Selection Interview Success—It’s Not About YOU

By Marcy Steinberg

Twenty architectural firms have submitted proposals for a large public project. Five are invited to interview. Two go in with top rankings based on their experience. Within moments of beginning their presentation, one of those top firms is out of the running. Later, the underdog firm - with a fraction of the leading firm’s experience—wins the job.

I have watched this scenario in many selection interviews and I have heard about it from procurement officials and buyers throughout the country.

What’s going on?

Much to the dismay of many architects and engineers, success in the interview is about something that seems nebulous and patently unfair—Chemistry. Dick Corwin, a shopping center developer in La Jolla, California, sums up what I have seen to be true throughout both the private and public sectors:

“I look for chemistry, trust, style, and what they’re trying to accomplish,” Corwin said.

In fact, of the six success factors I have noticed are key in the interview process, chemistry outweighs experience, ideas, and knowledge combined. Credibility comes in close to chemistry, followed by desire for the job. That last is a tricky one to convey gracefully, but the “chemistry basics” described here do the trick on all six factors.

Generating Chemistry

If experience isn’t enough, and you are not the world’s most magnetic person, what should you do—bring such a person along to speak for you? NO. Your client wants to know you and the team members who will be doing the work.

Fortunately, there is just one thing you need to focus on to win that interview—your client, as opposed to yourself. Tempe City Engineer Howard Hargis explained: “One architect came in and spent most of his time bragging about past projects, not the project he was interviewing for. It was a turn-off to everyone in the room.”

Ken Kayes, facilities manager for Karsten Manufacturing Corp, Phoenix, said, “The ones that impressed us the most were the ones who knew about Karsten and talked about our project—not the ones with fancy displays.”

Stacking Your Deck

To be able to talk magnetically about the client and establish chemistry while also showcasing your knowledge, experience, credibility, and desire for the job, you must research that client extensively. Put far more time into this than any other preparation.

This will stack the deck in your favor, because so many of your competitors don’t do it. And when they don’t, the comments from the selection committee go something like this: “They didn’t seem prepared. They didn’t do their homework. They probably won’t listen or pay attention to our needs. They don’t really know much about our project. They don’t have any ideas about what we can do. They must not want this job very much.”

On the other hand, more than once I have seen a small architectural firm blow much larger, more experienced firms out of the water with nothing more than a few inspiring slides, a colorful outline of the client’s key specifications and major challenges, and a blank easel for spontaneous drawing. They presented a variety of ideas and demonstrated, with some slides and that blank easel, a few ways that the firm had creatively addressed similar challenges elsewhere, as well as ways they might address them for this client.

The comments following those presentations went like this:

“The seemed to do more digging, they showed they were really interested in us. They knew details about us. They were innovative; they showed different aspects of what could be done. We got an honest glimpse of their personalities. They’ve given us extra to get this job; maybe that means they’ll give us extra on the job.”

What About Visuals?

You have visited your client’s site, looked into the issues that may impact planning, interviewed the building team members and end users, learned about the client’s visions and challenges for the project, and brainstormed creative ideas to discuss (this last one is critical for the “methods and approach” sections—don’t boilerplate it!).

Your final task, before dress rehearsal, is to prepare the visuals and props. These play a critical role in your presentation. Never lose sight of the fact that they play a supporting role. Remember not to overwhelm people with countless boards switched every few seconds, or PowerPoint shows that dominate the interview and do not allow for eye contact and interaction. Minimize text—you should be speaking, not reading.

Finally, consider using interactive models, maps, drawings, or toys (both simple and technological) to get people involved. You might just be able to engage them in the beginnings of the creative process for which they are hiring you. Demonstrate how good you are at getting their own ideas flowing. Because it’s all about THEM—remember? That’s Chemistry.

First published in Sources and Design, Summer 2001

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