Hiring managers have seen some interesting behaviors in the job interview process. Lindsay Mustain, a former Amazon recruiter, once got a resume where the third page was a picture of the candidate holding a shotgun. Ex-Nvidia recruiter and current HR consultant Stefanie Fackrell once had someone tell her they weren't that interested in the job she was interviewing them for.
"It's not my first choice," says Fackrell of what the candidate told her. "I'm waiting for a potential offer from this other place."
While these might be a bit extreme, there are more run-of-the-mill job interview mistakes hiring managers see more often. LinkedIn recently surveyed 1,024 hiring managers to ask what makes them want to hire someone and what turns them off.
Here are 10 of the biggest interview blunders job candidates can make, including how many hiring managers flagged them.
- Showing up late to an interview (53%)
- Using foul language or cursing (52%)
- Appearing disinterested or disengaged (51%)
- Looking at your phone during the interview (50%)
- Dressing inappropriately (46%)
- Appearing unprepared to answer basic questions (38%)
- Speaking poorly of previous employers (32%)
- Not asking any questions about the job or company (25%)
- Not having researched the company in advance (21%)
- Not sending a thank you note afterwards (16%)
Some of these mistakes have long been considered bad etiquette, says LinkedIn career expert Drew McCaskill. "You show up on time for an interview, right?" he says.
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But some might be symptomatic of a not-so-far-off era in job interviewing. A few years ago, during the pandemic, hiring managers might have been more lenient to certain behaviors. "We were doing meetings with toddlers on our laps," he says. "We were in sweatpants and yoga clothes."
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With so many return-to-office mandates over the last few years as the pandemic has receded into the background, candidates are "just not going to get that same level of grace anymore," he says. Hiring managers now expect a certain level of professionalism and familiarity with "workplace protocols."
With 7.2 million people currently unemployed, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, hiring managers also have their pick of candidates. "They have a lot of options and they have a lot of amazing talent to choose from," says McCaskill.
Ultimately, "employers want people who can really come in and be the best of what the company has to offer."
Want to land your dream job? Take CNBC's new online course How to Ace Your Job Interview to learn what hiring managers really look for, body language techniques, what to say and not to say, and the best way to talk about pay.
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