I tend to find a quiet, pleasant place to stand, like a window with a nice view. It helps (me) to remain standing throughout.
This.
Also smile while talking. Weirdly, it's noticeable over the phone.
Very good advice. Smiling will help keep your voice sounding upbeat. It sounds silly but it makes a difference, especially over the phone where there are no visual cues for the other party to see.
@see137 is totally right though - your arm gets pretty cramped when you have to sit and hold the phone like that. I have a cheapo bluetooth headset somewhere, which I'll probably be using in the future.
Glad to hear it went well.
As far as the headset goes... make sure the audio quality is good (I only mention this because you said "cheapo"). Wouldn't want people to have to ask "could you repeat that?"