Page 61 - Communication in Organizations Basic Skills and Conversation Models

Communication in organizations 50

Assertiveness
It can occur during an application interview that the selector asks a question that is
completely irrelevant to the job, or which you find too personal, and would rather not
answer. An ethical committee of the Ministry of Social Affairs in the Netherlands, which
used to be involved with creating legal rules and regulations for selection procedures, has
set up several rules for selection committees. Here are examples of questions that this
committee does not allow:

• Marital status: ‘Are you married or single? Divorced? Engaged? Living together? Are
you still in contact with your previous partner?’
• Children: ‘Do your children still live at home? Who takes care of them? Are you
planning to have more children?’
• Legal record: ‘Have you ever been arrested or convicted? Have you ever been in
prison?’
• Military service: ‘What leave are you on? In which unit did you serve?’
• Age: ‘You must be older than…aren’t you?’
• Living situation: ‘Do you have your own house or do you rent it?’
The committee mentioned above has noted that subjects such as psychiatric or legal
involvement should not play a role in any part of the selection procedure; neither should
marital status or sexual inclination. This does not mean that each and every selection
committee will abide by the rules. If you don’t want to answer a certain question then you
can react assertively by asking in the first place what the relevance of the question is to
the job. Many applicants find this difficult because one depends on the selectors to get the
job, which is why applicants often quickly answer any questions asked. One prefers to
ignore the fact that it is not ‘legal’ and answer anyway in order not to give up on a chance
of getting a job. Sometimes this is better because a refusal to answer often gives a more
negative impression than a short and businesslike reflection of the truth. However, if you
really cannot see the relevance of the question to the function, say so in a friendly manner
and also indicate why you don’t see the relevance.

Asking questions and the end of the interview
In the ending phase of the interview the applicant will get the opportunity to ask
questions. The purpose for the selectors here is to check whether everything is clear and
to give the applicant the chance to pose questions on relevant topics which have not come
up yet. Applicants often find it difficult to ask questions themselves because they don’t
have any questions or they are afraid of sounding stupid or impudent. However, in
general it is important to ask a few questions. Usually it is appreciated and shows interest
and motivation. It is also essential that you prepare adequately for this. Check for
yourself what is unclear and what you would like to know. It is useful to note down the
questions and take them along to the interview. When the selector gives you a chance to
ask questions, you can easily get out your list. Try then to get a clear answer. Questions
that can be asked include:

• How did the vacancy occur?