El empleador

Once employed, the process of logging enough hours to be able to meet the minimum requirements of the airlines began. Finally, when you had logged enough hours and obtained an Instrument Rating as well as the ATPL subjects, you started the whole process of contacting the next company you wanted to work for all over again. We called it the ‘squeaky wheel’ being the one that got attention.

The next step was to actually visit the ‘holy grail’. This usually meant a trip to the big smoke to visit one of the major airlines. You fronted up to the reception to introduce yourself, sweet talk the receptionist and enquire as to how your application was going, and whether or not they were presently employing.

Today within the airline industry it’s normal for your application to be vetted first by an online employment agency that has no other connection with the airline you are about to apply to other than being the keeper of the database of applicants.

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The agency ensures that your application meets the current employment requirements of the airline. It does this by applying filters to your application. The filters, parameters identified by the airline, sort your details as they are entered.

The advantage of the online database is that it releases the airline from having to keep a filing cabinet full of resumes in house, and provides a direct advantage in the cost of employing someone to look after them. The disadvantage is that it impersonalises the process.

If a company needs pilots it checks the already vetted applications and picks those pilots for an interview who meet its current needs. The software that is written into the database allows the airline to change the parameters depending on their requirements at the time.

Nowadays, the job application process relies on technology to collate your personal details, however, the requirement to know as much about the applicant as possible before employment has not changed. If anything, because of time and cost restraints (and cost is now a major issue with pilots, particularly if you’ve paid for an endorsement) there is more pressure on all the stakeholders in the interview process to get it right first time, every time!

The introduction of the computer and the Internet has changed the application process significantly. But, as you are about to see, it’s still the determined and prepared applicant who knows how to market their USP that gets the job at the end of the day.

Our USP’s are part of our character. They help us to overcome obstacles and to approach our work and life in a positive manner. Properly developed, they are an incredibly powerful asset in our endeavour to succeed in our career and personal lives.

Important tip #1

Identify your Unique Selling Proposition (USP)

The trick back in 1987 when I first began cold canvassing aviation companies for work was, and still is, being able to identify your USP and then marketing it at every opportunity. I suspect it hasn’t changed since people began looking for work of any kind.

The USP is something about you that you take pride in and can communicate easily to others. It should be as familiar to you as, say, your engine failure brief. It is important to note that your USP’s may or may not be directly related to work.

Just be aware that, in the context of the interview, use work USP’s when asked about work and personal USP’s when asked personal questions.

Do

• make sure it is relevant to you

• make sure it is something you know a lot about

• make sure you can communicate it easily

• practice it

• make sure it is factual -

Chris Hine – Chief Pilot of Rex offers the following statement, “In your desire to work for Rex you have to not only sound sincere, but you have to be sincere. We are always wary of what sounds false.”

(Authors bolding)

• use the USP to demonstrate your value to the company

• have a sense of humour where relevant

Don’t

• rely on it alone, it shouldn’t be the only thing about you

• make it over the top or be extreme (as is given later in the case of Important tip #2

Do and Don’ts about your USP and you

• go to the interview and tell them that you have a USP (unless they ask). The USP is a part of you that makes your work and personal life a success

Your USP is unique because it is about you - You own it. I recommend using a USP because it steadies you in the interview and allows you to concentrate on some very positive vibes about you and to concentrate on your good points. I can guarantee that the people sitting on the panel are waiting to see if you just might be the one that can put it all together and, therefore, be able to offer you the job.

In doing so, you will justify their reasons for choosing to interview you in the first place.

The USP Challenged

People have said to me that the USP is a load of rubbish. I will continue, as always, to challenge that comment. I’ve come to realise that what they are challenging is the name itself. Nobody can deny that they have something about them that is different, something that is unique. Call it a talent if you will, just as long as you realise that everybody has a reserve of ‘strength of character’ in them, and that being able to draw on it, to recall it in moments of pressure/stress, is a good thing.

Those same people say that a USP is just another name for a strength.

It is true however that they are similar, but by being able to articulate why it is a strength, you convert that strength into your USP. This gives you ownership of your strength and, in doing so, gives impact to what otherwise would be an empty statement. For example, “I’m an excellent communicator,” is a general (and shallow) statement that will probably appear on every pilot’s resume.

Important Tip #3 Why do I need a USP?

Let’s have a look at an example based on a fictional interview scenario;

Interviewer)…”we all have our strengths and weaknesses. Jeff, if I was to ask your best friend what he thought your greatest strength was what do you think he’d say?”

Jeffs answer) “Oh communication for sure!”

