Episode 007: The Ideal Phone Screen

Given that these are the days of remote work, COVID-19 and Zoom call overload, talking about a phone screen probably seems a bit old fashioned, but for me, old habits die hard. I personally enjoy listening to a person without being distracted by their fashion choices or facial expressions.

On this episode of The Rebellious Recruiter with Daava Mills, I'm going to break down what I have found to be the ideal phone screen, and why it works. I started recruiting over 20 years ago, back when it was ALL done on the phone. Today, I'll be sharing with you what I have learned about getting a candidate to open up right away. 

Daava's Rebellious Recruiting Notes:

• Remember the fishing analogy from Episode 004? Here is your fishing rod in action.
• The goals of a phone screen are to get the candidate m interested in the job, build rapport, find out what their professional goals are, and determine if they are in the right salary range.
• Candidates typically ask the same set of boring questions over and over, like "What is a day in the life like", "How much does this pay?", "What benefits do you offer?", "What is the schedule?", or  "Why do you like working here?"
• I've learned to flip the script by first starting with pitching the company and the role, second allowing them to ask questions - no question is off the table, vulnerability counts here - and third, I would ask my questions.  Do a deep dive into the candidate so you know exactly what their skills are and look at your interview as a process of selling your company.

As always, you can email me at daava@millsgroupllc.com with your thoughts or questions or check out The Mills Group website. I may use your subject matter in upcoming shows.