Make an excellent first impression on the phone screen, the first stage of the bona fide interview process. Knock it out of the park, so you become a front-runner going into further interviews. š
You have a phone screen! Just because the interview is a quick phone call doesnāt mean you can brush it off.Ā
Weāll focus on phone screens in this guide. Use our comprehensiveĀ Interview Prep GuideĀ for later-stage interviews.
Plan 2-3 ways youāre going to stand out on the phone screen. Someone will be the favorite - it might as well be you!
Plan to spend 2-3 hours preparing for every 1 hour that youāll be interviewing. That might sound like a lot, but we promise itās worth it.
Youāll have mastered the art of the phone screen when you pass 70% of phone screens. Set that as a milestone for yourself, and celebrate when you get there!. šĀ
For a particular phone screen, youāre ready when you can confidently speak to the following:Ā
What what the company does
Why youāre interested in the role
Who youāre interviewing withĀ
How you can add value to the organization
AĀ phone screenĀ is typically a 30-minute, 1:1 phone call with a recruiter or someone in an entry-level position. At smaller companies, you might talk to a hiring manager or a member of the team instead. Itās almost always the first step in an interview process.
The purpose is to check for high-level alignment between your experience and the companyās needs. They want to see if you are in the ballpark of what they are looking for and assess whether itās worth their time to invite you for the next steps.Ā
Many people donāt take phone screens seriously enough. Itās just a quick phone call after all, right? Not so fast. This āquick phone callā is the sole determining factor for you securing a spot in the next round of interviews. If you donāt do well on the phone screen, you wonāt land the job.
The fundamental steps to set yourself up for success are:
Do Your Research.Ā
Fully understand the role and show that you did your homework.
Prep your stories.Ā
Build out your cheat sheet of examples that address the job description.
Practice!Ā
Get reps under your belt with how you answer the phone, answer, and ask questions.
Scout a quiet location.
Ā Make sure youāve got a quiet place with great reception.
Letās walk through these steps in detail!
By the way, we know you have a ton on your plate right now as you navigate the job search, so we built the Placement App to track your pass rate for you. Easy peasy!
First, congratulations! When you have phone screens, youāre doing something right. šš»
Companies are looking to weed out people whose experience and presentation are most specifically relevant for the opportunity.
Just use ourĀ Interview Guide.Ā There, youāll find everything you need to know and specific walkthroughs to understand:
The Company Context
The Opportunity
The InterviewersĀ
Once youāre set with that, come back here for the next steps!
Phone screeners are trying to figure out if you have the baseline skills and qualities to do the job. They usually ask fairly broad questions to get a sense of your background, how you present yourself, and your enthusiasm for the opportunity.
At a basic level, you should be ready to answer the following:Ā
Tell me about yourself (stay tuned for our upcoming guide all about how to answer this question!)
How did you learn about this position?
Why are you interested in working at our company?
Why are you interested in this specific role?
What makes you an excellent fit for this position?Ā
What are your strengths?
What are your weaknesses?
What work have you done that directly relates to the work youād be doing in this role? youāre interested in the company and position (good thing you did your research!)
What does your schedule look like over the next few weeks for additional interviews?*
When are you available to start the position if you get it?*Ā
šŖ Get to Work:Ā To get started, practice the questions listed above!Ā Listen to your answers, putting yourself in the shoes of the recruiter. Youāll find lots of opportunities to improve - we all do. You can practice these answers right in the Placement app. You can also practice with a friend or with a Placement Career Coach. Getting specific feedback from people who care is immensely helpful!
If going deeper is helpful, take a half-step back right here and start with ourĀ Practicing for Interview QuestionsĀ guide. There, youāll find a deeper walkthrough of types of questions, the STAR method, and a breakdown of what to say.
* Youāll know you did an excellent job if and when you get asked about availability during the interview. Have a sense of your schedule over the upcoming weeks for further interviews. If they donāt ask, donāt worry just yet! You may well get the question via email after the interview is complete.Ā
Just about every interview ends with the interviewer allowing you to ask a few questions. Take advantage of this opportunity to learn more about the role and show them youāre serious about the position.Ā
Assuming youāre talking with someone in HR or recruiting, some great questions include:
Can you tell me more about the cross-functional teams Iād be working with?
What is the most important thing youāre looking for in a candidate?
What does the overall interview process look like?
If youāre doing a phone screen with a hiring manager or team member, youāll find 20+ ideas of questions to ask in ourĀ Interview Guide.
In the case youāre talking to someone at a 3rd-party recruiting firm, you might ask:
You have a valuable perspective as a third-party working with the company Iām interested in. How would you describe the corporate culture?
Do you have a sense of the timeline the company has for filling this position?
