Successful Job Interviews Come Down to a Simple Philosophy

All things being equal, hiring decision-makers hire those candidates they come to know, like, and trust. This is a simple philosophical concept that is pretty much a constant throughout the hiring process. It comes down to, “Do I know you and like you well enough to trust that you can perform as expected when hired?” 

In today’s volatile, technology-driven job market, outstanding resumes often get job candidates into interviews, but they don’t secure job offers. All things being equal, when choosing between competing candidates, employers hire people they come to know, like, and trust – and this only occurs in interviews. There, the human dynamics of verbal and, especially, nonverbal communications take over. It’s here, in this face-to-face collaboration we call an interview, where even the most qualified job candidates will falter if they do not come across as likable and trustworthy.  

To achieve this trifecta requires a new interview prep strategy (Refer to PARWCC’s CIC certification: https://parwcc.com/certified-interview-coach-cic/). It involves communicating the ultimate results one can produce while simultaneously demonstrating cultural fit and values alignment. And then there’s the skill of creating genuine likability, a skill that extends beyond rapport building. I’ve interviewed hiring managers who have, on rare occasion, hired candidates who were not the best candidate or fit. But no one has ever told me they hired someone they didn’t like. So elite interviewing means taking these three concepts – being known, liked, and trusted – and communicating and demonstrating these attributes at higher levels than their competition.

Communicating Results One Can Deliver, Generate or Produce 

First and foremost, companies hire people to solve problems and achieve specific results – trusting a job candidate can perform to expectation. A job candidate’s ability to clearly articulate what they can deliver, generate or produce in exchange for a paycheck is all-important. That’s the trust part – where potential employers gain a trust that a job candidate can meet and exceed their expectations. Employers need to envision and believe they will get a solid return on their investment in a new hire.

1. Speak to the Employer’s Emotions: Outcomes are key. Rather than focusing solely on duties and responsibilities from past jobs, it’s important to address outcomes because past results indicate future potential. Numbers and metrics documented on resumes and in interviews create tangible proof of one’s value, so the more precise the results are when presented in interviews, the more leverage one has at winning a job offer.
2. Tailor the Message: Seek first to understand the needs and goals of the company one is interviewing with, and then customize one’s presentation to address those needs and goals.  And the messages must be emotionally enticing.  It’s often called the ‘indispensability message’. It answers the question, what is it that makes you indispensable and highly valued? Like the movie, The Godfather, interviewees must communicate in such a way as to make interviewers an offer they can’t refuse. That offer is called the indispensability message. 
3. Provide Proof: Prepare specific, metric-driven accomplishments / achievements to provide real-world examples of results job candidates delivered, generated, and produced in the past. In reality, it is not storytelling, it is providing evidence of when and how job candidates contributed results in the past, that would indicate future potential. In most cases, this evidence – verifiable proof of producing past results – leads to building the trust factor. Ultimately, a job candidate’s objective is to leave no doubt that hiring them will deliver measurable, meaningful benefits to the company.

Demonstrating Cultural Fit and Value Alignment

An employee’s ability to produce results means little if they don’t mesh with the company’s culture and values. Cultural fit ensures that one will thrive in the environment and contribute positively to the team dynamics.  Company cultures vary widely, but some common examples include collaborative, innovative, customer-centric, purpose-driven, and inclusive cultures. Collaborative cultures emphasize teamwork and open communication, while innovative cultures encourage creativity and risk-taking. Customer-centric cultures prioritize exceptional service, and purpose-driven cultures focus on a company’s mission and values. Inclusive cultures value diversity and create a sense of belonging for all employees. 

1. Understand the Culture: Before the interview, job candidates must research the company’s values, mission statement, and recent news. It’s easy to browse their social media, seek out employee reviews, and study their website. Are they formal or relaxed? Innovative or traditional? Community-focused or bottom-line driven?   Dress codes, culture background, education, language, and appearance, are just some of the values-centered aspects that make up a company’s culture.
2. Uncover the Company’s Hidden Culture: A hidden culture and values system may exist… but are not readily noticeable or accessible. Perhaps management styles are different than what is noted on a website or even during the interview. Maybe a stressful work environment exists when the environment was initially introduced as low-key and easy going. Often, there is a discrepancy between what the company posts on the website, and how certain people in the organization actually behave. If one knows the name of the person they are interviewing with, they can Google that person and look for values-based intelligence to address in upcoming interviews. 
3. Ask Insightful Questions: Questions like, “How would you describe the company’s culture?” or “What traits do successful team members typically share here?” show one’s interest in fitting in and thriving within the organization. “How would you describe the ideal candidate’s values and character?” is another strong question.  When employers see job candidates as “one of us,” they feel safer and more confident offering them the job.

Building the Likeability Factor (Beyond Rapport)

While skills and fit are critical, likeability often tips the hiring scales. It’s about more than surface-level rapport; it’s about whether people feel comfortable with the job candidate, enjoy interacting with them, and believe working with them will be a positive experience.

1. Mirror the Company’s Language and Attitude: During the interview, use verbal and nonverbal communications that reflect the interviewer’s / hiring decision maker’s communication style. If the interviewer sits forward, job candidates should sit forward. If the interviewer doesn’t smile much, the job candidate shouldn’t smile much. If the interviewer is highly engaged or laid back, job candidates should replicate that style. Likeable is created by demonstrating personality and cultural similarities – not differences.   
2. Be Engaged: People naturally like those who show sincere interest in them. Job candidates must be taught and inspired to listen more during the interview; to be fully engaged. It helps to nod, smile, and respond thoughtfully. When job seekers demonstrate that they are paying attention and are fully present, that speaks volumes in tipping the likeability scale in their favor. 
3. Display Authenticity: Authenticity resonates. Job candidates must come across as reliable and believable.  This requires practice – mock interview training. It’s important that job candidates come across as confident,  poised, and professional – not rehearsed or robotic. Genuine enthusiasm is contagious and leaves a lasting impression.
4. Beware of the Twin Scenarios: Job candidates must be confident but not cocky, humble but not timid, proactive but not domineering, and they must demonstrate empathy but not weakness. Likeability often comes down to whether the interviewer thinks, “Would I want to work with this person every day?” The goal is to aim to make the answer an ‘easy yes.’

Tying It All Together: The Integrated Approach

Winning the job offer isn’t about excelling in just one of these areas. It’s about integrating all three into a cohesive narrative that answers the employer’s silent question: “Can I trust this person to deliver results, fit into our culture, and be someone we want to work with?”

The Coach’s Mission:

Prepare Thoroughly: Challenge job candidates to research the company, study the job description, and craft emotional communication that demonstrates results, fit, and personality. Practice articulating these without sounding rehearsed. There is no substitute for mock interview sessions to achieve mastery. 

Be Strategic: Early in the interview, job candidates must establish themselves as professional and credible candidates that can deliver, generate, and produce results worthy of a paycheck. Coaches help job seekers create specific strategies, tools, and priorities to ace interviews, because no two interviews are ever the same. Each requires its own tactical preparation. 

Simplicity is a Strategy: Interviewing, for most people, is uncomfortable at best, and terrorizing at the other end of the emotional spectrum. Public speaking ranks right up there, fear-wise, with death, snakes, heights, and being buried alive. So within the realm of interview coaching, keeping it as simple as possible helps job candidates focus on what really matters, in a confident and understandable manner. 

Conclusion

Hiring decisions are rarely made on skills alone. Employers hire those they know, like, and trust. By clearly communicating the results one can produce, demonstrating that they fit seamlessly into a company’s culture and values system, and by cultivating genuine likeability, job candidates make it easy for employers to say, ‘welcome to our company’.