Plaza Personnel Service Blog

The good candidate and the bad candidate … which one are you?

With 20 years experience in the staffing business I feel very qualified to advise you on this topic.  Are you a good candidate or a bad candidate? Will you get beyond first impressions to be seriously considered for the job or not?  At this point I am not even looking at your skills and qualifications for the job.  I’m just considering your basic first impression presentation at the interview.  This might seem like common sense, none the less, even in the highly competitive current job market, I still see both types of candidate on a regular basis.

Here are the points to consider:

Good Candidate

• Arrives at the interview with professional attire, or at least neat, tidy and clean.
• Well groomed, clean hair and nails, made an effort to look their best.
• Has a copy of their resume with them.
• Has a list of work references available.
• If asked to fill out an application form, fills out the form completely and neatly.
• Has all the information necessary to complete the application form.

Bad Candidate

• Arrives at the interview poorly dressed or inappropriately dressed. Wearing something sloppy, dirty, or too casual is not appropriate for most interviews.
• Personal grooming is questionable, hair not clean and /or tidy, nails not clean and filed, possibly with chipped polish.
• Forgets to bring a resume or brings an out of date resume.
• Is not prepared with names and contact information for all prior employers and references.
• Doesn’t want to fill out the application form, and / or fills it out in a sloppy and incomplete fashion.

If you are going to an interview, and you really want to be considered for the position, please make an effort to be a good candidate.  Keep in mind that in the eyes of the interviewer the manner in which you present yourself at the interview is your best, so it is as good as you will ever look or act. In today’s competitive job market, you must make the effort to be a good candidate, or you might just as well not even bother to get up and go out for that interview.  In order to be successful in today’s highly competitive job market you must “ put your best foot forward”,  make an extra effort, and be well prepared before you get out there.

Advise written by Susan Duva

Personnel Consultant

Plaza Personnel Service

PlazaPersonnelService

CLINICAL RESEARCH ASSISTANT

• Clinical Research Assistant for a small private practice specializing in pharmaceutical clinical research studies.  

• Located in the Hillcrest area  (close to
  Mercy Hospital)

·        Responsible for hands on patient care: rooming patients, vital signs, EKG’s and other clinical tests; assisting the Research Coordinators with patient office visits.  May also assist with phones, screening calls, enrollment and regulatory data entry.    

·        The employer is willing to provide some on the job training.

·        Microsoft office skills required, Word and Excel.

·        Prefer some related work experience.

·        Prefer college education B.A. or B.S.

·        This is a full time permanent position.   Monday - Friday 8:00 am to 4:30 pm.

Must be available to start at  7:00 am occasionally as needed.  An occasional weekend shift may be required.

·        The rate of pay is $15.00 –  21.00hr. to start.  Health insurance, paid holidays and vacation, retirement savings plan. 

·        The practice offers a professional and supportive work environment and opportunity for personal and professional growth.

This opportunity is offered through Plaza Personnel Service, a permanent placement employment agency.  Plaza Personnel has specialized in direct hire medical staffing for Doctors offices in the San Diego area since 1991.  

Please visit our website at www.PlazaPersonnelService.com

The current recession and economic climate has been and continues to be a huge challenge for many of us.  Is is very upsetting. Because of it we have been forced to live our lives with less money to spend.  For many of us it is hard just to pay the essential bills to maintain a home and provide food for the family.  No money left over for the extras we have always expected and enjoyed such as dining out, shopping for all kinds of personal items, things for the home, toys for the kids as well as the adults, travel, weekends away, even vacations.   So now, without these things to buy us satisfaction and a sense of comfort we have to find our satisfaction and comfort in other, non material ways.     Speaking for myself at least and I hope this is true for you too,   I have to think that, in some ways, this has turned out to be a good thing.    With less money to spend on things to buy us pleasure, we are finding pleasure and comfort in non material things that money cannot buy.  We are putting more time and energy into appreciating personal relationships, spending time with family and friends.  Perhaps in the long run we will benefit individually, as families, as communities and as a country, from this time to reevaluate what is really important in life.  Surely our personal relationships are more important and more valuable than all the “things” we can acquire.  So my hope is that every one of us can find some positives from living with less money to spend.  One day in the future we will look back and be pleased that we were given this opportunity to re evaluate and take pleasure in the simpler and non material things life hold for us.

Article written by Susan Duva

Personnel Consultant

Plaza Personnel Service, a permanent placement Employment Agency

Plaza Personnel Service