Hire Me
Thousands of freshly-minted college graduates are hitting the job market at the same time employers are struggling to find workers. In one respect, it sounds like a match made in Heaven. But if a survey from intelligent.com from the beginning of the year is any indication…employers aren’t thrilled with what they’re seeing.
One of five employers surveyed said today’s college graduates are unprepared for job interviews. Not that they haven’t done research about the company and the job…their social skills are lacking. For example, 53 percent of college graduates struggle with eye contact during an interview. Probably because this age group is always looking down, at their phones. In addition, 47 percent of employers say the employees show up for the interview dressed inappropriately, while half say the prospective employees are making unrealistic salary demands. And 27 percent of employers say the employee used inappropriate language during the interview.
Many interviews these days are done via Zoom, to save time and costs. But 21 percent of employers say they have had an interviewee refuse to turn on their camera for the interview. I had a U.S. Senate candidate once turn the camera on before we began the live interview, then turn it off while the interview was taking place, only to turn it back on to say good-bye. I presumed aides were slipping her notes, or that she didn’t want me to see she was reading from notes. She did not win the election, for what it’s worth.
In the job interview setting, perhaps the interviewee turned off the camera so the employer couldn’t see mom and dad helping out…after all, this survey shows that 19 percent—nearly a fifth—brought a parent to the job interview. Not just to give them a ride…apparently brought them to the actual interview.
Long ago, I used to tell college students that if you dressed nicely, acted polite, knew something about the company, and presented yourself well—that was the minimum for a job interview. Then I had to change that to say that if a prospective employee did all those things, they’d be well ahead of others. These days, those minimal skills might lead them to be head of the company in the first year.
