Public Finance Blog

What you don’t say can tell an interviewer more than what you do say.

At first blush, you might think, “What is Harlan talking about?”  What I don’t say tells them more about me than what I do say.  Yes, that is exactly what I am saying.

A good recruiter or hiring manager never asks a question for which they don’t have a good feeling about what a candidate’s response should be.  Therefore, when a question is asked and an answer does not fit with the expected answer, flags should (and do) go up.  A good interviewer at that point will start to wonder, and rightly so, why your answer does not make sense.  This is where you, the candidate, have choices.

What To Do

First, I recommend coming completely clean about what you’re holding back.  Unless there’s a legal reason for not disclosing something, your manager is going to pick up on this gap or….

The other choice is to ignore the sign and move on.  However, at some point, this will have to be addressed. The fact that you know you’re withholding information, the hiring manager with their years of experience, will sense it.

Therefore, problems may arise because the hiring manager expects one answer and will get another, so his/her determination of your candidacy could be concluded.  Honesty and forthrightness are always the best policy when it comes to interviewing.  Being completely aware of what you’re holding back will telegraph that fact.  Maybe not the details of what you’re holding back, just the fact that you are holding pertinent information from the interviewer.  Usually, what you are holding back can be mitigated if shared with your recruiter first.

Conclusion

You don’t need a resume to chat with us! If you would like to discuss your options, please reach out for a confidential conversation at 760-477-1284 or email at harlan@hfriedmansearch.com. He can also be reached on LinkedIn. Harlan publishes a blog every Thursday here. Subscribe to our monthly newsletter here, which is a compilation of our weekly blogs, so you never miss one. We have also been mentioned in this year’s Forbes, click HERE to read more.  

About Harlan Friedman, JD & Founding Member, H. Friedman Search LLC. Harlan is a thirty-year veteran Public Finance Banker turned recruiter who specializes in the placement of all levels Public Finance Bankers, Healthcare Bankers, Municipal Advisors, Compliance Officers, Issuers, and Bond Counsels.