Listen for what isn’t in the job description
Focus on the texture of day-to-day work, not the official narrative.
Key takeaways
- What it is: Focus on the texture of day-to-day work, not the official narrative.
- Why it works: Job descriptions describe the formal structure of a role; conversations with incumbents reveal the actual experience — the hidden costs, the informal power dynamics, the skills that matter most, the culture that doesn’t fit in a values statement. This tacit knowledge is the most decision-relevant information available and is only accessible through direct conversation.
- Evidence: Plausible mechanism, limited direct outcome data.
- Avoid: Treating the informational interview as a chance to sell yourself rather than to learn — the information you gather is the product, not the impression you make.
Why it works
Job descriptions describe the formal structure of a role; conversations with incumbents reveal the actual experience — the hidden costs, the informal power dynamics, the skills that matter most, the culture that doesn’t fit in a values statement. This tacit knowledge is the most decision-relevant information available and is only accessible through direct conversation.
How to do it
- 1Ask follow-up questions that go deeper into anything they mention with energy (positive or negative).
- 2Listen for hesitation, hedge words, or pauses — they often signal the real answer.
- 3Ask "what does a hard week look like?" to get past the official narrative.
- 4Take notes on specific phrases they use — this is the vocabulary of insiders and signals cultural fit.
What the evidence says
MechanisticTacit knowledge — the unwritten, experience-based knowledge of how things actually work — is a well-established construct in knowledge management research. Direct conversation is the primary mechanism for accessing it.
Honest caveat: One person’s experience of a role or culture is not representative; seek multiple informational interviews before drawing strong conclusions.
- — Polanyi (1966), The Tacit Dimension
Common mistake
Treating the informational interview as a chance to sell yourself rather than to learn — the information you gather is the product, not the impression you make.
IX Coach helps you process what you heard after an informational interview — turning qualitative impressions into structured career insights.
Practice this with IX Coach →