This new and popular interview trend is truly bizarre

This new and popular interview trend is truly bizarreThis new and popular interview trend is truly bizarreSo you applied for a job and have a phone interview scheduled. Youve practiced youranswers to popular interview questionslike, Tell me about a time when you faced a challenge at work and how you overcame it? and, Where do you see yourself in five years? Plus, you researched the company and its employees to the point where you feel like you already work there. Basically, youre prepared AF.When it finally comes time to chat over the phone, you dial the number expecting the hiring manager to answer. Instead, youre served an automated voicemail system. You wonder if its a mistake, but its not. Its actually the new and bizarre hiring trend that may be on the rise.Automated Voicemail Job InterviewsThe Wall Street Journal first reportedon this new interview trend in November 2018, but with a competitive job market and lowunemployment rate of just 3.9 percent, were thinking it could beco me mora popular among human resources departments over the next year.Jobs website Indeed already facilitatesautomated phone screeningsfor companies. According to Indeeds explainer, job candidates will receive a phone number, a passcode and an expiration date in the body of an email (fruchtwein likely one week). Candidates have two minutes to answer a series of four screening questions during the automated job interview.While this process is a quick and efficient way to narrow down a large pool of candidates, reducing the manpower needed to conduct the interviews, it comes with the possibility of technical difficulties. What if the automated voice system isnt easy to understand? And if candidates dont have the best connection, they may miss out on moving to the next round. Plus, with just a few minutes to answer each question, theres no room for error or delays in responses.How To Reach Round TwoNervous youll end up bombing the automated interview? Dont sweat it. You can reach round two of that job interview with these tips and tricksUse a landline.Yes, they still exist. A landline offers a more stable connection for that phone call. Dont have one at home? Ask a relative if you can make the call from their place.Write down your answers and practice.The questions will most likely be pretty standard interview questions. Write down your answers so you know exactly what youre going to say and then practice reading them out loud in advance.Time yourself.While practicing your answers, time yourself. Youll want to condense your responses to two minutes or less in case theres a time limit.Follow up.Just because youre speaking to an automated system doesnt mean you shouldntsend a follow-up thank-you noteto the hiring manager. Shoot them an email as soon the call is done so that they know youve completed it. Consider sharing your answers or expanding on an idea you may have had during the phone call.Automated voicemail job interviews may be the new trend, but theyre not much different after all. Lets be real - job interviews are nerve-wracking no matter how theyre conducted. So stay calm, be prepared and keep your head up. Youll land your dream job before you know it.This article was originally published on Swirled.