5 Top interview tips to determine if candidates are telling the truth
You’d think that when going for an interview people would consider being honest vitally important. But sometimes in their desire to get the job they’ll expand on the truth a little and overstate their experience or skills. It may come from the viewpoint that there’s no harm in this, especially if the person is willing to learn and is a quick study. But is it reason enough to overlook the fact that they’re not being 100% honest with you?
If honesty is a core value of your business, then here are few tricks and tips for when you conduct interviews to determine if candidates are expanding on the truth.
- Start the interview with really easy conversational questions. This serves two purposes. It helps the candidate relax and it also gives you a benchmark for seeing how they act when they are more relaxed. Few people can remain relaxed when they are not being truthful.
- Watch their body language throughout the interview, if they suddenly start to act differently, fidget or break eye contact, that’s an early warning that they may not be telling the full truth.
- If they are claiming accolades, such as being responsible for organizing a product launch or achieving sales targets consistently, subtly ask for more information. Ask them to talk you through how they achieved it, what were the biggest challenges and what did they learn from the experience. The details will show a truer picture.
- If you feel they avoided giving a direct answer to a question or gave a half answer and then diverted to another topic, find a way to ask for the same information two or three more times in the interview. But phrase the question differently each time. This will either uncover the truth or the fact that they’re hiding some important information.
- Ask them what they feel their success story is in previous jobs, and then follow that up with why they left. Most people are prepared for this question and will have an answer ready. Linking it a success story will help determine their real reason for leaving.
Now while it is true that skills and experience can be learned, honesty is still very important. It’s not that you want to trip up candidates, but rather think of it an opportunity for them to be honest. If you communicate this clearly during the interview, you might find they respond positively, and then you won’t be needing any tricks to uncover the truth.
