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The Perfect Interview Process - CollectionIndustry.com

By Jim Finocchiaro, SC Riverside, Inc.

Whether you are planning a group interview with potential entry-level collectors, a half-day interview with a collection manager/sales candidate, or a two-day session interviewing an executive level candidate, the collection agency environment has some unique characteristics.

Having conducted over 4,000 interviews with candidates in the collection industry, SC Riverside (Search and Recruitment Specialists) has learned what they want and look for from their next employer. The following should assist you, the employer, in attracting and successfully hiring the top candidates you interview.

The candidate is not a debtor!
Many candidates tell us during post interview "debriefing" that they felt interrogated by the hiring authority. Agencies deal with debtors, broken promises, angry people and financially distressed entities all day long. While interviewing a candidate the agency must make the distinction between debtor and non-debtor. The subject of collecting money brings forth many emotions. Keep those emotions out of the screening process. Again, the candidate is not a debtor! (At least not that we know of!)

Have a clear and specific agenda
Candidates constantly tell us how impressed they are before the process, when they receive an agenda for whom they are meeting with, what their title is, and a draft for times of each meeting. If it is a telephone interview, give the candidate and idea of how long the typical telephone screening will last. It is not required to be exact. No candidate is upset over a 30-minute interview that went 55-minutes. They simply benefit from the exchange of more information. Allow for plenty of two-way questions and answers.

For travel or fly-in interviews at your facility, have all expenses direct billed to your company or at least have the candidate reimbursed at the end of the stay with you. Several agencies have lost candidates they wanted to hire because they had promised a candidate an expense reimbursement check within a week and it ended up taking a month. Candidates tell us if they have to fight for an expense check, then what is it going to be like when real issues come up. Quick and thoughtful follows through here and goes a long way toward making a good impression.

Present a clear vision of where you are going and where you have been
Our happiest candidates tell us after interviewing that they have a firm idea of an agency's history and their future plans. Every agency has stubbed their toe at some point. Tell this to the candidate! I will guarantee you they will find out anyway. In this business, there are very few secrets. The agency world is very tight and very competitive. Think about it. If you asked a candidate for his/her weaknesses and the response was "I don't really have one", you would send them packing. Do not make the same mistake. Every company has weaknesses. State yours and it will only make your strengths more creditable. One of our better agency clients tells every candidate we bring to them, that they had a rough period in the mid-90's where they had lost focus. In every case, the candidate expressed appreciation for their candor.

Answer the question of where your agency is headed. Are you growing or shrinking? If you will be opening another center or experiencing growth, clearly state your plan. Several of our clients are restructuring and are going to a vertical market organization and they do a great job of explaining their vision. This will go a long way toward enticing the top candidates to come your way.

Address the candidates needs - then your own
Some valuable questions to ask the candidate that tell you more than you might think:

1. What do you most desire with a new position and new company?
The answers you get from the candidate represent the keys to hiring him/her. This question is vital to you, the employer.

2. What are your strong suits related to the collection industry?
Remember, what they tell you and if hired, remind them of this.

3. What are your weak suits related to the collection industry?
The only bad answer here is "I don't have any weak suits". With very few exceptions can we think of a scenario where this did not eliminate the candidate.

4. Is there anything in your professional or personal life that would prohibit you from starting with us on such and such a date?
You would be surprised what barriers candidates have "behind the scenes." Marriage, divorce, children, apartment leases, sick relatives, bankruptcy, no money to relocate. The list is endless.

5. What do you like/dislike about your present job and position?
A good candidate can successfully answer both questions without bashing their current or past employer.

The issue of "client fulfillment"
The most attractive agencies are many times the same ones that take the best care of their clients. Whether you are interviewing a collector, a collection manager, a sales representative or an executive, the shinning example of an attractive agency is one who knows how to keep their clients happy.

You can not spend enough time elaborating on how your collectors, dialer, technology, customized reporting, facility and staff all are successfully geared toward fulfilling the clients needs. This is the single biggest factor why candidates look for new positions - because their current employer cannot land or keep their clients happy. This is as important as money because good candidates know that if the clients are happy the rewards to them will also come. Cut above candidates constantly tell us that this type of agency is the one they want to be part of. Expose candidates to your collection floor, the temperament of your collectors, your dialer operation, your technology, future plans in this area, tenure of your team, turnover statistics, etc. If you are not a sweatshop, prove it! If you play by the rules regarding collector dialogue with a debtor, prove it! Let them hear that your collectors don't threaten to sue debtors when they don't pay. Let them know that you don't say that you are a law firm, when your not! Let them know that you abide by the FDCPA and that they can sit with your collectors to see for themselves.

The most extreme example we have had is an employer who allowed their "best collector" to have a beer, at noon, on the collection floor! Just because your agency does not allow it, does not mean a candidate isn't concerned about it.

Differentiate yourself from a sweatshop in every way possible and you will be ahead of many of your competitors.

Present a career, not a job!
Wherever possible, clearly state that if the new hire does an exemplary job, that there is upward mobility available to them. This can come in the form of:

1. Managing more people
2. Opportunity for greater bonus
3. Job grade and base increases
4. Title advancement.

Nothing makes an employee feel better than positive recognition. Many times this comes in the form of praise, many times in the form of money, or such things as time-off for superior performance. Site specific examples of people who have climbed the ladder with your agency. Even consider allowing one of those employees to spend a few minutes with the candidate. You will leave a lasting impression on the applicant. No one wants to change jobs. Explain the opportunity for a career and you will attract the people that you deserve.

Be able to answer these questions and you will win more than what you lose.

1. What are your Agency's strengths?

2. What are your Agency's weaknesses?
If you don't state a weakness, you're done! If you honestly state a weakness or two, you exude honesty, realism, and have more creditability when you state your strengths.

3. Why is your Agency unique?

4. Why do you win?

5. Why do you lose?
The candidate, if hired, will find out eventually. Simply eliminate surprises and get issues out up front.

6. What three things make the owner/president/hiring authority happy?

7. What three things make the owner/president/hiring authority unhappy?

These are tougher questions to answer then one might think. If you role-play, then in your own mind, before every candidate interview, you will be in position to have a more gut-level conversation with a candidate. The more openly you give information, the more openly you will receive it.

Prompt feedback and decision-making
After each interview, confirm with the candidate exactly when you will follow-up with them on your thoughts regarding continuing, or not continuing the process. Whether it be the suggested 24-48 hours or something else, stick to a schedule. Many employers lose top-notch candidates to other agencies because of indecision and delays. After all, if an employer can't keep a simple interview process on course, how can they possibly keep an important client happy?

In closing, agency hiring authorities have units, departments, and businesses to run. The interview process is not at the top of the their list. Hopefully these eight points can assist you in to how to improve and perfect your interview process so you can attract the kind of talent that you desire.

Jim Finocchiaro is a 24-year veteran in the collection industry. He is the founder and president of S C. Riverside, Inc., search and recruitment specialists to the collection industry (www.scriverside.com). Contact him at receivable@scriverside.com.

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