The reason why some construction recruiters will choose to conduct a telephone interview is because you may be located far away from their offices. They will therefore use it is a tool to eliminate weaker candidates early on in the recruitment stage without wasting the candidates time.

You should always handle a telephone interview in the same way as a normal face-to-face interview ? this way you will not go far wrong. The interviewer is simply trying to establish whether you are suitable for the role by asking you a series of questions that relate to yourself and the elements of the construction work you will be doing. They should be treated in a professional manner and not be seen as less important just because you are not sitting in front of the interviewer.

Write down all of your answers to the standard questions that are asked in an interview, making sure some of these are related to construction employment in particular e.g. if you are going for building construction jobs, try to prepare questions including for example, what experience have you had in the building industry? Why skills do you have that match those require for building construction jobs? Your answers can then be referred to whilst you are on the phone. Do not read from the paper but have them written in point form so you can easily identify those you need to refer to. It is important to sound natural on the phone and certainly not like you are reading a script.

Keep a copy of your CV, cover letter and application form you used to apply for the construction work beside you. These again can come in handy to refer to and it allows you to recall what it is they know about you and what they have in front of them.

Speak clearly and professionally. Do not interrupt or talk over the interviewer, as this will not give them a good impression. Do not speak too quickly so they can understand you.

Practice smiling and talking before the interview. Studies have shown that smiling when talking on the phone has a positive effect on the person who is listening.

Finally, always remember that the interviewer is only human. If you do not get the construction job, then there are plenty more out there. Try not to put too much pressure on yourself as this will lead to you not being able to think straight, make you feel nervous and twitchy and the interviewer will be able to hear this in your voice.