I'm sure I have probably written about second interviews before but not recently and frankly in my one blog a month over 12 years in business it would be surprising if there wasn't a little bit of overlap in subject matter.
Second Interviews. 96% of clients who are interviewing for a role will want to have some form of second interview. Yes there are those who offer on the spot during a first interview but they're quite rare. The majority of second interviews will ask a candidate to prepare a response to a brief or to do a short presentation. Generally, this is good and provides structure to an interview. From a client's perspective, it will also demonstrate whether an individual really wants the job. Preparing a brief will take time, commitment and effort and the subsequent presentation of it will show an employer how the individual thinks, how they approach a challenge and how good their communication and presenting skills are.
Whilst the pandemic has thrown us all many challenges, in some ways, interviewing remotely has facilitated the process. In the olden days when you'd have to book a morning off work or create a dental appointment, you can simply block an hour of your diary and interview from the comfort of your own home. Initially I had concerns over 'fit' coming across over broadband and wondering really if chemistry could be identified through a screen but those worries have been put to bed. The system is working well and both clients and candidates have embraced it. Similarly, all the video conferencing software companies have fairly idiot proof (I can use them) ways to share content during a meeting so the whole formality of an interview and a presentation can be replicated nicely. Clients acknowledge that technical problems can occur and to date, no-one has missed out on a job through tech error.
But. What is apparent is that many employees are very busy. Throughout the pandemic I've observed that some agencies are having their best year ever whilst others are not. In our industry, the majority are working from home and have been for a long time. There is a real fatigue in people and no-one wants to spend any free time at their computer. Additionally, for those candidates who have had a bad year and need to work, there are increasingly issues with confidence and motivation.
In the past couple of weeks, I've had the situation where candidates have withdrawn from the second interview stage. I'd say this is rare. In a couple of the circumstances, the briefs set by the client were difficult and did require quite a bit of commitment in order to present something that was of a standard good enough to get the job. By setting a difficult brief, the client would say that they are keen to see how a candidate approaches the challenge and whilst it isn't about seeing the 'right' answer, it's seeing how they go about tackling the brief and then they can identify if there are gaps in knowledge, where they might be. The counter argument from a candidate is that it will put them off the job. 'If that's an example of the type of project I'll be working on...I'm ruling myself out'. With one of the candidates who withdrew from the interview shortlist, they were quite open and said they were too stressed at the moment to deal with putting themselves under more pressure so they'd decided to stay in their current role until things are back to normal. All very understandable and I have empathy with both sides of the argument. There isn't really an answer to this one - just that generally if a candidate really wants the job, they'll do what it takes to get the job - but the big caveat to this is that we're still in the middle of a Pandemic and if a candidate is currently employed, it is likely that they'll sit tight rather than take themselves into a situation where they feel uncomfortable. Where a client doesn't give an actual brief, they will generally ask someone to talk about a specific project that they have worked on. This sounds much 'easier' but in fact, candidates often don't prepare as well for this and let themselves down.
I often talk to Creative candidates who get very vexed about being asked to present something at second stage. It's more difficult for Creatives as they feel that they are giving their ideas away for free. Several Creatives in the past have said they have interviewed for a role, presented their ideas, not been offered the job....only to see a campaign down the line using their idea. I'm not sure that anyone has ever gone to court over this but it is definitely a thing and Designers, Art Directors and Copywriters are less keen on this part of the interview process than those working in client services. All I can say is that this is part of the process and if you choose not to accept that responding to a brief is part of the interview process, you are ruling yourself out of the running for that particular job. Employers will argue that it's a good way for them to see what the individual can do for themselves - many creative portfolios will include work produced by a team of people and agency bosses want to see what you can do.
On the other side of things. I have a mid level candidate who is actively looking for a new role. She is currently working on two briefs for separate second interviews. She is loving it! She says that working on the briefs has shown her how limiting her current role is and she is full of enthusiasm and fire to give brilliant presentations that will secure her an exciting new role. The process has indicated that she has a preference for one of the jobs over the other but she has embraced the challenge whilst working 10 hour days in her current role. There is always more than one way of looking at things!
A note of caution. Clients do get a bit suspicious if a presentation is too good. A junior recently delivered something of an exceptional standard that the client said was of a level they would have been impressed with at Account Director level. They concluded that the junior must have had assistance and in spite of a strong presentation, they did not feel it was their own work. My only other advice is to check, check and check again for typos. At any level, a typo in an interview presentation is a deal breaker for employers.
On a final note. A robust interview process should work for everyone involved. It's an opportunity for the candidate to make sure it's the right role for them but also for the employer to ensure it's the right person for the job. I'm an advocate for taking the time during the interview process to get it right rather than a speedy short process followed by repenting at leisure.