What does it take to pass a job interview?

AW618

Doshwaster said:

soraya55 said:

I am okay at computers even being "old" I am pretty up on Word, Excel and Powerpoint and can pick up new systems fairly quickly but yes you are correct if there is a choice between a candidate in their 40's who will most likely be set into a certain way of working or a malleable 20 year old that a company can mould into whatever they are looking for then they will go with the younger candidate.  Ageism will always exist unfortunately...

It can be difficult but you need to make age and experience an advantage. A 45 year old with 25 years experience of "basic admin" doesn't look very attractive compared to a 21 year old fresh out of college but it is unlikely anyone would employ a 21 year old office administrator  or facilities manager as they would be looking for someone with more maturity.

Someone with more maturity who has, in the 25 years they have been working, moved on from the bottom rung of the ladder.  You don't need 25 years of basic experience to move up.  You need a handful.
If you haven't moved up in 25 years then you had better have a good reason why.  Or the assumption they will make is that you are not capable.  A 21 year old might be capable.

AW618

Emmia said:

AW618 said:

soraya55 said:

I am okay at computers even being "old" I am pretty up on Word, Excel and Powerpoint and can pick up new systems fairly quickly but yes you are correct if there is a choice between a candidate in their 40's who will most likely be set into a certain way of working or a malleable 20 year old that a company can mould into whatever they are looking for then they will go with the younger candidate.  Ageism will always exist unfortunately...

It's not that they are malleable,  it's that in 25 years you have not moved on from entry level jobs.  If they take the 20 year old they might get someone who will add a huge amount more to their company.  They might not, of course. But they know you won't.

I'm not sure this is entirely true - the odds are though, that whether you are or are not fixed in your ways, the employer may be working on the basis/supposition that older applicants = inflexible

Not inflexible, just not much cop at their job if they haven't progressed in 25 years.  They would hire a 45 year old Finance Manager without worrying that they were inflexible, because that person has progressed.
There are absolutely sound reasons for preferring young people for entry level jobs - the clue is in the name.

scaredofdebt

Interviewers basically want to know three things about the candidate, this will vary with role and level but in essence:

1.  Can you do the job?  Are you qualified with relevant experience etc.

2.  Will you do the job?  Motivation, sickness records etc.

3.  Will you fit in?  Are you going to be able to get on with the other team members?

As someone who has interviewed people, what I am looking for at interview stage is mainly if the person will fit in with the team they will be working in.  I am also going to check that their CV is accurate and they haven't lied.

I already know from their CV/application if they can do the job so the interview is more about will they do the job, ie motivation and will they fit in, ie personality.

The problem is there could be several people who tick all the boxes and so the interviewer has to pick who they think the best candidate is, you might lose out as another candidate has slightly more qualifications, a bit more experience or is younger or older etc.  

You also might lose out as a candidate knows the interviewer or someone who works for the company already, it happens!

eamon

At least the OP is getting interviews so there must be something positive in the CV/Application that is getting them to interview stage. That would sort of discount any ageism theories. It would then boil down to the fact that there has been at least one better/prefered candidate.

Savvy_Sue

scaredofdebt said:

I already know from their CV/application if they can do the job so the interview is more about will they do the job, ie motivation and will they fit in, ie personality.

Oh if only ... I've managed to interview people who must have claimed on their CV that they could use Office etc, but they then couldn't seem to complete a simple practical exercise! 

I do agree about the 'fitting in'. I haven't been involved in interviewing for a few years, but I remember last time that one of the applicants was just SO bubbly and enthusiastic, it may have been nerves, but they'd have driven me round the bend in half an hour! Whereas the person we appointed was a bit of an outside chance from their application - no direct experience of the kind of job we needed doing, but skills needed picked up in other ways - and they were quiet and not that confident, but gave good answers. 

Doshwaster

"Fitting in" is especially important in small teams where, even if someone is good at their job, if they a pain in the !!!!!! to work with then that affects everyone else's happiness and productivity which can lead to good people leaving. That's not to say everyone on the team should be the same - you need a balance of personalities and diversity of outlooks can be useful. 

Sandtree

Doshwaster said:

"Fitting in" is especially important in small teams where, even if someone is good at their job, if they a pain in the !!!!!! to work with then that affects everyone else's happiness and productivity which can lead to good people leaving. That's not to say everyone on the team should be the same - you need a balance of personalities and diversity of outlooks can be useful. 

It can create an interesting dilemma... someone who is absolutely amazing technically at what they do but you want to punch them in the face each time you see them or someone who is fairly good but will fit in well.

Have worked with a couple of brains on legs who were basically kept in a dark room on their own as they didn't play well with others but their skills were too important to lose.  Works with senior people but more challenging at lower levels.

soraya55

Thanks for all your replies, I just want to say when I say I am looking for basic admin jobs I am also looking for office manager jobs too.  In my last job I was kind of the office manager though i had a different title. I did training and arranged everything as well as all the invoicing etc so it is not was though i am consciously only looking for junior entry roles, it is just that i am applying for anything even junior roles if they are local.
On the point of my CV i never specify my age or put my really old jobs on there so they cannot really estimate my age. I am not sure if this is good or bad!!

Doshwaster

Sandtree said:

Doshwaster said:

"Fitting in" is especially important in small teams where, even if someone is good at their job, if they a pain in the !!!!!! to work with then that affects everyone else's happiness and productivity which can lead to good people leaving. That's not to say everyone on the team should be the same - you need a balance of personalities and diversity of outlooks can be useful. 

It can create an interesting dilemma... someone who is absolutely amazing technically at what they do but you want to punch them in the face each time you see them or someone who is fairly good but will fit in well.

Have worked with a couple of brains on legs who were basically kept in a dark room on their own as they didn't play well with others but their skills were too important to lose.  Works with senior people but more challenging at lower levels.

Depends on the type of business. In large organisations it is easier to put someone in a dark room in the basement and let them get on with their job - and this is very common in Universities where you find a lot "special" personalities who would never get a job in the "real world". Not so easy in smaller companies and startups.