So you've had your job interview, and, as you wait to hear from thecompany, you keep replaying the interview in your mind and wonderinghow you did. But is there any way to know until you get an offer or rejection? No signs are 100 percent foolproof, but here are some indicators that the interview went well:
1. The interviewer gives you a clear timeline for when a decision isexpected, rather than being vague or noncommittal. When I'm interested,I make sure the candidate leaves knowing exactly what will happen nextand when to expect to hear from me.
2. The interviewer asks about your timeline. When I'm especiallyinterested in a candidate, unless I know I'll be making an offer withina few days, I start worrying about some other employer snatching thecandidate up before I do. I say things like, "Is there any particulartimeline you need to adhere to?" and "If our timeline conflicts withyours, please let me know, and I'll see if I can speed things up on ourend."
3. The interviewer tries to sell the position or company to you. WhenI know I want to hire a candidate, I'll spend extra time talking aboutthe advantages of the position and organization and will try to paint adetailed picture of things about the role or culture that might appealto the candidate.
4. The interviewer spends a lot of time answering your questions.Whether or not candidates are strong contenders, I always ask whatquestions they have for me. But when I'm very interested in someone,it's much more in depth. I'll often probe to make sure that I'veanswered questions to their satisfaction and encourage them to beforthcoming about any reservations they might have.
5. The interview runs over the allotted time. If I'm not especiallyinterested in a candidate, I'm looking for opportunities to wrap theinterview up -- not drawing it out. So if this happened to you, it's avery positive sign. (But at the same time, don't read anything into ifthe interview didn't go into overtime; I've hired plenty of peoplewithout the interview running long.)
6. After you're done, the interviewer introduces you to others orshows you around the office. Again, if I know I'm not going to moveforward with the candidate, I don't waste anyone's time (including thecandidate's) on these sorts of extras.
7. You hear from your references that the employer has called them.Reference-checking is time-consuming, so I don't start it unless I'minterested in a candidate.
Again, none of these are foolproof. An interviewer might do one ortwo of these without meaning anything. And of course, the interviewercan be very interested in you and still ultimately go with a differentcandidate. But when you start to see a pattern of the things above, youat least know that you're not out of the running.
