On the other side of an interview – from the lens of a Leader

If you are looking for tips to be successful in your interview, let me disappoint you right at the beginning. ?

Now let me tell you what this blog is actually about. ?

We have read articles about a candidate’s experiences with interviews, but in this article, my attempt is to break down the thought process of a leader before he or she conducts an interview. ?

Let’s get started. The success of any team depends on how good each team member is and how great they are all together. Assembling a high-performing team is a responsibility that falls squarely on the shoulders of a leader.?

Hence, a leader discerns qualities beyond qualifications to identify the right candidate. A leader is looking for 3 qualities – 1. Skills; 2. Experience and 3. Personality.?

Possessing the required skill set and experience for any role is a requirement at the bare minimum. Beyond those, a leader also focuses on some of the points listed below:?

1. Candidate’s understanding of the role being interviewed for and the company’s vision and mission.
2. The individual’s alignment with the culture of the team and the organization.
3. Communication skills. Often confused only as the speaking skills with complex vocabulary, but in reality, it includes active listening, comprehending, acknowledging, and articulating the responses in a clear and concise manner.
4. The individual’s ability to solve problems, right from understanding them to identifying multiple practical alternative solutions.
5. Emotional intelligence by assessing his or her self-awareness, empathy, and ability to handle conflicts constructively which contributes to a harmonious work environment.
6. Integrity is also one of the key parameters as it is impossible to make a team credible and reliable without its members having strong moral principles.
7. The eagerness to learn and the ability to develop their skills that contribute to the scalability of the individual as well as the team.?

As hiring goes far beyond assessing qualifications and experience, a leader must carefully scrutinize candidates during interviews seeking qualities that align with the organization’s values and culture, and contribute to a high-performing team. A leader’s ability to identify the right skills and attitude and nurture them further allow an organization to propel towards sustained success.?

Ironically, in an interview, the interviewee whose goal is to make a long-term career is short-sighted and focuses on pleasing the interviewer in one hour, whereas the interviewing leader focuses on how suitable the interviewee is for the organization and the team in the longer term. Lastly, if you do not get selected for an interview it is only a failure of an alignment between you and the role you are being interviewed for, but it is not necessarily your failure. Choose an opportunity that suits your skills, experience and ensure that you possess the needed personality traits to work for the organization and the team. All the best!

Ganesh Voolla serves as the Chief Compliance Delivery Officer at Ivy, boasting a tenure of nearly two decades with the company. He was working as the Chief Product Officer overseeing Payments and Compliance before transitioning into his current position. Prior to joining Ivy, Ganesh garnered extensive experience in international financial markets and telecommunications. Ganesh has been playing a vital role in upholding product compliance with relevant regulations across the various markets.