Interviewer)… “Ok so can you tell us why you think you are a good communicator?

Jeffs response to himself) (Boy I should have seen that one coming!)

“Er ah sorry my minds just gone blank (Jeff slides down in his chair)…well there was this time once when my Mum told me to tell my Dad that she didn’t like the way he was always going out surfing instead of working. So the next time we went out surfing together I explained to him what mum had said and he said he’d fix it.

Not long after that he went away for two weeks visiting all the coastal towns up to Brisbane looking for a job he said, …yeah he fixed it alright, didn’t get any work though.”

Interviewer) “Ah thanks for that Jeff I was really looking for an example of how you have communicated effectively at work.”

Jeff’s not doing that well is he? He’s just spilled out the first thing that came into his mind. And he’s not alone. Perhaps they’re not as bad as Jeff’s but from my interviews with companies, poorly thought out answers are responsible for a significant culling of pilot candidates. To help people like Jeff I developed the concept of the USP. A USP is what is unique about you and although it can be used to develop strengths and weaknesses it can also be used for just about every facet of your interview if practiced.

Interestingly, when I ask people what their strengths were they listed all the usual suspects – In fact, I could probably have told them what they were going to list before they even started. That’s how predictable it is. When I asked them to give me evidence of that list of impressive strengths they mumbled and fussed and got

USP was, I then asked them why they felt they could claim these strengths, and what made them ‘strengths’. That stopped them in their tracks and made them think. All of a sudden they were being forced to look deeper into what made “a strength” something more than just a memorised or written list.

Here’s what I have learned about so called strengths and weaknesses, (besides the fact that everyone has them)

• Most people see in themselves what they want to see. Wouldn’t you want to be known as a self-starter, confident go-getter who always succeeds?

• Most people (pilots in particular) are self-starters, and to a large part are confident go-getters who nearly always succeed. (Give yourself a pat on the back it’s not easy getting to where you presently are in your career)

• Most people know they have strengths and weaknesses.

The problem is that most people - pilots in particular - do not sell those strengths and weaknesses particularly well during the interview. They choose to believe the

‘Hangar view’ that their flight time and level of experience will “get them through the interview.” They fail to fully understand that the experience levels are regulatory requirements (Company and Governing bodies) as well as a very effective way of culling the market in times of high pilot numbers compared to jobs available.

Don’t get me wrong, there is good reason for pilots to be concerned at the level of technical skill required but the simple fact is that you are not expected to ace the sim ride or answer every technical question correctly, BUT, you do need to demonstrate by communicating effectively, during the Successful Interview, why it is you should be employed instead of the other candidates.

Hint: The most important thing I have learnt about USP’s is that; pilots who are successful in the interview deal with their strengths and weaknesses not as a list of things that they should have (because every one has them –right?), but as a

“checklist of things that have a reason for being” – In other words that checklist

(like your aircraft checklist) has a history behind it, and it has been established by experience, practice and most important of all knowledge - knowledge that it is part of their character which they understand and continually use to their advantage.

You don’t have to take my word for it. Here is what Todd Chapman, Manager Operations Support with Eastern Airlines had to say about strengths and weaknesses when I interviewed him in 2006.

“We want to know that you have a good understanding of yourself. One way we may question how well you know yourself is to use the information gained from your psyche profile in the pre-testing and then to ask questions from your profile.”

An example Todd gave was that he tells’ the candidate about three areas of the profile, two areas they performed well in and the third area they performed not as well. Todd will then ask the candidate “which area do you think that might be and why.” Todd went on to say that this type of question allows them to analyse the individuals’ self-awareness he put it this way. “It allows us to corroborate the psyche test by giving the candidate the opportunity to demonstrate his/her knowledge of themselves and if the candidate is aware of his/her weaker areas.”

Todd adds, “This one question has established the validity of 3 things - the psyche test, that the candidate knows his/her weaker areas and that the candidate can build on the weaker areas or at least mitigate the weakness by being aware of it.”

Rather than marking them down Todd said that it is seen as a positive for the candidate – his final comment was telling.

“Self awareness is integral to knowing your limitations and capabilities.”

I’ll say it again…all of us have strengths and weaknesses…by recognizing

Here is an example of a weakness developed into a USP.

A weakness can be “I don’t know” (the answer)

A weakness elevated to a USP is… ”I don’t know but when I’m finished here today I’ll put some time and effort into finding the answer and give you a call back.”

(Now in effect that response is saying to the interviewer “I will go to these lengths to find the answer, because that is who I am and I’m confidant enough to admit I don't know in the first place.”)

