Interview Checklist

Assuming the skills are all a match, the first thing I look for is chemistry. Can I talk well with the other person? Sometimes this is easy and natural and sometimes it takes a few meetings. Good BS-ers can "fake" chemistry for a short interview. Being a good BS-er is a good skill: sometimes we have to fake it until we make it. Real chemistry will come after working together for a while -- for some odd reason I've found that eating together leads to much better chemistry than just working side-by-side. Perhaps it has something to do with the social nature of food, or the fact that eating requires each person to either eat or talk, but not both, thereby building rapport.

The second thing I look for is open-mindedness. Specifically, can I tell this person that they are wrong? Some people just want to dominate all business relations. This is great if you're applying for a job as a janitor, but if you're looking for a high-level consultant or a partner you'd better have somebody who can correct you when you screw the pooch. When it comes to some things I'm an idiot -- and I always don't know what those things are. I assume other people are the same way. Therefore, aside from ability to do the job, I want to know is the other person going to be looking after my best interests.

The third thing is a sense of humor. If we're going to be doing tough things together, facing crises and opposition, I'd sure like to have somebody that can crack a joke every now and then. On that same vein if I need to be corrected when I'm an idiot, doing it with a bit of humor lessens the blow a lot. In addition, a little bit of self-deprecating humor coming from somebody really, really smart gives me some assurance that I'm not going to have to deal with a prima donna or special needs partner.

Finally I look for easy mastery of the subject. I like to have people that can move either up or down in the conversation: going for the small bits of interest or being able to see the big picture. If you're stuck as a strategic thinker, I worry about your depth of knowledge. Likewise, if all you can give me is details, I worry about your breadth of knowledge. I'd like somebody who can move from a friendly conversation about the weather to whether the server indexes need to be clustered or not, then back to how the website is looking. Especially in a startup, it's tricky to do. You get way down in the weeds. Even in a consulting role, being able to mix schmoozing with training is a vital skill. The interview should at least show me that the person is capable of conversing easily at various levels of abstraction.

In the end, I think interviewing -- from both sides -- is still a bit of a black art. Hopefully these tips will help you practice it a little better.