The Evaluation Interview

This book not only provided expert subject matter, it also provided a lot of good templates/resources to take advantage of. Whether you are seasoned interviewed/recruiter or just starting in the process, this book will put in the right direction of the true interview.

This is an updated version of an old book about interviewing techniques. It is reasonably up-to-date, but it takes a rather quaint view of the hiring process. It assumes that a typical company has a large and politically powerful human-resources department which has been given vast amounts of time, staff, and resources to engage in a fastidiously objective hiring process. It also assumes that a company's management actually knows what the firm's future personnel needs are. Most unrealistically of all, it assumes that HR and line managers actually communicate with one another. Even in 1968 when Chiron & Fears wrote the first edition of this book, this was a pollyannaish viewpoint. In 2003, their assumptions add up to a ludicrous fantasy.The heart of the book is a detailed explanation of a methodology for conducting structured hiring interviews. It also covers yearly perfomance reviews and related topics. The authors frankly describe how to create an illusory rapport with the interviewee while homing in on the character flaws which might make him or her unfit to hold the job he or she is interviewing for. The flaws the authors think you should be particularly worried about are laziness and stupidity.It is a useful book for anyone who has to do hiring interviews, even when the company is trying to cut corners in the hiring process. It is even more useful for the interviewee, because after the reading the book, you have a better idea what the person on the other side of the desk is looking for. (By the way, the authors tell interviewers to AVOID sitting on the far side of a desk.) It is worth buying the book just for the discussion of the dreaded "strengths and weaknesses" question. You should admit to a weakness while proving you don't really have that weakness. A good weakness to admit to seems to be "I don't work hard enough"--- assuming you can convince the interviewer that you are in fact a workaholic.I have taken a sarcastic view of this book's content, but it is well worth reading and contains many excellent suggestions. Although I personally don't agree with many aspects of Chiron and Fears' methodology, I do think the business world would be a more humane place if more companies used a similar methodology (or just about ANY methodology) to evaluate job applicants.I gave the book a 5th star for actually being readable and entertaining (unlike most management books.)

This books leads you through the application process from the employer viewpoint. It shows you where to, what to consider and how to circumvent traps. It doesn't provide you with worksheet-like lists where you can make crosses to evaluate the candidate.