Telephonic Round Tips

If your selection process includes a phone interview, prepare to explain your experience clearly in a voice-only conversation. The employer's evaluation may also use your application, test results and other information; follow the instructions for your role.

Before the call

• Choose a quiet room with a strong network signal. Test the spot by calling a friend from it.
• Charge your phone fully and keep the charger within reach.
• Keep your resume, the job advertisement, a pen and paper in front of you.
• Note the interviewer's name and the time of the call, and be ready ten minutes early.
• Tell the people at home that you must not be disturbed.

Do's during the call

• Answer with a greeting and your name: "Good morning, this is Ravi Kumar."
• Speak a little slower than you normally do, and pronounce words fully.
• Listen until the interviewer has finished the question, then answer.
• If you could not hear or follow a question, ask politely for it to be repeated.
• Keep answers short and to the point. Long answers are hard to follow on the phone.
• Sit upright or stand while you speak. It keeps your voice clear and alert.
• Smile as you talk. It can be heard in your voice.
• At the end, thank the interviewer and ask what the next step will be.

Don'ts during the call

• Don't take the call while travelling, in a market or with a television on.
• Don't eat, drink or chew anything during the call.
• Don't interrupt, even if you know the answer before the question ends.
• Don't read out answers from a book or a screen. The change in your voice gives it away.
• Don't put the interviewer on hold or attend to another call.
• Don't answer with only "yes" or "no". Add one line of explanation.
• Don't end the call before the interviewer does.

If the call comes without notice

It is acceptable to say, "Thank you for calling. I am outside at the moment; may I call you back in fifteen minutes?" Move to a quiet place, collect your papers and return the call exactly when you said you would.