A long hiring process puts businesses at risk of losing top talent to a competitor that moves faster. Utilizing remote interviewing practices can give a team an advantage. However, in this candidate-driven market, it is important to remember that talent worth having is interviewing the company too. The impression the interviewing team leaves is as important as ever.
Define Interview Team
When conducting an onsite interview, it’s easy to fill the candidate’s entire day or day and a half with interviews. A candidate could meet and interview with as many or as few people as the hiring manager chose. This could lead to many non-decision makers being involved because the day had to be filled, or there was concern about leaving people out of the process.
When doing remote interviewing, we can minimize the interview fatigue and expedite the process simply by reducing the interview team.
- Pro Tip 1: Include only decision maker on interview team
- Pro Tip 2: Make sure the interview team knows the role they are interviewing for and what their role in the process is. Consider giving them a list of questions specific to their involvement.
- Pro Tip 3: If an interview team member has little experience with video/phone interviewing, provide guidelines for interviewing that set your professional expectations. (The team member who trims arm hair during the interview will run off top talent!)
Establish Interview process and expected timeline with the candidate
When doing on-site interviews, a typical schedule might be:
- Arrive on-site
- Meet the HR representative
- Take a tour of the company
- Candidate gives a presentation
- Individual or group interviews (half day or all day)
When doing interviews on-site, everyone on the interview team may have to adjust their schedules to make the date and time the candidate is there to participate. Remote interviews have decreased the urgency to be available. If each person interviews individually and has a rigid schedule, it can delay the process.
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- Pro Tip 1: Interview in small groups when possible, rather than individually
- Pro Tip 2: Determine if the candidate is working on a specific timeline
- Pro Tip 3: Use a high-quality recruiter, such as Insight Recruitment, who is dedicated to filling your role. They will help manage the process and the candidate’s expectations throughout all interview stages for you.
Maintain communication with the candidate throughout the hiring process
Communication during the interview is important to maintain the interest of top talent during an extended interview process. The candidate needs to have a good experience with you, or they may go with another company who gave them an excellent impression.
A good experience would include:
- communication that is engaging
- availability for questions
- asking follow-up questions about experience
- updating when there are delays in the interview timeline
- update on their interview status (even if it is a decline)
- making them feel like they are wanted and part of the team.
Pro Tip 1: Use one point of contact that communication is facilitated through.
- This should be a designated individual that the candidate can connect with for updates and questions
- This person should manage the candidate’s expectations from start to finish during the entire interview process
Pro Tip 2: Use a high-quality recruiter, such as Insight Recruitment, who is dedicated to filling your role. They can be the point of contact for the candidate and keep them engaged with your organization during the entire hiring process.
Sell the company’s mission and vision
Job seekers are no longer just looking for “work.” They are looking to feel like they are making a difference in the world, both at home and in the workplace.
Top considerations for candidates include:
- Do the company values and mission align with mine?
- Is the company a cultural fit for me?
- Will the company offer me learning and growth opportunities?
- What is the stability of the company?
Pro Tip 1: Look at your company website. Is your company mission easy to find? Does it give a good representation of what the company’s contribution to the world is?
Pro Tip 2: Proactively have a portion of the interview to introduce the company, its mission, and values early in the process. With remote interviewing, the option for a tour is not available, and it is important for the candidate to feel the energy of the company.
Pro Tip 3: Use a high-quality recruiter, such as Insight Recruitment, who is dedicated to filling your role. They can help sell your corporate vision to the candidate and get them excited about the opportunity and contributions they can make.
Conclusion
The interview process has changed in the last few years. The way job seekers view their careers is also different. We are all human beings trying to make the world a better place. As remote interviewing has become more routine, it is important to bring that human touch to the process to attract and maintain top candidates. Focusing on these few things can make your remote interviewing process a great experience for the candidate:
- Define the interview team
- Establish the interview process and expected timeline with the candidate
- Maintain communication with the candidate throughout the hiring process
- Sell the company’s mission and vision
To take the burden off the hiring manager for making the interview process streamlined, use a dedicated recruiter to manage the details and stay close to the candidates you are interviewing. This will allow you to interview more effectively and do what you do best.
At Insight Recruitment, we pride ourselves on our industry knowledge and candidate relationships. We can help streamline your interview process by nurturing the candidate and keeping them excited to be a part of your organization. Don’t hesitate to contact us today to see how we can help you track down and manage your next star hire.
