Interview versus Communication Skills

    Every company owner would like to getthe best candidates – otherwise called ‘A’ players – for the job but only a fewtend to understand the strategies involved. Off course, you might have spenthours to screen dozens of applicants but the mind-touching questions are: howdo you tend to sieve the beans from the chaff – that is, judge the rightcandidate? Can a shy candidate be more qualified for the job? How do we drawthe diving line between communication and interview skills for specific roles?

     The fun fact is many hirers tend toonly employ people they consider professionals who cannot just relate with both their co-workers and customers both formally or non-formally andverbally or non-verbally but can actually impress them – basically withcommunication skills – when interviewing for the job. 
     There are two kinds ofpeople that apply for a job; Introverts – shy folks who do not find it easy totalk to other people- and Extroverts – friendly people who love being ortalking with other people. This shows that non-conventional approaches alsoneed to be employed when screening applicants for a job.

  Excellent communication skills areessential for an individual’s success in getting a job. Some communicationskills include but not limited to: Listening, friendliness (when responding toquestions), Confidence (when relating personal matters), Coherence. The way anindividual communicates goes a long way in boosting the credentials mentionedon his/her C.V.

    Interview skills are just ways andguidelines an individual follows when he/she is being interviewed; how heresponds to questions from just about any angle on why he should be given thejob; how he carries his/herself etc. Good Interview skills help to set anindividual apart as he/she has already done advanced research on the positionhe/she is applying for and has acquired in-depth knowledge of the company.

   Just about anybody –introvert orextrovert- can speak or communicate with another person whether male or femalecounterpart but interview skill, on the other hand, takes more than just beingable to speak. An introvert who prefers to be alone because he/she is afraid ofmaking a blunder or embarrassing him/herself will find it difficult to do wellin an interview. 
     This is interviewing can be very challenging even for the bestcommunicator as interview brings with it a feeling of anxiety and fear of whatis to come at the end of the interview. It can then be easy to imagine how an introvert who originally lacks confidence; prefers to engage in small talks;probably very prone to sweating as soon as he/she is uncomfortable will blow uphis/her chances in an interview.             Suffice to say almost all extroverts possessexcellent communication skills and it will be very hard to see one that wouldnot have impressive interview skills – it is what they live for as a matter offact.

      Asthe saying goes, a book cannot be judged by its cover. True, an extrovert willperform better at an interview because already he/she knows what it takes tostrike up a conversation or keep one going; has the personality to tie allmeasurable accomplishments together and create a strong character ofhim/herself in front of the interviewers but the hard fact is introvertsgenerally, tend to be brilliant individuals and cannot just be written offbecause of their tongue-tied nature. 
  Yes, only extroverts will be brilliant incertain departments of a company especially Marketing, Administrative andsecurity part of the company. But the technical and technological parts of thecompany can enjoy having introverts in this area. This is because thesedepartments do not require too much interaction with individuals and as aresult, their skills can just about speak for them.

     Interviews are not just about potentialemployees answering questions, it is also about asking them. Job interview for aposition in the IT department of a company does not need the interview panel toset about raining questions on the applicants. Instead, a short test and afurther practical test will do in such an area. 
    This is because an extrovert whois already confident in him/herself will blow the panel away when answering thequestions posed to him/her while an introvert who prefers to take a lesscrowded walkway just to avoid being in the crowd might not be able to convincethe panel and as all that glitters isn’t gold, a different candidate might besuitable for the job

   As a result of this, it is essential foremployers to consider the categories they want to employ applicants in beforemaking the interview. This will help the company reduce the number of geniuswho does not feel bold enough to A their interview and thus improve thecompany’s growth.