Employers Reveal The One Thing Someone Did During An Interview That Got Them Hired On The Spot

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Via Tickld.com

Employers of Reddit were asked: “What is one thing someone has said or done in an interview that made you want to hire them on the spot?” These are some of the best answers.


But one guy said “Well…..I like enchiladas a lot…..and I have IBS….so I may rack up your toilet paper expenses”

Hired him on the spot, honesty and hilarity in one package. I figured in the very least he would be entertaining to work with.

MadameInternet

2. On the way to the conference room for the interview, interviewee instinctively picked up a gum wrapper off the floor and threw it in the nearest trash can. I just caught this peripherally, and he made no effort to show off his “insignificant good act.”

Honestly, I have never hired a single person on an impulse or based on something clever they said/did in an interview. It’s about qualifications and overall leaving a good impression. Trash-boy did get hired, and his simple act was really representative of him being pleasant and thoughtful. He also had several years experience in field.

I’ve been hiring for years, I do pick up on little things… sometimes a gum wrapper can distinguish one candidate from the others.

3lazycats

3. I never “hire on the spot”, as I always give some thought to the decision even when I’m very positive about someone.

However, I usually give screening tests to candidates. I had one young, inexperienced candidate that did not even pass the first screening question. Afterwards asked me to show him the correct answer and said something along the lines of “Thanks for showing me that I have a lot to learn.” I asked if he wanted some pointers & ended up lending him a book on the subject. A few days later I decided that that’s the attitude I’d like to hire and gave him the green light. Did not regret.

PoisonTaffy

4. One of my hiring questions is, “Tell me about a time you made a mistake doing a job. Tell me what happened and what you learned from it.” One girl said, “Well, this story is kind of gross and might not be what you want, but it’s what comes to mind right away.”

Then she told me about a time during her medical internship at a local hospital where she tried to prove herself to a skeptical doctor by taking a large dead body down to the morgue by herself, even though she had never gone down before and was supposed to take someone else with her. She was a tiny girl, but in good shape and apparently when she got down there she was supposed to move the body from the gurney to a slab (which is why she was supposed to go down with another person). She tried to move it on her own, but failed to lock the wheels on the gurney first and ended up on the floor, pinned under a large dead body for over fifteen minutes before anyone found her.

She said that from that she learned to follow procedures and to not be too cocky to ask for help when she needed it. I didn’t see how I could not hire her after that story. Because it was so genuine and atypical from the usual answers I heard for that question.

5. On a technical interview for computer stuff…

Me: if you come across a problem you’ve never seen before, how to approach it?
Soon to be new employee: I’d Google it.

This is the best answer. Most people go crying to vendors or support contracts before doing a simple Google search, and I find that offensive.

threeLetterMeyhem

6. We were hiring for a specific position and had arranged a number of interviews for it from pre-screened applicants. As we had to play with real people’s real schedules, we ended up with the strongest candidate (UC Berkeley PhD) going first. He did very well in the interview and it was kind of a given that we’d hire him.

This left us in an awkward spot with one very interesting interview of someone completely without a degree. However, there were budget restrictions so this was a long shot.

Meanwhile inside the company we had a fairly complex technical problem going on. Instead of just having a “hi… bye” interview with this other guy, we threw our complex problem at him about 24h before the interview. The [guy] solved it before the interview, and did it really quite brilliantly.

At that point I was willing to go to the ropes to get him.

Delheru

7. I was hiring for a graphic design position, and had a number of resumes on my desk. One guy had actually reached out to me personally through our website, and I just told him to email his resume to our job inbox.

We had just moved to a new office, and I posted a photo one morning to our Facebook page showing the new view off to our fans. That afternoon, he showed up at our office in a suit and tie, asked for the job, killed the interview and got it. He figured out the general area we were in from the photo, called the various office buildings to ask ahead, found us, and just showed up. 2 years later, he’s still there and doing an absolutely fantastic job.

kranzmonkey

8. I hired someone for giving me a dirty look in an interview.

Allow me to preface this by saying I really despise the interview process; I find that a person’s resume generally tells me everything I need to know and for me the interview is merely a formality to insure the applicant doesn’t have any personality or hygiene issues.

That said, I was hiring a desktop tech. I had a really stupid question that went something like “If I give you this, this and this piece of information would you be able to connect a PC to our domain?” The correct answer was yes.

Three applicants stammered and stuttered and said they figured they could but might need a little practice. The fourth applicant looked at me like I was insane but answered in the affirmative with no hesitation.

