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The following post was borrowed from George Raveling's website at coachgeorgeraveling.com. It is a really good article about how to approach the interview process. You can find the article in it's entirety here.
George Raveling is currently Nike's director of International Basketball. He previously served as the head coach at Washington State, Iowa, and USC.
Open the interview
process w/ a short statement about why you want the job & what unique value
you will bring to the job!(MAX 60 sec intro)
The
best interviews are ‘WOW’ interviews!!!
At the end of the
interview make sure there’s no doubt in anyone’s mind who you are, what you’re
about & what you’re capable of achieving!
When you walk out of the
interview room you want people saying that was the best coach’s interview we’ve
had in ages!!
At the end of the
interview process the mental thought of the selection committee must be ‘THIS
is our guy’
During the interview
process your demeanor must be relaxed positive body language, strong eye
contact, hi energy & enthusiasm, confident!
97% of the people sitting
around the interview table are not experts on the game, you’re the expert
conduct yourself in that manner!!
What will be your answer
if they ask you why do you want this job or why should we hire you?
Great question to ask
during the interview: “Why do you think this is such a great job?”
Write down 10 significant
reasons why an AD should interview you for a job and hire you, then ask
yourself how compelling are these?
When you interview for a
job, the interview must be interactive—they question you–you question
them–whoever asks the best questions wins
#1 objective in the
interview is to tell a compelling story as to why you should be the coach &
then what unique values you bring to the program!
Other than the previous
coaches win & loss record what were some concerns that you had with
him/her??
What are five things that
it is imperative that the new coach focus on immediately? WHY?
What are the five most
important characteristics you value in your coach??
In your opinion what are
the 4 or 5 biggest challenges confronting this program?
Next to winning and
graduating players what’s the most important consideration from your
perspective??
Full article after the jump:
When you interview for a
job, the interview must be interactive—they question you–you question
them–whoever asks the best questions wins
Always enter an interview
with a list of pre-scripted questions that you will ask during the interview!
Strategic interview
question: Can I get in writing a list of your expectations of me as a coach
& what you’ll consider success or failure?
Be sure you know who will
be on the interview committee and do a background check on each person!
Be certain to have at
least one question for every person on the interview committee!
Other than the previous
coaches win & loss record what were some concerns that you had with
him/her??
How would you rank the
schools facilities among the other teams in the conference??
What are five things that
it is imperative that the new coach focus on immediately? WHY?
What are the five most
important characteristics you value in your coach??
#1 objective in the
interview is to tell a compelling story as to why you should be the coach &
then what unique values you bring to the program!
Graduation rates over the
last five years where does the school rank within the conference?
In your opinion what are
the 4 or 5 biggest challenges confronting this program?
Will I be given adequate
amount of time to make the necessary corrections? What do you believe is a
reasonable time table to achieve this?
Do you know if all
returning players are academically eligible for participation?
Next to winning and
graduating players what’s the most important consideration from your
perspective??
Where does the program’s
budget stand overall in the conference??
Very few coaches go into
an interview process with an aggressive mentality, most go with their hat in
their hand!
Halfway through the
interview process you should be able to establish that you’re either
interviewing for a ‘great’ job or a ‘bad’ job!
NEVER take a job where
you have less than the 70% chance to excel!
Never take a job because
it’s an opportunity to be a head coach, this mentality is a death trap! You’re
likely be fired within 4yrs!
When you walk into a room
for the interview be sure to walk up to each person in the room introduce
yourself & give them your business card!
Open the interview
process w/ a short statement about why you want the job & what unique value
you will bring to the job!(MAX 60 sec intro)
The
best interviews are ‘WOW’ interviews!!!
At the end of the
interview make sure there’s no doubt in anyone’s mind who you are, what you’re
about & what you’re capable of achieving!
When you walk out of the
interview room you want people saying that was the best coach’s interview we’ve
had in ages!!
At the end of the
interview process the mental thought of the selection committee must be ‘THIS
is our guy’
Do you know under what
conditions you would accept the job and what conditions you would reject the
job??
Question to ask yourself,
are you running toward a job or away from a job?
Question — “Are you
looking for a job or a career?”
Are you really qualified
and ready to be a head coach or do you just think you are?
When you get a HC job you
must wear multiple hats: leader, teacher, mentor, role model, problem solver,
miracle worker, purveyor of hope!
Remember you are always
six months away from being fired!
REALITY: Coaching is all
about what have you done for me lately?
REALITY: If most AD’s
gave the coach they fired what they gave the coach that they hired they
would’ve never had to fire the 1st coach!
REALITY: A coaches death
trap is a new athletic director & a new president, be certain not to invest
in a new home! Update your resume!
Have you heard about the
coach who had 5yrs of 100% grad rates, no violations, no character problems w/
the players & was fired for losing?
Very few coaches
understand the vital importance of the contents of their contracts, well worded
ones can make it difficult to fire you!
95% of all coaches
contracts greatly favor the institution over the coach!!!
A coach who enters
contract negotiations without professional representation is a FOOL!!!
During the interview
process your demeanor must be relaxed positive body language, strong eye
contact, hi energy & enthusiasm, confident!
97% of the people sitting
around the interview table are not experts on the game, you’re the expert
conduct yourself in that manner!!
What does it tell you
when no one on the selection committee has ever played the game?? Educate the
uneducated!!!
Research the selection
committee & find out how many ever played competitively! That will tell you
how you must customize your interview!
All interview committee’s
will have 2 types of people: those who really count & those who think they
count! Make sure you know who is who!
Your ultimate goal: WIN
the interview!!
90% of coaches who
interview for a job have average interview skills at best, how do you become
above-average? That’s the $64,000 question!
REALITY: There are few
high quality coaching jobs in collegiate athletics. Anyone can get a coaching
job but can you get a high quality job?
Do you want to COACH or
MAKE MONEY??
There’s a HUGE
difference!
If you think your only
responsibility is to coach the team you are delusional!!
In any interview you
engage in you must be the BEST prepared person in the room!
NEVER mention salary
during an interview!
What will be your answer
if they ask you why do you want this job or why should we hire you?
Great question to ask
during the interview: “Why do you think this is such a great job?”
BEWARE of the job that
you take and you go to the equipment room shortly after accepting the job and
they only have 10 basketballs!!
It’s amazing how many
coaches interview for a job & never
send a handwritten thank you to everybody on the committee after the interview!
send a handwritten thank you to everybody on the committee after the interview!
Other than the fact that
many athletic directors are the boss what really qualifies them to hire a
coach?? Thus enters the search firms!
ADs are no longer hiring
coaches, they’re hiring servant leaders! Individuals who can take a program
from where it is to where it should be!
Do you want a head
coaching job so bad that you would travel across the country and pay your own
expenses to do the interview?
How many losses am I
willing to put on my career record to get a program started in a winning
direction?
Once you get a head
coaching job you must immediately create a strategic survival plan to keep the
job for a long period of time!!
Write down 10 significant
reasons why an AD should interview you for a job and hire you, then ask
yourself how compelling are these?
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