This morning, I had the opportunity to interview a seemingly wonderful young lady. Lately, the interview routine has been a bit stifled with the requisite can't wait to start work and the inevitable it's Monday and I'm sick follow up. We are seeing a lot of good people these days, but at the end of the day, people will be people and interviewing is like playing paintball - the object of the game is to not get painted (too much, that is). So, we dance and lie and sprinkle in some truth to present a picture of promise.
Years ago, I ditched the traditional interview routine for one that assumes the person in front of me is not going to tell me everything I want to know and it would be best to simply try to learn a bit about the person in front of me. (We use staffing agencies to do the background and work history heavy lifting, so people should have already gone through some type of vetting process.) My hope is not only to put a story and face with a name, but get a feel for the person's personality, including likes, dislikes and general attitude.
I guess it could be argued that such types of interviews are unlikely to tell you whether or not to start a person. There must be psychological and statistical testing that you can apply to a series of questions to know whether or not someone is going to work out for a given position. Perhaps... Perhaps. I would argue that your rate of success - i.e. finding the right person - is going to be no better than following a basic background check process and throwing darts at the names of the resultant applicants. Given time, I would love to do the experiment and see what the success rate is (although, then we would also have to ask, what scenario implies success?).
In the mean-time, I have chosen to ask the question, do I want to work with you - why and why not? The way I answer this question is to ask people about themselves and what they do. What about you makes you, you? Some people naturally open up and others are quiet. Some keep me laughing and others make me look at my watch hoping for a quick end to this painful experience (by the way, usually a personnel/HR manager sees people all the time and going beyond one or two word answers can really help endear yourself towards that person). If the method is not successful (I really don't know, as I haven't tracked the statistics and I would venture that my gut reaction is going to be in my favor), it is at least interesting and even entertaining.
Today, however, was one of those days where the positive mannerisms and initial responses of the interviewee were not enough to overcome a grave issue that creates a negative undercurrent in our job market. The woman's primary language was obviously not English, as her thick accent gave that away. Not a problem. I actually like accents and it is likely that someone with one has an interesting story to tell as to how they ended up here, in southeastern Wisconsin. The problem is that besides the accent, there was a gulf in understanding between what I was asking and the responses I received.
What did you do in your last job? Was met with, yes...
No... um, what I'm asking you is what you did before you worked for ___? Smile... pause... yes...
Okaaayyy. Moving on.
I tried to find another way of phrasing the question and approached the question a few different ways a few sentences later. Sometimes by not getting a sensible response you find that there are other, easier ways of phrasing a question. We are not looking for PhDs here. A basic, I would guess, 3rd grade level of English is all that is needed. Where did you last work? definitely falls within that expectation.
The communication litmus test - a subtle component of my interview - was failed miserably. Despite having the positive mannerisms and cogent responses to my first series of questions, a simple question tipped the balance negative - and quickly. In my eyes, people who have been in the US for a short period of time, say less than a year, get a pass on not understanding a question like where do you work? If you have been here for longer, though, and don't understand, there is a problem There is a big problem. Basic communication skills - i.e. talking to your community member - forms the foundation of a successful life. (This is assuming you don't wish to live like a hermit in the mountains.) Too many people are content with the idea that there is no primary language in the US and to each his own. As far as what you do in your free time is concerned, I agree. The moment, however, you wish to engage in society, you need to be able to communicate. You cannot ever expect to progress without doing so. Perhaps you will get by, but progress towards something greater (which is why I assume you made the effort to come here in the first place), you will not. I feel sorry for people in this situation. Either they are there because someone lied to them and told them it was not important or they are too naive to realize the damage they cause themselves by not realizing how important basic language skills are to succeeding. There will always be those around who are biased or don't like you because of who you are, the way you dress, or how you talk. Bigots and idiots abound. But, without the ability to talk back and defend yourself, you can never hope to overcome this. Never. That is an opportunity dashed, among many others.
Last night I finally watched 
