While the Majority of You Do Not Conduct Working Interviews, Those of You That Do Ensure a Cultural Fit

Yes: 35%

• We have them answer phones, interact with patients and staff. We like to get a feel of their personality and make sure that they mesh well with the rest of our team. — Amy Pelak, Proview Eyecare Optometry, Corona, CA
• It varies; for the most part we want to determine interest and whether or not the candidate feels they can perform the job. Math tests can be important dependent on position as well. — Pam Peters, Midwest Eye, Downers Grove, IL
• We have them read a script in Spanish because being bilingual in Spanish/English is required in our practice. — Diana Canto-Sims, Buena Vista Optical, Chicago, IL
• Answering a phone properly, greeting a patient properly, computer software capability, auto lensometry, auto refraction, topography, history taking, and handwriting are all part of the first days of the interviewing process. Our staff has stayed with us 20-30 years. — Robert M Easton, Jr., OD, FAAO, Oakland Park, FL
• I’m not looking at the task so much as we are looking at how they interact with the team. — Selina McGee, OD, Precision Vision, Edmond, OK
• I allow the candidate to shadow a seasoned employee for an hour or so while watching for the way they interact with patients when they walk through the door. Someone who really wants to be with us and has a love for the industry will be easily realized! — William Chancellor, Eye Can See Eyewear, McDonough, GA
• First and foremost, math testing including a written test, and can they make change without batteries. As well as verbal skills, demeanor, and decorum. — Dave Goodrich, Goodrich Optical, Lansing, MI
• Candidates shadow the position for a half day. We are looking for a personality that fits our tight team, and someone who asks thoughtful questions and isn’t afraid to jump in if a patient asks them a question, even if it’s to say, I’m not sure! — Caitlin Bruno, Binyon Vision Center, Bellingham, WA
• We ask them to perform simple tasks that relate to what job they will be doing. We’re more interested in judging their personalities though. Skills can be taught and refined. Personality can’t be fixed. — Barbara Bloom, OD, Weber Vision Care, Harrisburg, PA
• Service. — Chris Mark, OptiMark, Des Moines, WA
• The candidate shadows for the day. During this time, we have the candidate assist in the dispensary and the lab. This is a great way to see how the candidate interacts with patients and other employees. — Doreen Erbe, Snyder Eye Group, Ship Bottom, NJ
• We ask potential candidate to shadow the position they may be hired to fill to make sure the work actually meets the expectation of the job they think they are applying for. — Deb Jaeger, Eye Center of the Dakotas, Bismarck, ND
• Work with a potential customer, review frame lines. Personality, professionalism, optical skills. — Paula Hornbeck, Eye Candy & Eye Candy Kids, Delafield, WI
• Perform lensometry, frame adjustments, watch patient interactions and communication. Making sure that they are a right fit for our office culture. — Mark Perry, OD, Vision Health Institute, Orlando, FL
• Phones, dispensing, pre-testing. — Judith Whitelaw, Dr. Gregory Char, OD, Orange, OR
• Ability to communicate with clients clearly and possess great listening skills. — Kate Giroux, MacPherson Opticians, Arlington, VA
• We want potential new staff members to be immersed in our culture before we bring them on board. It’s so important that someone understands what you do as a brand before you invite them to be on the front lines. — Harris Decker, Eye Designs of Westchester, Scarsdale, NY
• Kind of a working interview … we do a three month trial. At the end of the three months, if things are working out we hire them. — Tom Brillante, OD, Decatur Eye Care, Decatur, GA
• We feel like we are an office family, so I want to get my entire staff involved. Just spending time with each of my staff helps ensure it’s a good hire. — Kenneth D Boltz, OD, LLC, Dublin, OH
• We are trying to assess their personalities and if they fit in with our couture. And since most opticians are unlicensed we need to see if they are as qualified as they claim. — Bart Parker, OD, Vision Source-Fox Optical, Lake Worth, FL
• Seg heights, PD, fitting glasses, watching the interaction and personality of the interviewee and how they mesh with everyone; pre-testing ability if that is what they are being hired for. — Stephanie Crowley, Sie Eyecare, Charlotte, NC
• I ask them to do the job I am hiring for. I am looking to see how they work with the team and how they interact with clients. — Adam Ramsey, OD, Socialite Vision, Palm Beach Gardens, FL