I hired her on the spot.

wizard10000

9. Post most of the interview, when we’ve turned to “Do you have any questions for us?”, the guy said, really matter-of-fact and not at all obsequiously, “Well, I’d like to know if there’s anything that we’ve talked about that has left you with doubts about me, so I can be sure you’ve got the information you need when you’re considering my fit.”

It was so simple, but so honest and effective because it was phrased as, ‘i want to help you be thorough’, but also quite self-serving because it got out in front of those doubts — we were immediately amazed that no one asks this. I’m never going to not ask it again (not that I’m looking, in case my boss has a line to the NSA).

hnice

10. Hiring for a programmer position and I decide to just Google his name. Turns out he also owns a Darth Vader outfit and puts it on to go visit sick kids in the hospital.

I hired him so fast it would make your head spin.

artformarket

11. He stalked me and found out my birthday was that week. Came to the interview with a cupcake from Georgetown Cupcakes and awkwardly sang me Happy Birthday in front of all the other interviewees.

I ended up firing him a month later for being terrible at everything.

skimble-skamble

12. I was interviewing people for a seasonal outside job, and I was doing the interviewing inside the marketing dept in an available office. This young kid with long hair, a spiked dog collar, upside-down crosses for earrings and a trench coat was my next interview and as we were walking to the office I was using, I noticed several marketing staff whispering and staring with shocked expressions at this kid. He walked with confidence and waited for me to sit down before he did, he was very polite and made excellent eye contact and gave me the best interview of the day.

When I explained that since this was a position dealing with the public and children and told him the earrings and dog collar would have to go, should he be hired, without hesitation he removed them and gave me this charming grin and I hired him on the spot and told him he was the most genuine person I had interviewed so far. He turned out to be one of my best employees and was hired full-time and stayed with me for 5 years.

astepUPfromperving

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BARRYSTAFF Issues Statement on Medical Marijuana

Although Governor John Kasich signed legislation earlier this month to legalize the use of medical marijuana, BarryStaff stands with many other businesses across Ohio in announcing its substance abuse policy will not change.

“We’re looking out for our clients and our employees when we say the use of marijuana is not OK,” said BarryStaff President Doug Barry. “We wouldn’t want an employee to be working under the influence of Vicodin. Medical marijuana is no different. If employees test positive, they will not work for BarryStaff.”

The Ohio Chamber of Commerce advocated for certain protections for employers – protections BarryStaff has embraced. As the agency states on its website, “The bill allows an employer to discharge, refuse to hire, discipline or take adverse employment actions against an individual with respect to tenure, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment due to the individual’s use, possession, or distribution of medical marijuana.”

Employers simply do not need to accommodate an employee’s use of medical marijuana.

Bob Dunlevey, an OSBA board certified labor and enforcement law specialist, said “Even if marijuana is prescribed by a physician to treat a disability recognized under the American with Disabilities Act and even if the marijuana is used during off-work time, these employees will be terminated for testing positive. It is not a violation of the ADA for an employer to refuse to accommodate the medicinal use of marijuana.”

BarryStaff puts clients and employees first. The welfare of both parties is of paramount interest to the company. These priorities ultimately reinforced its long-administered substance abuse policy.

BarryStaff Celebrates 1 Year in New Facility

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BarryStaff is pleased to announce a milestone in its commitment to the downtown Dayton area.

The company’s brand new 13,000 square foot facility opened June 1, 2015 on Webster Street. One year later, BarryStaff continues to work with local companies to supply industrial, clerical and permanent job placements.

BarryStaff is also the only business in Dayton licensed to screen travelers for the TSA Pre-Check program.

Ground was broken on the new facility in December 2014. The 32-year-old business is proud of its downtown Dayton heritage, having operated from three other downtown locations since 1982.

“Our new facility has allowed us the space to better serve our applicants and expand our services to our clients,” said President and CEO Doug Barry.

The Pam and Warren Barry Community Room also opened in 2015. To date, more than 50 businesses and organizations have requested to utilize the room for off-site retreats. With enough space for 80 people, white boards and an exquisite view of downtown Dayton, BarryStaff is proud to serve business professionals on its home turf.

Top 20 Best Summer Jobs

Top 20 Best Summer Jobs

Ideally, the best thing you can do is try to find an internship that’s related to your degree or passion. This is the best way to gain real life experience as well as having something terrific to put on your resume. In reality, however, you have left finding an internship to the last moment, and now you find yourself searching for a job that pays well without consuming your entire summer.

