When you are attending a job interview, you are always told to be on your best behaviour.
What this usually means is that outwardly, you are expected to dress right for the interview and mind what you do and say. You are also expected to know your employer by understanding their market and what they do. And of course, you are expected to know your own stuff well.
In short, you are expected to approach the interview professionally because this is the time for you to impress the interviewers in a face-to-face meeting with them.
But professionalism at interviews should be a two-way traffic. You should expect nothing short of professionalism on the interviewers’ part as well.
I’ve known of occasions where an interviewer has been less than impressive. Once, I was told that an interviewer could not stop yawning. It was either a late night for him or the candidate was simply boring. Nevertheless, it was poor form to be so outrightly rude during the interview session.
You would also expect interviewers not to express their personal prejudices during interviews. Asking about your background is fine but passing unnecessary or unhelpful comments on your background should not happen. That’s unprofessional.
You may also have come across other instances of interviewers:
- Asking questions that are too personal;
- Posing questions that are unrelated to the position;
- Making an obvious personal invitation or suggestion to join them in some other venture or activity;
- Who have not prepared anything during the interview session;
- Who are rude, impatient and give the impression that they would prefer to be some place else.
The least you should do in such circumstances is to keep your composure. Do not over-react or be intimidated. Just stay relaxed and be focused. Take pride in your own professionalism.
About the writer
Quah Seng-Sun is the Content Manager at JobStreet.com, a leading on-line recruitment company in the Asia-Pacific region. .