Interviewing Tips: "What ELSE are you applying for?"

CHICAGO, IL - One of my most promising employees is interviewing a ton of candidates for a role in Chicago.  The job is content related, which puts it on the edge of our strike zone as recruiters.  In fact, we took the search because we wanted to get better at working with online content editors.

Don't forget, as contingency recruiters, it's our prerogative -- and occasionally we will stretch into strategically adjacent areas when we know the client is working with other recruiters and will not be harmed by our lack of experience.  Plus, we always maintain full disclosure with our clients.

So my colleague is interviewing a candidate who is an offline print magazine editor, and the candidate is insisting that he can do the job online.  He has no online experience whatsoever.  Yet my colleague is having a tough time regretting the candidate.  He talks a good game, and "he sounds like he could do the job," she says.

Hiring managers and new recruiters, please ask yourselves:  "What would this candidate do if he did NOT get the job for which he is applying?"

If the answer is anything other than "applying for another job just like it" -- then you know he is not the right candidate for the role.