COM 2301: Interview Analysis

July 20th is a very hot day in your community. You are not looking forward to working, but you have to hire someone to fill a vacancy in your legal department. There are four applicants waiting in the lobby. You can see them through your window although they cannot see you. You make the following observations:

· Candidate A is wearing a blue and white dress. She is focused on her phone and seems to be playing a game. She is relaxed, has her high-heel shoes off, and has her feet folded in the chair. She seems startled when Candidate C comes over to speak with her. When you interview the candidate, she is clearly knowledgeable about the field but speaks with a lot of slang and has short answers. She seldom makes eye contact.

· Candidate B has on a suit and seems to be multitasking. He moves papers around in a briefcase while speaking on the phone. His papers fall on the floor at least twice. He smiles at Candidate C when she picks up his papers and introduces herself, then returns to his phone conversation. He seems to be a bit distracted during the interview but mostly gives polished and rehearsed answers. His resume is impeccable.

· Candidate C is wearing a suit. She checks her phone and then puts it down and turns to assist Candidate B, whose papers fall on the ground. She introduces herself to him, and they shake hands before he returns to his phone conversation. She walks over to Candidates A and D and introduces herself, and you notice that she is wearing sandals. She is very personable during the interview. She clearly does not have much experience but asks many thoughtful questions.

· Candidate D looks relaxed in black pants and a green shirt with a matching tie. He sits by himself, reading from his phone without looking up at the others. He seems reluctant to speak to Candidate C when she walks up to him. He has the most experience of all the candidates and delivers very professional answers during the interview. He does not smile once during the interview.

Part 1: Choose one of the four candidates to hire. Write a short summary describing the verbal and nonverbal communication as well as the listening skills of the candidate who caused you to choose him or her over the other candidates. Compare the effectiveness of using nonverbal communication skills versus verbal communication skills in this situation. Feel free to make up interview details not given above as long as they do not contradict the given information.

Part 2: Write a “bad-news letter” to one of the four candidates described above. Your choice does not matter, but the goal of this assignment is to inform the candidate you select that he or she did not get the job that he or she interviewed for.

Prepare for the assignment by researching business letter format, tips, and tone. The required unit resources and suggested unit resources for this unit are a good place to start, but do not let those limit your search or the format you choose. Begin with an introduction, and perhaps thank the interviewee for his or her interest in the position. Always start with something positive. Then, move to the bad news—let the candidate know that he or she was not chosen for the position. Immediately follow with something positive, perhaps encouraging the person to apply later. Feel free to add details that are not included in the scenarios above.