E mail detail and how to handle itAfter a month of being out of a job, I finally have a new position (not gained through Monster.com, but it was a valuable resource). Instead of being the interviewee, I'm now the interviewer as the program director of a soon to be launched radio station. Tomorrow I get to interview my second potential hire, and it's someone with whom I worked at my last job. We had a cordial relationship; we weren't best friends or anything, but we got along well when we did work together (he was part time, I was full). His resume shows a lot of relevant experience and education since he left my previous company, but I'm concerned about the e-mails he sent me responding to our company's job posting. They indicated enthusiasm and interest in the position, but some of them really could have benefited from spell check and grammar revisions. I'm not sure if I should bring up those e-mails during the interview; while I am familiar with his work and he seems gung #### about working for us, if his correspondence shows a lack of attention to detail for whatever reason, who knows how that may spill over into his duties. How do I broach this subject? Unfortunately, this person likely just overestimated the amount of "personal capital" that he has with you. The positive side is that he is networking with you offline to increase his chances of getting hired. REALLY smart move. The negative side is that he let his personal relationship overshadow his professional one and he really screwed up by sending sloppy emails.... SO for example, A HUGE part of my professional life is technical writing AND I am darn good at it. But on this list I don' t give a rats butt about spelling and only a tiny bit more to grammar. this is my slangy talk spot. But as far as your question, 3 thoughts. 1, Yes, bring it up. It is important that he recognizes that you pay attention to such detail. Express your concerns as bluntly as you did here in your post. I always have held that typos in a cover letter are not a "kiss of death" but I always bring it up in the interview if the candidate does not (they usually do with great groveling and angst). I' d say something like: "I am familiar with your work and you seem gung #### about working for us, but I am concerned that your correspondence shows a lack of attention to detail for whatever reason. I want to be assured that this inattention to detail won' t spill over into your duties. Can you explain the sloppiness in your emails and how can you assure me it doesn' t reflect your attitude towards work?" 2. You need to decide if writing is important to this position. If he is the copy editor for advertising then I would think twice. If he is a sound board engineer, you might not care if he can spell. 3. If writing is important and you have doubts having him do a writing sample (i.e., write a press release or respond to a customer complaint) Make sure he understands that grammar and spelling are important to the exercise (of course you would have to give the same test to all candidates you interview). Personally, I wouldn' t bother addressing it with him in an interview. He' s going to give you some line about how he didn' t realize or didn' t think it was important. That' s not going to help you. If he was my current employee that I inherited and discovered this issue, I' d coach him into classes or whatever was needed to get him up to snuff. This guy isn' t even your employee. This situation says that he not only lacks attention to detail and doesn' t have a good grasp of spelling or grammar but that he lacks in judgment to not recognize that and at least have the good sense to clean it up when dealing with his would-be employer. In my book, I' d take him out of the interview queue and move on. You can do better. If he asks for feedback on why he wasn' t hired, (and your HR department doesn' t mind you giving it), you can tell him that his written communication was substandard and that he should improve on that for the future. You don' t say what the job is, that would make a difference for me. There are a lot of jobs that don' t require spelling or grammar. As far as his attention to detail, you say you are already familiar with his work. How did he do? Consider, better the fool that you know, than the devil you don' t. That was the argument in favor of Gerald Ford and look what we got instead! The only reason, I' d consider the dope is because there is some personal capital involved. And that personal capital counts for something. AND that personal capital allows me to dope slap him during the interview. I' ll say it again, depending on the job, spelling might not count. This is a program director at a radio station hiring some sort of staff. This isn' t a construction worker we' re talking about. This is some sort of "professional" in a communication medium. You either know how to communicate verbally and in writing or you don' t. Do you want him sending that sort of email to the owner of the station? Do you want him sending that sort of email to your customers? He represents you and your company. Trust me, you can do better. | |
|
Career Tips
|