The concept of the USP makes pilots feel uncomfortable because they think that they need to have answers that are “made up.” Their comment is you should answer the question truthfully. I agree 100%. That is why I advocate using a USP. The USP is something that is directly related to you that supports your values and your ideals. It is about you so therefore it must be true.

I recently talked to Captain Richard Goodman. Captain Goodman is a successful airline pilot and understands the importance of interview preparation and how he sells himself during an interview. I told him about USP’s and the principle behind them. He told me that he had used a company, which specialized in preparing candidates for the interview. One of the comments Richard made was that the coach had told him that he must have answers prepared and that these answers must not sound false. At the time Richard thought that sounded false...how could he have a prepared answer that didn’t sound false, and didn’t sound like it was prepared…he went on to say that he thought that the coach was full of himself.

What is really interesting is what Captain Goodman said next...”I realise now that what the coach had said was right. I guess I didn’t relate it back to me at the time and my own life experiences. Unless you have some sort of response formulated it’s too late to think about it during the interview.”

I hope you are also beginning to realise the importance of your interview preparation and understanding your USP’s’.

I think this is what has happened to our friend Jeff when he was asked the question “why is it that you think you are a good communicator?” He didn’t have anything prepared... in fact he said, “my mind has gone blank.” When he did come up with an example it wasn’t a very good one.

Let’s ask Jeff the same question again. This time Jeff has used the concept of the USP to help him answer the question.

Interviewer) “Jeff, why is it that you think you are a good communicator?”

Jeff’s response) “I’m a good communicator because I realise there’s a difference between addressing the cabin crew to be seated for takeoff, which needs to be directive in tone to when I make a PA to the passengers during the flight which needs to be informative and authoritative. I mean, it’s all communication but it’s what you say, knowing when to say it, and how you say it that makes all the difference between good and bad communication.” (Succinct)

“I believe good communication is an important key to a safe, effective work environment. Good communication is also about being a good listener.”

So when it comes to a USP, understand you are using your USP to establish your credentials and thus sell your unique set of skills as well as the fact that: “I hold an ATPL and have x amount of hours and my last employer was blah, blah, blah.”

Don’t forget that all the other applicants will have a similar level of experience or higher than you presently hold.

Your USP should be as familiar to you as your favourite song and like your favourite song it should bring out the best in you.

Important Tip #4

Can I have more than one USP?

Can you have more than one USP? The answer is yes most people have several. I would encourage you to seek out as many as you can as it gives you depth of character.

For example: “Not only do I enjoy instructing, I also enjoy being around people, I get along with people.” This example has two USP’s within it. Just make sure you apply the principles of Important Tip #2 to both.

USP’s can be based on all facets of your life but they should be identifiable as something that is over and above your requirement to hold that skill for your job.

E.g. “I hold an Air Transport Pilots Licence and a Bachelor of Aviation” ergo I can fly a plane as required by my employer and I have a higher level of education in the business of aviation - which may or may not be important. This does not make you more employable over any of the other pilots sitting in the waiting room for their turn to be interviewed. They too hold an ATPL; and they too can fly the aircraft as required by the employer. (Some may also hold a Bachelor of Aviation)

If you now say “I hold an ATPL and in 2003 I completed my Bachelor of Aviation and - My major was Human Factors which is something that I am interested in and I have the good fortune to conduct the in-house CRM courses for my present company,” you have turned a boring statement into something which pricks the interview panels collective interest and demonstrates you not only know the value of your Bachelor of Aviation but that you are capable of turning your studies into practice and an advantage for the employing company.

I deliberately bolded the words which describe how you feel. At their deepest level, a USP is how you view not only your job but also what you get out of the job in order to make it worthwhile for the employer to say, “Congratulations you’re hired!”

Note: A USP is how you use what is unique about you to sell your strengths and weaknesses.

Exercise 1

Write out a list of your USP’s

Don’t be too concerned if you don’t get many just now. You get to have another go later in ‘The Guide’. (Let ‘The Guide’ do just that…’guide you’) e.g. demonstrate a positive attitude – “because I know it helps me succeed at what I do and by

practicing what I preach I have ended up here today in the interview room.”

Self confidant – “I am able to make this statement because I apply myself to my studies and knowledge of my current aircraft and read extensively. I also seek advice if required”. (Shows you understand that no matter how hard you try you will never know everything and that you have the confidence to ask)

Effective communicator – “Well for a start I am here today in the interview because I was able to communicate my desire to work for you. Other examples are…”.

Team orientated – “Each and everyday I work with a team of great people and

Team orientated – “Each and everyday I work with a team of great people and