The hiring manager liked your resume enough to call you in, and you thought you knocked it out of the park during the interview. You had the right experience and feel you gave the right answers. Yet, for some reason, you're not the one they hired when it came to that final round. If that sounds a little too familiar, you may wonder what you're doing wrong, and what exactly are Atlanta hiring managers looking for?
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Danielle Penninger, employment coordinator for Hyatt Regency Atlanta, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that when searching for talent, the company looks for creative and motivated individuals who are passionate about serving others and their community. She said, “It's all about personality and drive!”
While exhibiting your winning personality during your interview might help get your foot in the door, there are other things you can do that will help your drive and determination shine through.
Start with your resume
The first step toward building trustworthiness begins by building credibility in your resume. Rather than claim you have expertise, build a case to show you actually have it. As an example, show the credentials on your resume rather than claiming you are an expert in the field. While slightly exaggerating the duties of a previous job is somewhat expected, since hiring managers know you want to make yourself look good on paper, it should go without saying that putting false information on your resume is not only a way to not impress a hiring manager, but could even give you a reputation as someone who is untrustworthy and does not belong in your industry.
Avoid overselling
Although the interview is where you want to sell yourself to the hiring manager as the ideal job candidate, there is a fine line between explaining your skills and abilities versus raising a level of skepticism that you are "too good to be true." If you're asked a question that is hard to answer, give a straight honest answer rather than attempting to dodge the question by pretending you have knowledge or work experience in something that you don't really have.
Ask and listen
It may seem counterproductive to the interview process, but according to Harvard Business Review, asking the hiring manager for advice about the job you're applying for can make you seem warm and competent. When asking questions, show that you are interested in the hiring manager's responses by fully listening. Interviewees will often appear distracted because they are already concentrating on the next question they think the hiring manager will ask.
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