Random Musing during the COVID19 lockdown!

Over this COVID19 lockdown period, most folks have been forced to work from home and adapt to video meetings and interviews using tools such as Zoom and Microsoft teams.

Via personal observations, I have discovered two critical points: first point made the experience better, improved and memorable; second point was for my personal amusement. I have chosen to share both points of view.

I have, for want of a better word/phrase labelled these points:

1. Online Etiquette
2. Online Personality

Online Etiquette:

I have observed, using both platforms (Zoom and Microsoft teams) that the following etiquette would make for a pleasant and more fruitful online interaction

• Strongly encourage all parties – team members, candidates and interviewers to test out the meeting link and their equipment well in advance of the interview(s).
• Instruct interviewers and hiring managers that phone interviews are a back-up IF AND ONLY IF the video feed is simply not working.
• Try to avoid using the computer for the video part and the telephone for the audio part. They rarely sync-up and there’s a high probability for awful sound-feedback.
• When scheduling back-to-back/sequential interviews, it’s OK to use the same meeting link for the whole interview set. Just be sure to let the interviewers know to join the meeting at his/her respective time, but not early. Candidates ask questions towards the end of each session and if you show up early, you’re likely to interrupt the flow.
• 5) Dress like it’s in-person, which includes wearing real pants (not just sweats!).
• As a meeting convener, always assume all users have not used these technologies prior – send a user manual/link and FAQ.
• Let Hiring Managers know that phone interview are the final option (last resort to be used in a case of technology failure) and video interview is the standard now.
• Try to avoid using the computer for the video part and the telephone for the audio part. They rarely sync-up and there’s a high probability for awful sound-feedback.Try to avoid using the computer for the video part and the cell phone for the audio part. They rarely ever sync-up (especially when calling internationally) and make for the probability of awful sound feedback.
• When scheduling back-to-back interviews, it is acceptable to use the same link for the whole interview set but with a caveat – just ensure the interviewers know to join the link at their set time and not earlier! Candidate usually use up their allotted time by asking question, hence an early candidate joining will most likely interrupt the process flow!
• Be well groomed! Dress like you will, to go to a meeting (not just a formal shirt on top). Your attire has a way of affecting the meeting or interview mood! (lol…not an exact science).
• Deal with pets, kids and spouses before the meeting or interview begins (cannot be over-emphasized)
• Considering the circumstances, you will need to continuously remind Hiring Managers that hiring decision maybe made without physically meeting candidates! This helps to create a paradigm shift and keep Line more focused on the process!

Hey Folks, what more can you add to the list?

Online Personality (Zoom/Microsoft teams):

In my interactions with friends, colleagues, candidates and even family, I have observed the following online personalities:

• The Distracted One: Focused on the news on the big screen or television
• The Busy One: On social media via his/her phone
• The “Lazy Bones” One: Log unto the laptop in bed, disheveled hair and still dressed in PJs!
• The “Criminal” One: My personal favorite - of a colleague who is always backing a window with sunlight coming in and literally looks like (s)he is having her/his mugshot taken (you cannot quite make out his face)!
• The Vertical One: Using her/his phone on vertical mode!
• The Librarian: typically uses his bookshelf as background – possibly to give the impression (rightly or wrongly) that (s)he is an avid reader!
• The Drinking One: Usually will go through a pot of tea/coffee or a bottle of whatever before the session is done! Yes! You all know who you are…
• The One Outside: Typically my friends in warmer clime who want to show off their gorgeous lawns..lol!
• The Virtual Backgrounder: This is a nice way of saying you cannot quite make out the background of the colleague in a virtual meeting!
• The Noisy One: Those colleagues that you always need to mute!
• The Corner of the screen: Colleagues who choose to be situated in the corner of the screen – I have had a colleague situated on the top right-hand corner of his screen!!!!
• The Ones with Pets: Cats on screen, barking dogs, yes…we have seen them all!
• The Walker: Sometimes we need to get up but a team member walking around in a zoom or Microsoft teams call can be very distracting!
• The One with Family Cameos: This usually would bring some welcome distraction to sometimes tense meeting, especially if its kids. Spouses in underwear maybe very embarrassing!!!

Please feel free to add to the list – this is just a not-too-serious write-up to help us all get through the enormous pressures of this period!