Good interviewers strive to use the limited time during the interview process consciously. Interviewing is difficult, but it will be worthwhile hiring outstanding people who can bring benefits to your firm. Here are some tips that may help you create a better interview experience for the candidate.
Interview Preparation (Yes, as an Interviewer too!)
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Interviewers who do not have the habit of preparing for the interview would tend to appear disoriented in front of the candidate. This lack of direction or clarity may hinder them in shortlisting/accepting candidates.
Here’s a rather succinct in
Interviewer-preparation checklist from Workable:
- Read the applicant’s CV and print out a copy to refer to during the interview
- Go through samples of work submitted by the candidate
- To make sure that the role and requirements are discussed, review the job description again
- Prepare a list of questions to ask
- Refresh your understanding of the mission and structure of your organization, along with the advantages and rewards of the vacancy
Finally, it is also a good idea to add a personal touch to the interview, by picking out commonalities between the interviewer and the candidate or discussing certain points of common interest on the candidate’s profile. This would be possible only with adequate preparation as an interviewer.
Be Methodical
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Unstructured (free-flowing talks without an agenda) interviews run the risk of ending up subjective and being less related to employment for the job at hand. Such interviews enable candidates to be comfortable but do not lead to the greatest recruitment outcomes.
Adding some structure to your interviews can help to improve their effectiveness. While not every interview grants you the time to organize the entire session, it is desirable to strive to partition the interview into a few distinct sections with clear assessment results.
Another tip is to choose questions carefully and avoid generic or leading questions as far as possible. Behavioural and situational questions are important too, as they enable the assessment of the candidate’s soft skills, such as problem-solving and critical thinking. Lastly, to ensure fairness, the same set of questions should be stuck to wherever possible.
Show That You Care
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Candidate-caring provides your employer brand with an excellent experience, and even promotes it. Even if an applicant does not receive an offer for work, they can still feel good about a company or organization that treats them properly. Some ways you can do this are:
- Open on a good note. Meet and greet the interviewee on time; smile, offer a drink and maintain appropriate and professional eye contact.
- Help them visualise working here. Present yourself and your team, and clarify briefly their respective business functions. Candidates should be allowed to go through their portfolio, samples, or past work, and then relate them to working at your company. This helps to humanize your recruitment process.
- Focus on the conversation. Do not get distracted by phone calls, incoming email, or upcoming meetings. Fully focusing on the candidate and eliminating all distractions, for the time being, can instantly improve your rapport with and command respect from candidates.
- Answer their inquiries. Candidates want to know about and play an open part in your organization. Give them the opportunity to ask and answer honestly and directly. Responding to questions will also allow you to pitch your company to the candidates.
Suspend Judgement
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Unconscious prejudice can obscure your judgment, running the risk of inaccurate assessment. One way competent interviewers fight these biases is to request a member of their team to join them during the interview. The team member’s perspective, juxtaposed with the interviewer’s own, can help make more educated and objective decisions on recruitment.
At the end of the day, it also boils to resisting snap judgements. It is always best to make your decisions after you have interviewed every candidate and reviewed all your notes, as well as bouncing these findings off with the team.
Overall Message
Being an interviewer can be hard without the necessary preparation. Always be one step ahead and remember to take interviews seriously. You might end up hiring the next high-flyer in your company!