Interviews

it's that time again of the year when we line up people for interviews as part of our staffing program. in front of me are CVs of 5 shortlisted applicants--- in manila. yes, i've conducted interviews of people in manila thru internet. this is how we've been doing things for the past years.

there's much lost when you interview via conference call, even if there's webcam. the eye contact, the involuntary gestures which means a lot to an interviewer, and the curve of the lips when they smile, their attire, the sweaty palms, the train of thoughts when the line gets so choppy, etc.... so these aspects, we have to leave in the able hands of our manile agency who shortlists for us.

as i interview them, i've to up my antenna in terms of other aspects in liue of the personal connection. so i am more conscious of their wordings, their stammerings, and the consistency of their answers after numerous rewordings of the questions.

i love asking them the perennial question of "what makes you the best candidate for the position". i love the resolve, the self-salestalk, the promises which i know would be broken someday. there are times too that i learn a lot from their experience, and from the industry the've worked on. you just don't realize the valuable information the interviewer gets from all of these ;)

more often than not though, i am the one who gets lost in the interview, specially when they start telling their tales when i ask them "why would you like to come here to the UAE". i know it would always be financial reason, but the reason of their lack of finance varies from pole to pole, and that's what would usually captivate my ears! i would be drawn to stories of big families trying to make both ends meet, to candidates left to fend for their own, to hate tales of being victimized by swindlers and fraudulent agencies, etc.

my filipino boss has always been asked to get staff from other nationalities, especially when the partners know that we are having problems with our pinoy staff not finishing their contracts. but he has kept with his policy of "one filipino staff coming here, means one less needy family in our country". very noble, yet most would forget that and the other bold statements they have said during the interview, a few months after......