What do you see as the most essential attributes in an ideal candidate for this role?Ā
Itās also essential we cover what you definitely should NOT ask in an interview.Ā
DONāT ask too directly about the process:
Do you plan to move me to the next step?
How many people are you interviewing?
These kinds of questions put your interviewer in an awkward position. The interviewer will rarely provide you with a meaningful answer, so it is better to spend your time on other topics.
DONāT ask the salary range upfront:
What is the salary range for this position?
How much can I expect to make in this role?
Focus on selling the company on your value before you talk numbers. There are exceptions to this rule, but in general, you donāt want the company to perceive you as being primarily concerned with compensation.
DONāT ask directly about promotions:
How soon can I be promoted?
What promotional opportunities are there for people in this role?
How easy is it to transfer internally?
These kinds of questions distract from the companyās decision of whether to hire you for this role. You can ask some inquiries along these linesĀ afterĀ you have an offer, but not before.Ā
DONāT ask things that a quick Google search can answer:
What is it like to live in Atlanta?
Where is your company based?
How many employees do you have?
These kinds of questions might do you more harm than good. You want the interviewer to perceive you as genuinely interested in the company. Asking simple trivia questions might indicate that you havenāt done your research.
Interview day should be significantly less nerve-wracking if you are well-prepared and have done your research. Even after all this prep, there is still more to learn. But donāt worry, weāll give you our formula for success.
Scout a quiet location to take the call. Make sure you have good cell service and privacy. Turn off notifications on your phone and your laptop so you donāt get pinged during the call. Make sure youāre 100% focused on the conversation youāre having.
Sometimes, people answer the phone in their ānormalā voice, and as soon as they realize itās an interviewer, they turn on their āstageā voice. #awkward. Instead, answer calls from unknown numbers with, āHi, this is [insert first name]ā and say it in an upbeat, friendly voice.Ā
Actually, smile when you say it. People can feel your smile through the phone, and emotions are infectious. :)
Youāre talking to a human being, and you want to build a human-to-human relationship with them quickly and elegantly.
Find an opportunity to build rapport in the first couple of minutes of the conversation. InĀ Practicing for Interviews Guide,Ā youāll find examples of friendly ways to kick off the exchange.Ā
Letās take a look at a quick audio clip of how to kick off a phone screen by building rapport with the interviewer. Hereās the scenario:
Elise is starting a first-round phone interview. Her goal is to build a rapport with the interviewer personally before the more formal questions begin - listen to how she skillfully does that.
Companies tend to hire people who show a lot of enthusiasm about the opportunity. If your voice tends to be a little downtempo, monotone, or nasal-y, thatās OK. Just make sure that you practice sounding warm and smooth in the first couple of minutes of the call. Opening with a friendly tone works wonders and sets the tone for the entire conversation.Ā
Otherwise, doubt will creep into the interviewerās mind that youāre potentially not that excited about the opportunity, and theyāll be more likely to pick someone else to move forward with.
A perk of a phone screen is that you can have notes in front of you without the interviewer knowing. What a relief!Ā
Have your cheat sheet open with a few bullet points to jog your memory. Donāt, please donāt, really please donāt, let the interview feel like youāre reading from a script. It feels transactional to them, which reduces your chances of moving forward.Ā
Keep a notepad nearby to write down any next steps mentioned or things you want to reference in your follow-up email.Ā
Thank the interviewer for their time and reinforce your enthusiasm about the role at the end of your phone screen. Here is an example of a strong close:
āIāve so thoroughly enjoyed our conversation today. I can honestly say it increased my excitement about joining your team. I know my background in product design for early-stage companies will allow me to hit the ground running here. Thanks again for taking the time to talk, and Iām excited to hear about the next steps!ā
After you end with your positive, enthusiastic close, donāt hang up the phone. Let the interviewer be the one to hang up the phone first. It can come across as abrupt if you preemptively hang up on them, so stay on the line until theyāve left the call.Ā
Just because this is so important, weāve created an audio example so you can hear what it sounds like to close strong. Hereās the scenario:Ā
Before hanging up the phone, you have one last chance to win over the interviewer. Hear how Elise ends on a positive and enthusiastic note with her closing comments.
If you follow this playbook and put in the time, you are guaranteed to win interviews over the long run. Put your best foot forward by researching the company and the role, practicing common interview questions, and applying our secret formula on the interview day.
Almost nobody passes every phone screen they participate in, so donāt worry if some donāt go your way. You only need one great company to say yes to succeed in your job search!
Research the company and the role youāre interviewing for
Research the person who is interviewing you
Prepare your responses to anticipated questions
Find a quiet location with strong reception for your interview
Always answer the phone in a friendly, confident tone
Kick-off the conversation by establishing rapport
Maintain enthusiasm throughout the interview
Prepare any notes youāll need to have in front of you during your interviewĀ
End the conversation by restating your excitement and reinforcing why youāre a great fit