No matter what job you’re doing over the summer, never forget to network. Speak to people, ask questions, learn new skills, and most importantly, have fun. And if you think you’re too good for a summer job, think again.

Some of the biggest stars in the world spent their summer mopping floors at a local Dairy Queen (Gwen Stefani) or saved up some extra cash as a paper boy (Tom Cruise). Matthew McConaughey found himself short of cash when traveling around Australia (before he was famous) and took a job on a farm moving chicken manure.

Here are a few great summer jobs to consider:

Top 20 Best Summer Jobs

  • Sales (The skills you learn in a sales job will help you for the rest of your life.)
  • Post office worker (Great pay!)
  • National Park services
  • Camp counselors (Not great pay but accommodation and food is free.)
  • Resort or country club (Get paid to live by the pool.)
  • Tour guide
  • Restaurant staff
  • Web design
  • Tutoring (Be your own boss – great pay!)
  • Telemarketing (Can you sell? Are you a talented speaker? Telemarketers may annoy you but the good ones can make a lot of money.)
  • Campus jobs/Working in the labs (Check out jobs area in your university.)
  • Construction worker
  • Valet
  • Pet and house sitting
  • Writing articles for sites that will pay you
  • Convention worker (Is the boat show in town?)
  • Landscaping
  • Lifeguards
  • Dog walker
  • Barista

How to be funny at work without being a fool

Four tips on office humor.

1. Respect the room

It’s one thing to crack wise when you’re in the company of people you know and trust. When you’re in a room with people you work with, it’s a different matter. Make sure they’re willing to laugh before you try to make them do it, McClellan says. “For me as a comedian, people are coming to hear my thoughts – that’s my arena to express myself. In the workplace, ultimately, people are there to work. Some folks don’t want to be social with you on that level– they want to say ‘Hello, good morning,’ and go do their job. If you’re trying to be funny, people often don’t want to hear that from people they work with – it’s out of bounds.”

2. Know your crowd

Good comedians gauge their audience. Office comedians should, too. “When you’re in a comedy club, you have to read the audience – what are they going to let me get away with? You have to do the same thing in an office.” And while it might sound a bit passé, the best barometer of that is often the women in the room. “If you can make the women in the room laugh,” McClellan says, “then everything’s A-OK.”

3. Keep it real

Stuck for material? Try the truth, McClellan says. “That’s one of the great things about [Louis] C.K. The truth wins out in the end. And I think that’s the line – if you can say something that’s humorous but also true at the exact same time, people will give you a lot more leeway.” There’s a caveat here, though: If what you believe to be true happens to coincide with subjects like ethnicity, religion or gender, it might be best to leave it unsaid.

4. Pick your spot

“A lot of times people want to be that ‘funny’ guy, and I don’t think there’s anything worse than someone trying to be funny, someone who’s constantly ‘on,’” McClellan says. “People like a joke and they like to laugh, but you have to pick your spots.” A good place to pick as a worker? Somewhere off-site and after-hours. “People are letting their hair down a little more– they’re not confined by the walls of their workplace, either physically or mentally.”

9 Important (and Scary) Facts About Youth Employment

1. Still too high: Youth unemployment is at 15%, meaning nearly 6 million of America’s workers from ages 16 to 24 are not working and not in school.

2. Declaration of dependence: High youth unemployment leads to delayed marriages, depressed home ownership rates and an increased inability to move out of parental homes and establishing independence.

3. So why’d I even go to college?: The number of young people with college degrees who work minimum wage jobs has more than doubled in the past five years.

4. Seriously, China?: According to Dow Jones reporter Riva Froymovich, millennial workers should expect lower wages, less job security and a higher cost of living when compared to similar workers in China and Brazil.

5. I’d work more if I could: The number of 20- to 24-year-olds working part-time because full-time work isn’t available to them has doubled in the past decade.

6. Who pays for all of this?: Higher rates of youth unemployment lead to increased tax burdens for other workers, as governments forgo income tax revenue, Social Security and Medicare taxes and have to pay out more in welfare and unemployment insurance costs. It is estimated that high youth unemployment costs various governments $25 billion a year.

7. Sorry, we’re not hiring right now: Youth unemployment grew much faster during the recession for African Americans and Latinos.

8. Home, but not alone: The percentage of adults 24 and under who live with their parents rose 10% in the past five years.

9. HigherEdNotDebt: Student loan debt tripled over the past decade and is now more than $1 trillion.

6 Interesting Facts About Staffing Agencies

1)  In the current marketplace 13% of all labor is placed by staffing companies.

