By Janice Bryant Howroyd, Founder and CEO of The Act•1 Group

In my role as CEO, I continue to be a key sales executive for my organization. One of the things that I have noticed over the last couple of years is that the people I’m meeting with, who are making significant financial and procurement decisions for their organizations, are getting younger and younger.

Some of my friends speak of how intimidated they feel when interviewing with managers who are 20 years younger than they are and in this economy, more and more of us are working longer than we originally thought we would. So, how does one manage the interaction and interviewing processes today?

Take account of all of your winning strengths

Please note that I did not say “all of your strengths” — rather, ”all of your winning strengths.” The things that make you a great person, or that made you a great employee in the past, aren’t necessarily the things that are going to win you the job you’re interviewing for now. That is something that is very hard for most of us to understand … or to fully embrace. What types of things am I talking about here?

When you are interviewing, it’s fine for you to teach, but disastrous for you to preach! Before you laugh or disclaim this as your inclination, consider if you are prone to be just a little sensitive to the whole question of whether your age is an issue in your career.

Often times, older candidates will talk down to the interviewer, if they think they are bringing more experience than their possible new boss or if they think the interviewer is disengaged in really getting to know who they are. As hard as this may be to swallow, get accustomed to stating your information succintly, and then giving the more broad conversation in follow through. I call this: Tell-Ask-Talk.

In Tell-Ask-Talk, the interviewee tells the interviewer concisely what they need to know or responds directly to what they’ve been asked followed with a question.. Once the interviewer has answered the question, the interviewee can then engage in conversation, gaining better understanding and comfort, while expressing thoughts in the context they feel best demonstrates their strengths or positions. Taking into context the interviewer’s response to your question, you are now talking about something your interviewer is really interested in.

An example:

Interviewer: Tell me about yourself.

Interviewee: As my resume shows, I’m an executive secretary with 22 years of experience and have very strong word-processing skills and a high work ethic. Do you think my ability to organize records and facilitate meetings will have a value to this position, as well?

Interviewer: Your ability to organize records will be critical, but our facilities group handles meeting requests. What we need in this department is someone who knows how to create spreadsheets and manage our sales logs when the month ends. Have you done any of that?

When an older worker understands how to interview in this manner, it allows the younger hiring manager to articulate important points of the job, and both parties maintain respect and have an opportunity to explore the important stuff. Actually, I support Tell-Ask-Talk as a good interview technique regardless of the age of the interviewer … but I know first-hand that it works well with young adults as interviewers.

Show respect to your interviewer’s position, regardless of age.

This may seem, at first read, like rather simplified information. Understand that many younger managers and interviewing executives don’t process ideas and information in the manner that older workers do. The younger professional has grown up in a culture of fast eye/brain coordination and many think in shorthand. This does not mean that they are being disrespectful to you or missing important points you’re trying to make. It simply means that they digest information faster and work in a culture that is much more attuned to your young adult children than to you.

So, what to do? Understand that getting the job is your No. 1 goal. Once you have the job, you can let your knowledge shine and bring invaluable service to your employer; but don’t believe that the young whippersnapper sitting behind the big desk is just waiting for you to come on board and be their mother or father. Work is where most professionals enjoy shining and no matter how wet behind the ears you may think that young person is, they are credentialed between those ears.

Use your interview as an opportunity to learn about the culture of the organization

One of the most wonderful things about the younger interviewers and professionals is that they are not afraid of question or questioning minds. They embrace inquisitiveness and see it as part of a creative and constructive process. Use your interview to learn more about the company than you knew walking in. Find out if the person interviewing you is the one-of-a-kind wonder in the organization or one of many others like themselves. If you’re joining a company with many young managers, you are going to need to embrace the youth management culture and adapt to that organization’s style. During the interview, ask about this with excitement and show your genuine desire to be a part of it. The young interviewer may be just as afraid to hire an “old fogey” into a fast-paced culture as you may be to take instructions and be decided upon by someone who could be your own kid.

Know all you can about the organization – and the interviewer – before going in

This is the age of full diversity in the workplace. Diversity is not just race and gender. It’s age and culture, too. To stay vital as an employee, it doesn’t matter whether you are the legal assistant or the lawyer … you must show that your brain and passion have not slowed down.

Young adults don’t just use the Internet as a shopping mall or election center. They use it as a second brain — as an information center. If you don’t already live there, move there! Or, at least visit occasionally. Go online and learn all you can about the company before you interview.

Your interview with the young professional (or any professional) should not be the place you try to learn information that is readily available. Questions of this nature show you up as disconnected and uninformed. Your questions during your interview should personalize your fit to the organization, not teach you what they do.

If you are interviewing through the help of an employment agency, ask your agency representative/counselor to provide you with as much information about the company and the people with whom you will interview with and work. This way, you can relax on the hard criteria and go into the interview and sell yourself.

Go into the interview dressed for the job

Many companies have adopted a more relaxed dress code than in the past. This does not mean unprofessional … but organizations today allow much more freedom of expression than before — so long as company culture and safety are not impeded.

Check before you go on that interview to learn how you are expected to dress. A reputable employment agency will automatically inform you of existing dress codes, but make it your responsibility to know and go dressed for the job. Many young organizations and younger professionals have their own codes for what business dress is, but do not believe that this means slacking. Pearls, pumps or ties and navy suits may not be required, but Birkenstocks or Crocs may not be the winning dress, either.

Regardless of whether you get the dress thing right on point, know that young interviewers want the same thing and result that any interviewer wants: your honest expression of how you will perform in job. Your resume and your references are going to speak a lot about who you are, but your half hour to an hour in front of that young man or woman is just as valuable to them as it is to you. Enjoy the visit, listen well and don’t imitate speech or behavior that is not natural to you. It will not authenticate your conversation, and may make you appear mocking or pathetically out of touch.

Respect that your young interviewer is in that job because they’ve earned it

Trust them to listen to you with respect and remember that you would not be in that interview if the organization did not believe that you passed the first consideration for your ability to bring value. Many young hiring managers are far more tolerant and engaging of older workers than more traditional workplaces are of young professionals.

Regardless of whether you feel you’re connecting well, mid-way of your interview ask how you’re doing. Young adults are accustomed to checking status and progress. Don’t be afraid of an honest answer. This will allow you to continue in the right direction or to make adjustments and save your interview.

No matter how you believe your interview has gone, once you’ve completed it, do the old fashioned thing: Express your thanks and follow up with a written thank you to everyone you met. Ask during the interview (or ask your employment agency representative) if a written note or e-mail is better. Some young professionals would appreciate the personal touch of a handwritten thank you that is personal to them, while others live in e-mail. “Thank you” reads the same either way: It is professional, kind and indicates a continuing and genuine interest and shows the young professional you appreciate their time and interest.

Janice Bryant Howroyd is the Founder and CEO of The Act•1 Group, a global staffing provider and a Women Minority Owned Business Enterprise (WMBE) company. The Act•1 group provides Workforce Solutions under the Agile•1 brand, an impressive array of business services solutions, and staffing under its premier employment service, AppleOne.
For over 45 years, AppleOne has been creating Temporary and Direct Hire career results for millions of job seekers through placement, resume assistance and career and interview coaching–all at no cost to the candidate. Included in its family of brands are AppleOne Employment (Administration and Support) At-tech (IT and Engineering), Accounting Advantage (Accounting), and All’s Well (Healthcare).