Would you cheat in an interview?

Should a recruiter give a candidate the absolute best chance of landing the Job?

Would you take all the help you could get to land the role?

Daft questions right? Or is it…

Sometime in the 80’s a recruitment guru wearing a big tie and pinstripe suit jumped on a desk, pumped his fist and shouted about the merits of ‘prepping your candidates’ for ultimate success! 

Ok, we can’t fact check the above but The Jobsocks research team are pretty confident it happened.

I mean, it makes sense, a recruiter gets the run down from a client. They know, exactly what they want, what’s important to them, what buzzwords to use, what p*sses them off and a whole lot more. 

Any top smashing recruiter is bound to pass this on to the candidate, giving them the inside scoop to win in the interview, get the job and secure said recruiter a nice big fat fee.

I mean, it’s always been this way since the 80s (probably) so what’s the problem…

Preparation Vs Influence 

Should a recruitment partner give a candidate all the facts and the best chance to succeed? 

Absolutely. 

Should they tell them what to say and hand them the interview cheat codes to land the job? 

We don’t think so. 

So what’s the difference and why does it matter? 

Well let’s give two similar but very different scenarios…

Firstly, imagine a candidate that is a great fit for a role is prepped with all the info they need to interview in an authentic manner and build genuine rapport. They demonstrate their knowledge and experience and really like what the hiring company has to say about the role and the future of the company. 

Secondly, imagine a candidate that isn’t quite right for a role but they’ve ticked enough boxes to interview. They’ve been coached on buzz words, systems to claim superior knowledge of and what the interviewer does and does not like. 

In both scenarios the candidate is made an offer. Great stuff!!! Or is it…

Short term wins Vs Long term relationships

In the first scenario it’s highly likely this candidate is likely to prosper in the role. It’s a good fit for both parties and hasn’t been unduly influenced by a 3rd party with ulterior motives.

The candidate, the client and the recruiter are likely to be happy in the short and long term.

Relationships, trust and integrity remain.

In the second scenario it’s highly likely this candidate will not prosper in the role for a number of reasons. Perhaps they’ve bitten off more than they can chew and aren’t at the level to achieve what is required of them. They may feel out of their depth and look to jump ship, or maybe the client begins to realise they are not at the level required and let them go. 

Here the candidate and the client haven’t had a good experience. Relationships will be stressed and the opinion of any recruiter will be diminished. 

The candidate and client might not be able to pinpoint why they feel disgruntled. The feeling won’t be great and the client will definitely feel they’ve had their fingers burnt if they believe people have crossed lines and they’ve ended up paying large fees with little success.

So what do we think….

Preparation is important for any interview and any recruiting partner should be able to give candidates all the information they need to succeed BUT with integrity. 

Whether you are hiring or a candidate looking to control your career, ensure your recruitment partner is not conflicted by fees and sees this as a long term relationship where they can add value and everyone wins.

Short term engineered placements will negatively impact everyone in the long run. 

PREP DON’T INFLUENCE :)

Have you ever unknowingly cheated in an Interview?

Where do you draw the line?