A journalist recently asked me this:
“I just applied for a job that I’m more than qualified for. The problem is that the job is in Phoenix and I don’t want to move. I was hoping that I could get an interview and then pitch that I work out of the Albuquerque office where my home is. But the recruiting company asked me to confirm that I can move before proceeding with an interview.
“Any advice on how to answer this question without blowing the chance of even being interviewed?”
This was my answer:
You have run into a screening question. It is meant to narrow the candidate pool for the people who actually make the decisions.
Other screening questions are: “Do you have permission to work in this country?” “Did you graduate from college?” “Do you have reliable transportation?” Depending on the job, a “no” answer to any of these questions could eliminate you from consideration before you get started.
These fences, and the gatekeepers, are set up by employers who want to cut through the clutter of candidates they think they can’t or don’t want to hire. The recruiting company was hired to follow the procedure. The same thing can happen when you apply for a job online and click answers to screening questions. So, “no” to the wrong question and your chances are over.
Here’s what to do, knowing that the employer has strong reservations about one of your conditions or characteristics: You have to short-circuit the system.
Do some reporting and find out who the hiring manager inside the company is. Contact that person directly with a letter or an e-mail explaining why you think you can do the job, despite this obvious hurdle. Include your resume.
Say you will be in touch by phone and that you would like to interview for the position to further explain how you can make it work and help the company.
The goal of this process is to land the interview, not the job. The interview is for landing the job, and you have to get into that interview.
Be very accommodating, given that you are asking for relief on one of their requirements. You do not want to develop a reputation for being high-maintenance.
One does not necessarily have to go through the recruiting service, but remember that it is the employer who set this condition, not the recruiters.
In the end you might not be able to break through that wall. But you don’t have to be stopped at the first step.
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