Don’t let Zoom be your Doom
By Chad Chatlos, Managing Director at TurnkeyZRG
We can thank the pandemic for introducing the majority of us to Zoom and other video chat applications, so much so that I can’t remember the last time I was on a good old fashioned conference call. In our world, this has created the ability for us, our clients, and candidates to get face to face with each other without having to jump on airplanes to do it. This has also created a new challenge for candidates to get comfortable as they try to impress, educate, and make a connection with potential employers and search firms. We have been on over hundreds of zoom interviews over the last two years, and have seen really good ones...and some that were not so good. Here are some things to think about when you are interviewing for a role via zoom or other similar applications.
Make sure your set up is on point.
Good wifi connection
Great lighting
Camera set up - make sure you aren’t too close or too far away from the camera, and that it isn’t at a weird angle where the viewers will end up looking up your nose or at the top of your head the entire
Clean environment – no messy desks or clutter in the picture.
No distractions - people and pets in the background...we’ve seen it.
Dress like you were doing an in-person interview. Yes, that means top and bottom. We’ve seen some business up top, casual on the bottom appearances.
Try to make a connection with the interviewers. It will be hard to make normal “eye contact”, but you can do things like saying their name when you are answering their question. Try to make it as personal as possible. The goal would be for them to almost feel like you are in the room together and not talking via the computer.
Be careful not to fidget and/or have distracting movements. Example: We interviewed a candidate who had a standing desk and they kept swaying back and forth, which was very distracting.
Login around 3-5 minutes before your interview. If you have some problems connecting, that will give you some time to figure it out. You don’t want to come in too early as the interviewers may be trying to have some time together before bringing you in.
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ABOUT TURNKEYZRG
Founded in 1996, TurnkeyZRG is a highly specialized talent recruitment/executive search firm filling C-level, senior-level and mid-management level positions throughout sports, entertainment and media. Over the past 25 years, TurnkeyZRG has filled more than 1,400 positions throughout sports, entertainment and media. TurnkeyZRG helps teams, leagues, stadiums, arenas, theaters, college athletic departments, events, sponsors, agencies, media companies, private equity companies and other clients identify, recruit and hire the very best management talent. Turnkey now benefits from ZRG’s global footprint, full array of industry practice groups, data-driven, analytical search tools, and technology investment in changing the way executive search/talent recruiting is done. TurnkeyZRG becomes a tech-enabled disrupter of the prior executive search model. For more information about TurnkeyZRG, visit www.turnkeyzrg.com.