Knowing which buttons to push may reduce
your job-search frustration
➔ After you’ve invested considerable time and effort in preparing for and sitting through a job interview, it can be incredibly frustrating to learn that your interviewer has little or no say in the final decision. It’s much worse when you find that out later after your frustration has had a chance to build.
If you could only short-circuit that frustration and discover who wields the wand of decision making.
It’s not perfect, but…
It comes down to understanding the difference between people within an organization who have influence vs those who have the authority. Hint: it’s not always the same people.
So what’s a body to do? The real simple answer is to ask, “What is the decision-making process regarding this position?” If they can’t answer, they’re not the decision maker. You need to find someone else. And keep asking until you get the answer you want.
Then again, there is still another layer of hiring responsibility that you may need to sift through. As you matriculate through the interviewing process, determine the differences between those who have the authority to say “no” – which could be anyone – as opposed to those who have the authority to say “yes” – a lot fewer.
Figuring all this out may or may not help you land the position, but it will help you clarify in your mind who can and can’t actually make the decision. Armed with that knowledge, you’ll be in a much better position to lower your frustration level.