Unannounced Phone Screens/Interviews

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So you've applied to many jobs in the last few days and have started getting calls back. How do you handle the calls that come in while you're going about your life minding your own business (i.e. shopping, cleaning, driving, etc)?

Personally, when I receive a call from an unknown #, I assume it's from a company I've previously applied to. And I treat the follow-up call as a phone interview; if I'm not in the place and state of mind to conduct a phone interview, I won't answer, not even to tell them to call back. I feel that once I picked up the phone, I'm giving them my first impression.. better to give them your best possible first impression which is very difficult when you're caught off-guard. If they're calling to schedule an interview, they'll likely leave a message and/or use email.

I take a deep breath, compose myself and take the call. We are in an employer's market and all they have to do is just call the next number on the list, not call me back to 'schedule' a future time to call.

I always answer it because having to call them back would cause me so much anxiety that's it's better to just answer it when they call. This isn't the best strategy though because I have terrible phone etiquette and I don't think I come off very well.

For instance, I mess up right away:

Me: Hello?
Them: Could I speak to Samwise?
Me: This is Samwise. (haha writing this I almost wish my actual name was Samwise)
Them: Hi, this is so and so from some place you applied to.
Me: ... Hi.

I don't know how I'm supposed to respond to them telling me who they are but they always leave a space there. I usually just say "hi" again or maybe "mhmm" to try and make them keep talking. It sounds awkward even to me but my only other thought is "oh hi, how are you?" but that seems too personal for someone I don't know plus I hate that question.

Anyway, I wandered off topic, sorry.

I have limited experience, but in the interview process, it should be highly improper for a prospective employer to call and try to do an interview on the spot. They might call to schedule a phone interview, but to try and catch you wherever and do it then is really being rude. It would be correct to ask them to schedule a day and time that works for you when you aren't already engaged in another activity that is distracting you.

oh, my goodness! An employer is not being rude by calling the number left for just that purpose on a cover letter stating exactly why you feel you should be the one called about the job. Employers want to know if you can think on your feet, answer important questions when you are under daily stress and how you handle interruptions in your day.

when there are 50 resumes on your desk culled from the 500 received just for that one job that is available - answer that call. Let them know you are in the middle of your life, but you feel this call is the most important in your world (at that moment).

At the risk of being tiresome and boring, I have lived though a couple of recessions. The operative word here is 'lived through.' I have nothing but experience to share.

your mileage may vary.

I am sorry, but to call anyone and expect an interview on the spot is R-U-D-E. No debate.

Every time I ever had a phone interview, I was contacted by some clerk who asked me if I was still interested in the position, and that person set a date and time for me to expect the person doing the actual interview to call.

To call a person off the cuff and expect that they are just sitting there with references and resume at hand for an interview is the height of either insensitivity or arrogance. I'd refuse a job from someone who did that to me as I'd see it as representing the kind of work environment I'd be subjected to (my time and needs not being respected). If I was so desperate for work as to tolerate such crass conduct by a prospective employer, I'd already be working at a fast food joint in town.

Hello,

I picked "answer and tell them to call back/reschedule" - though I would actually have asked for a scheduled callback. There's quite a bit of difference.

Sinsboldly is absolutely right in that we need to accommodate employers who call us, especially in the market as it is now (and I suspect is going to stay that way for at least the majority of 2010). Like sinsboldly, I've lived through multiple recessions.

At the same time, zer0netgain has some good points: some employers do behave crassly, and crass behavior in the interview process is a strong warning of bad stuff to come. I've been treated quite unprofessionally by a few employers, including two separate employers who called me after 3:30 and left messages demanding callbacks no later than 5 that same day. Both times I was at work, so when I got home each time I called back that night and left a voicemail. I was eliminated both times - and both personnel people actually lied to my face about when I had called back.

Employers do expect the phone number we give them to be valid for contacting you. And unfortunately, some employers won't leave a message or won't give you much in the way of callback time (see above). On the other hand, most decent employers understand that at any given moment you could be fixing lunch, cleaning the bathroom, paying your bills or whatever.

If I recognized the number, I would answer the phone and if it was a prospective employer I would let them know this was not a good time, and ask what time they would prefer to talk. That way, I'm not letting the employer interrupt what I was already doing, while I am making it clear to them that their convenience is important to me.

(If I didn't recognize the number, I would wrap up what I was doing quickly, then check the voicemail as soon as I could. Using either the voicemail or the Caller ID [together with an online search to match the Caller ID with a name], I would call back and then do the above.)

That said, if it's just a couple of quick questions like "Are you still at...?" and "Are you still interested in this position?," if your focus-switching skills allow you may just want to take care of that on the spot. Assistants sometimes make quick calls like that especially if the job has been vacant for some time, before passing candidates on to their bosses.

Keep in mind that in America, the folks who are paying (or potentially paying) money expect those offering (or potentially offering) goods and services to cater to their wishes. Sinsboldly is also right in that some employers (like with customer service jobs) need to know how well you think on your feet and handle interruptions; in that case, make sure it's a job you can do well.

SamwiseGamgee, when a company calls you, you might try asking "Good morning/afternoon to you, how can I help you?" That's a good professional greeting when you're not already sure what the other person wants.

What do you think?

PS: Sinsboldly - I like your avatar! (I also like the match between your nickname and your signature slogan.)

And also, I've been receiving quite a few calls for jobs I'm not very interested in such as Insurance Sales, Manual Labor, or miscellaneous shady companies possibly running scams, far more than replies from jobs I'm actually interested in.. not worth pulling over on the highway to answer. Besides, I can also run a Google search before calling back.

My phone # may be listed on my CV but so is my email address.. so both are fair game as methods of contact and if one fails, it doesn't take too much effort to try the other. Maybe a slight majority of employers, if failing to contact me by phone, will leave a message AND sent a short email.

Every time a potential employer has called me for a phone interview, they have asked me if I'm in a position to talk at that moment. As sinsboldly said, it's an employers market and I usually make time to talk to them then unless there's a real reason I can't.

Of course the HR department will make the initial call, and rescheduling is always an offered option. I was approaching the question of once made the offer do you take the offer and reschedule, or does one take the call then and there?

That is the question I was pondering. I strike while the iron is hot, or I lose momentum.

This. If I am with a student, I will apologise both to the student for the interruption, and to the potential employer for being unable to talk, and I will ask if there is another time to talk which is convenient to the employer.
Once I'm at the top of my field, I will be able to discuss potential work on my terms. Until then...