No: 65%

• It’s often difficult to make a working interview happen logistically when the person is still otherwise employed. We tend to interview at least twice when we are hiring and it usually gives us a pretty good read on a person. — Katie Gillenwalters, Clifton Park Eye Care Associates, Halfmoon NY
• If it’s a seasoned optician their resume speaks for themselves. I wouldn’t doubt their abilities. A less experience optician, I would ask questions. Who is Roy G Biv? If they don’t know, they failed. — Rigo Lopez, Gilman&Vorster Optometry, Indio, Ca
• This business is a one-woman operation we do no interviewing. — Julie Uram, Optical Oasis, Jupiter, FL
• We don’t do working interviews, but we do phone interviews first of all. I’ve been able to weed out candidates based on poor phone skills or poor time management skills, like not answering the phone for a scheduled and confirmed phone interview. — Jenna Gilbertson, McCulley Optix Gallery, Fargo, ND
• They have to “sell” me something in the interview. — Amy Kraemer, Optometric Eye Care Centers, Maplewood, MN
• We make the candidates go through a couple different interviews and research all their references and past history so by the time we’re ready to make an offer, we have a really good idea of what we’re getting. — Josh Bladh, Dr. Bladh OD, Diamond Bar, CA
• We find ourselves hiring people with more retail experience because it’s hard to find people with optical experience that haven’t been sucked into the Essilor/Luxottica state of mind. So new employees tend to not know how to help in a working interview unless they have some experience in the eyecare industry. — Travis LeFevre, Krystal Vision, Logan, UT
• We’re very fortunate that 3 out of our 4 employees have been with us since we started nearly 10 years ago, and our newest employee has been with us for 5 years. We simply haven’t had to perform many interviews. — Christine Howard, Attleboro Vision Care, Attleboro, MA
• Must have Optician license and prior experience. — Texas L. Smith, Dr. Texas L. Smith & Associates, Citrus Heights, CA
• I have no employees but if needed to hire, here would definitely be a trial period so we could see if we were compatible to work together, have the same work ethic, treat customers respectfully, have the right optical skills, and are as meticulous as I am. — Jennifer Leuzzi, Mill Creek Optical, Dansville, NY
• I haven’t had to hire anyone yet. It’s an interesting concept though. — Frances Ann Layton, Eye Associates of South Georgia, Valdosta, GA
• We are incredibly fortunate in that our state Department of Labor offices allow local employers to send in a pool of preselected candidates for free skills testing. They administer the tests and then email the results straight to us. We use their Basic Skills test to screen applicants for personal strengths (math, filing, spelling) and for speed at processing. It is an incredible vetting tool — in part because 50 percent of our selected applicants never show the ability or motivation to go take the test. If someone can’t take an hour of their time to complete something that simple, then we don’t want them running more complex systems at our office! — Jen Heller, Pend Oreille Vision Care, Sandpoint, ID
• It has been too hard to coordinate with our busy schedule. Likely should but no longer do. Occasionally we will have the candidate merely job shadow. — Zachary Dirks, OD, St. Peter and Belle Plaine Eyecare Centers, Saint Peter, MN
• I see little value in it. Most mechanical pieces of what we do can be learned. The ability to listen and interact with people successfully can be determined face to face. — Bob McBeath, Edina Eye, Edina, MN
• We are a licensed state, so candidates are at times already familiar and they normally have the needed skills because of their license. — Jocelyn Mylott, D’Ambrosio Eye Care, Inc., Lancaster, MA