ESS Candidate Newsletter – December 2025

Introduction – Aaron Wandtke
Positions Filled in the Last 30 Days
Ask the Recruiter – “What are some best practices for video interview?”

Introduction:

As we wrap up 2025, I wanted to thank you for trusting ESS as your career resource. This has been a unique year in the job market as the market has shifted and what was done just six months ago has changed again. Through it all, I appreciate your trust and investment in myself and ESS to help you thrive in your career.

I wanted to ask for two favors in this last newsletter of the year:

First, below my picture on the left of this newsletter is a link to connect with me on LinkedIn. I frequently post roles as we receive them. If this is of interest to you or you would like access to some of my contacts, please send me an invite if we are not already connected.

Second, we are making a push for Google reviews. If you feel like you would like to leave a Google review on either myself or ESS, I would appreciate it. Click the link to leave a review:

We are constantly seeking new ways to improve our services and are excited to share some of our new initiatives in 2026! Thank you for entrusting myself and ESS and I look forward to collaborating with you in some capacity in 2026.

I hope you and your family have a great holiday season!

To subscribe to our newsletter geared for hiring managers, please click here.

Sampling of Positions Filled in the Last 30 days:

• Regional Finance Director
• Director of Government Markets
• Medicare Advantage Specialist
• Director of Claims
• Nurse Practitioner
• Sourcing Analyst
• Part-time Medical Director
• Lead Sales Producer

Ask the Recruiter – “What are some best practices for video interview?”

Almost 100% of interview processes start with a video interview. To help you prepare, we wanted to share some best practices:

1. Assess your technology – Are you doing the call on your phone or a laptop? Each may sound different, so we encourage you to make a video call with someone else who is not in the same room, to evaluate lighting, sound, and the picture clarity.
2. Dress the part – Even though you may be home in a quiet space, you must dress the part for the interview. Most companies are fine with business casual but do some research to ensure you look the part.
3. Audit your space – What is your background? Are there pictures, boxes, animals, or anything else that could be a distraction? This would be another item to check with someone and have them audit your background so nothing there distracts them from listening to your answers.
4. Eye contact – This is an easy one to forget about as you talk and spend a couple minutes explaining an answer. Practice focusing on the camera or at a minimum focusing on the screen.
5. Know your close – Some interview decisions are made in the last couple minutes of an interview. The quality of the questions you ask, the commentary you provide at the end and conveying your genuine interests are all things that can directly impact the outcome.

Video interviews are here to stay. Although you may not have interviewed much, we encourage you to run a couple practice interviews before you jump fully into the interview process. The last thing you want is to be ruled out for something unrelated to your ability to do the job like your lighting, the background or keeping pets off the screen.

If you need specific help on navigating any job searches that you have in process, please let me know.

I can be reached at 614-885-8490 or by e-mail at aw@ess123.com.