Impressing the Administrative Assistant Should Be Part of Your Interview Strategy!
A recent survey by OfficeTeam confirmed what we in the career business have known for a very long time – Diss the Assistant and you may not get the offer.
Job seekers should know that in addition to impressing hiring managers and other key decision makers they meet during the job interview, they should make a strong impression on administrative assistants who are the major gate keepers into organizations.
According to the survey, more than 60 % of executives said they consider their assistant’s opinion important when evaluating potential new hires. Why wouldn’t they? Execs rely on their Assistants for other things, so why not this?
I go a step further and tell job seekers to not only be nice to the Assistant as office etiquette demands, but also be courteous to parking attendants, security staff or facilities crew. In fact it is safe to be nice to everyone you meet; you never know who is in these roles.
I met a business owner at a conference once who shared with me that he and his father run a small auto supply company and were interviewing for a new sales representative. Before an interview, his father was in the lobby of their company wiping up a coffee spill. One eager job seeker literally stepped over his father’s hand to get to the receptionist’s desk. When the receptionist said, “You almost stepped on him.” The job seeker said, “Why don’t you guys do cleaning at night anyway?” He didn’t get hired.
In the Office Team survey, executives were asked – “How important is your assistant’s opinion about the job candidates you interview for positions at all levels?”
Check out the responses here!
Do you think “soft skills” don’t matter? It’s just about having all the right KSA’s? (Knowledge, Skills and Abilities) If you can do the job then you should have the job, right? Wrong.
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