 

2)  80% of staffing clients say staffing firms offer a good way to find people who can become permanent employees.

 

3)  More than 10 million people worked for U.S. Staffing companies in 2015.

 

4)  Over 2 million people per day are employed by staffing companies.

 

5)  Staffing agencies are constantly hiring employees and doing the interview process even if they have no open positions.

 

6)  79% of staffing agency employees work full time, virtually the same as the rest of the work force.

 

Call BarryStaff today to see how we can help with your hiring needs!

5 Tips for Instant Interview Success

How to make a fantastic first impression.

When it comes to creating a list of favorite things to do, rest assured that interviewing (and maybe negotiating to buy a car) has never made the list. However, few things have as much impact on your career options as your ability to interview well. Like it or not, acing the interview is a must if you want to get hired. Here are five tips for interview success:

1. Show up in the office five minutes before your appointment time. Although that sentence looks simple enough, it has two powerful and often overlooked components: “in the office” and “five minutes.” This does not mean park five minutes before the interview or get in the building security line with five minutes to spare. It means walk through the office or suite door five minutes before your appointment.

While it is crystal clear why running late or cutting it close are not good strategies, the same goes for walking into the office more than five minutes early. Not every company has a huge lobby or waiting area. Arriving too early may mean that you are staring at the person who will interview you and have now obligated him or her to start your meeting earlier than planned.

If you arrive earlier than intended, hang outside the building or even in the bathroom before your ideal time. The extra few minutes will give you time to prepare and ensure that you don’t impose on your interviewer.

2. Do not, under any circumstances, bring a coffee beverage to the interview. I know it is increasingly common to walk everywhere with some sort of coffee drink in hand, but never bring one to an interview. While you may get lucky and the interviewer or receptionist may offer you a coffee or water at the office, do not bring your own beverage.

It is, however, totally OK to have a small bottle of water neatly stashed in a briefcase or bag out of sight. Interviewing is nerve-wracking, and a well-timed sip of water can work wonders for dry, pasty interview mouth.

3. Look great. For you well-dressed people, I’m sure you’re rolling your eyes at those two words, because you assume everyone knows that. However, after interviewing thousands of people for more than 20 years, I can assure you that the majority of job seekers are not fully aware of the impact of their image.

Having a great image does not require expensive outfits. It means selecting clothing, accessories, makeup and a hairstyle that command respect in your targeted industry. To portray this image, you have to think about the fit of the clothes, make sure they are wrinkle- and stain-free, look modern and are both age- and profession-appropriate.

Also consider fragrance, or lack thereof. A very light neutral scent, like baby powder or vanilla, can work well, but anything stronger could be an issue if the interviewer doesn’t have the same preferences as you.

4. Arrive prepared. Bring a pen, notebook or portfolio with paper, several résumé copies and a list of questions you would like to ask the interviewer. Many interviews start first with a request for your résumé. Removing a neat, unfolded version from your notebook is an excellent first step.

Next, all interviewers like to know that they have said something useful enough for you to write it down. Jot notes throughout the meeting, no matter how positive you are that you will remember everything. Writing not only tells the interviewer you value her input, but it also gives both of you a break from staring at one another. Furthermore, it can give you a chance to glance at the notes you prepared before the meeting regarding key strengths you want to reference or questions you want to ask.

Finally, remember to look up at least as much as you look at the paper. Writing notes is important, but active eye contact tells the hiring authority you are paying attention.

5. Have a conversation. The best interviews are a give and take. Come prepared to discuss the company, the role, your background, current trends in the industry, the reason for the opening and any recent business events that may impact the interviewer, role, company or industry. Companies want to hire engaged employees who have taken the time to learn about themselves and the roles for which they are applying.

Without this critical preparation, most interviews are merely one-sided exchanges in which the interviewer asks questions and the candidate responds to the question but cannot expand beyond it. The ability to have fluid conversation conveys preparation, intelligence, people skills, active listening and a commitment to your career. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to display these traits in the meeting.

Interview selection is more about how the interviewer feels about you than about how well you can do the job. That is not to say that you don’t need to be qualified – you do need to be in the ballpark. However, many highly qualified people get rejected because they do not clearly convey how they are an ideal (and likeable) match for the role. While it is important to display your business qualifications, it is even more important to create the right impression.

Securing an interview is a significant accomplishment. Make the most of the opportunity by factoring in these tips for an instant boost in your next interview.