What’s the big deal about learning how to interview?

Whenever I meet new people or catch up with friends whom I haven’t seen in a while, one of the questions we’re bound to ask each other is, “What kind of work are you doing?”

When I tell them I do marketing at Tech in Asia, those in the tech scene would widen their eyes in awe. And when I say that I’ve been with TIA for close to six years (my work anniversary is next month), their eyes would widen even more.

Six years is a long time in a startup – or any company, actually. That was enough time for me to be engaged, get married, and have a kid.

Anyway, that’s beside the point. You see, I was the first hire in my department. I started out doing content marketing, and then slowly, we needed more hands on deck. As we all know, startup life often requires you to wear many hats, and soon enough, I had to do interviews.

It was my first time being on the other side of the table, and I was lost with a capital L. Where do I start? How do I write the job description? How should I structure the discussion? What questions should I ask? What screening tasks should I set? Should I prioritize skills or culture fit? How do I know I’m shortlisting the right candidates?

Back then, I wished I had a template to refer to or a recruiting professional to ask. They would have saved me from interviewer stress and awkward interactions with a bunch of strangers. It also didn’t help that when I got to the nth interviewee, I started to see the process as a boring grind.

I think my experience with doing interviews speaks for most founders, team leads, and even experienced hiring managers. So I felt compelled to share when I learned that TIA’s events team will host a workshop with an accomplished speaker on how to conduct effective interviews – a 30-minute session during the perfect lunchtime slot (+1 for multitasking).

Sounds like something you’re up for? Here’s what you can expect.

Interviews are a two-way street. It is about attracting talent as much as it is about spotting potential. Every interviewer has the opportunity to reinforce or ruin a candidate’s experience of the company.

Developing your skills as an interviewer isn’t just useful professionally, but it’s also a handy life skill. Whether you’re screening a Tinder date, selecting an interior designer for your house, or searching for a business partner, you’re going to have to evaluate people one way or another.

After this 30-minute lunch workshop, you’re going to be more proficient at:

• Learning how to conduct an effective and objective interview while ensuring positive candidate experience
• Knowing the right questions to ask to help you determine whether a candidate is the right fit for a company and a specific role
• Structuring your interview and feedback through our take-home interview template, which you won’t find elsewhere

About our kickass speaker, an ex-Google executive and HR book author

Anne Caron is also the people strategy expert for Golden Gate Ventures, Zilingo, and GoJek.

Drawing on her 10-year experience as a senior human resources executive at Google, she set up her consulting practice in 2015 to support startup founders as they build high-performing and positive organizations.

Through her experience working with entrepreneurs, she developed a practical methodology for growing the right organizations and teams, which she details in her book, From Zero to 1,000: The Organisational Playbook For Startups.

So you can rest assured that you’re going to get the most out of this 30-minute lunch workshop from one of the industry’s best.

Event details

Date: March 31, 2021 (Wednesday)
Time: 12:30 p.m. to 1 p.m.
Venue: Virtual (Link will be sent a day before the event)

OK, where do I sign up?

This lunch workshop is complimentary for Tech in Asia’s Core and Live subscribers to attend. If you’re already one of us, hooray! Simply RSVP here.

Alternatively, you may purchase a single event ticket at US$18.90 here.

Pro tip: On the lookout for a good deal? Bargain hunters can consider subscribing to Tech in Asia Live. At just US$59 a year, you get free access to our workshops and signature conferences, including our upcoming Product Development Conference. On top of that, you unlock the live recordings of all our past sessions (27 of them and counting)!