Telephone Interview Tips

Telephone Interview Tips (from eklavya.mba.blogger)

I had googled this tips before a telephone interview of mine....The key is to stay relaxed...If you are tensed (like I was for ISB ..duh ! ),the adcom can sense it in ur voice. Remember, your nervousness will be reflected through your speech tone.One must appear confident. If you end up speaking fast...it'll be a situation like "let me get over with this".

Call up some call center folks and notice how they speak...They give pauses ....They speak slowly so that the person at the other end can assimilate what you are speaking....The best part about a telephone interview is that you can be in ur PJs and give the interview. The worst part.-You might be speaking passionately about a subject assuming that the person at the other end is following what you are saying..instead the guy is busy playing tic tac toe:)

Use a good quality phone card if you are expected to call.I would suggest calling up some Hyderabad number (even it is some lost friend !) with the same phone card that you'll be using for the interview to make sure that the quality is good. It is just an attempt to play safe.

When I had a mock interview with Bharani,he recorded the whole conversation and sent it over to me...Listenting to it gave me a feeling that I sounded stupid.
I counted the number of 'Aahs' and 'Hmms' and filler words like ' well' , 'to be honest', 'I guess' . There were many !

I have this strange behaviour that when I talk to an American I speak at a slow rate....When I talk to an Indian, the speaking rate is the normal (which is fast)..When I speak to folks from SE Asia, the rate is painfully slower.
Based on my experiences, Iam of the opinion that the speaking rate does matter.
Others can definitely add their inputs.

And DONT record your final interview with the adcom....The more you hear it, the more stupid you'll feel. :)

All the best...and just do it !

Anyway, here are the tips......

-Treat the phone interview as you would a face-to-face interview.

-Select a quiet, private room with a telephone in good working condition.

-Conduct a mock telephone interview with a friend to gain feedback on your voice quality and speech.

-Before the interview, prepare talking points for the call including value you bring to the school and questions that you will ask.

-Arrange the following items: your resume, cover letter, copy of application, highlights of school information and brief talking points.

-Breathe deeply and relax. Speak slowly, clearly and with purpose.

-Smile, it changes your speech and the person on the other end can sense it.

-Write down the full names and titles of each call participant.(if possible)

-Take notes when appropriate.

-Be courteous and try not to speak over the interviewer.

-Support your statements with detailed examples of accomplishments when possible. It is easy for someone to get distracted on a phone call, so paint a vivid picture to keep the interviewer interested.

-If required take any pauses in your speech to ponder a question or take notes.

-If you think of a question or comment while the interviewer is speaking, jot a note on your talking points list, so you remember it later.

-During the interview, if the interviewer inadvertently answers a question from your prepared list, cross it off. If you forget and ask it, it will seem as if you were not listening.

-Offer to provide additional information or answer other questions.

-Use your talking points list of specific skills and accomplishments; cross them off as you work them into the conversation. At the end, if you have some uncrossed items, you might say something like, "I thought you might be interested to know I led a major conversion project, quite similar to what you are planning. I managed a $2.5 million budget and completed it 45 days early, saving over $48,000."

-Before ending the call, be sure you know the next step in the process, and offer to provide any additional information needed.

-Do not hang up until the interviewer has hung up

Courtesy: http://eklavya-mba.blogspot.com/2005/02/telephone-interview-tips-i-had-googled.html