Interview etiquette | Why recruiters should shut up and listen

“When you talk, you are only repeating what you already know. But if you listen, you may learn something new,” the spiritual leader Dalai Lama once said. And this is true in many respects. Take recruiters for example.

A large part of a recruiter’s remit is to find the best candidate with the best skills, knowledge and experience for a role. This isn’t possible without listening. In order to scout out the best talent, recruiters have to sift through a wealth of CVs, invite candidates to an interview, probe them on some of their experiences and above all listen to what the candidates have to say. Aside from listening to determine a candidate’s suitability, there are several other reasons why recruiters should be avid listeners as outlined in a recent Forbes article.

It builds relationships

Human interaction is an important component of building relationships. But this only happens if both parties listen to one another. Listening will enable recruiters to suss out a person’s strengths and weaknesses as well as what they are looking for from their next career move.