Deal-Breakers
Being late. Wearing too much jewelry. Avoiding eye contact.
We have all heard these alleged deal-breakers in a job interview.
I don’t think we can give blanket red flags. Every company has different core values, so the deal-breakers must reflect these core values.
For example, if someone admits they are not a morning person and punctuality is vital to their job – as in Dasher, where we operate a call center with strictly defined hours — that is a red flag. For a business with flexible hours, not a problem.
If you can’t write well, but you can be on time for a call center job, your punctuality is what we will prioritize.
What We are Looking For
We don’t rely on instinct in our hiring process. Trust me, your “gut” is usually terribly wrong.
I am always skeptical when a hiring agent says, “I love this person.” My question is: “Yes, but can they do the job?”
We operate based on a fixed set of questions, which ask for specifics and real-life examples.
For instance, we ask: “Tell us a time when you were fully responsible for a budget.” If the job-seeker says, “Never,” then we give them points for truthfulness.
If the candidate is a values fit, but not a technical fit, we will work to find another spot for them.
Sometimes, it may be challenging to gauge a job-seeker’s interest, but there are signs. For example, if they haven’t looked at our website, come late or don’t have a good reason why they want to work for Dasher, it will be a short interview.
Keep in mind, a job interview for a job is not only for the employer, but the employee.
I always tell job candidates, “You don’t just want a job. You want a great boss and an organization that intrigues you.”
When you realize what your priorities are, and if your values align, the welcome mat will be out.
Dasher is a data-driven, customer contact, services operation with a focus on communicating complex messages to diverse population. Specific capabilities include face-to-face communications provided by our field teams, customer engagement strategies provided by our call center and member engagement staff, and secure, complex variable mailing services provided by our production team. Dasher is an experienced minority woman disadvantaged business enterprise (MWDBE) with a bestselling book, “The Talent Pool” and is certified by AICPA with the SOC2SM Type2 data certification and validation.