MightyRecruiterEmployer Interviewing Best Practices
The interview process is crucial to finding the best workers for your company. While the interviewee will most likely prepare thoroughly beforehand and learn what not to do during the interview, you need to prepare yourself as the interviewer. There are just as many ways for you to mess up as the person being interviewed. By understanding some basic employer interviewing best practices, you can reduce the likelihood of hiring unqualified candidates and making the best candidate walk right out the door.
Preparing Before the Interview
Preparation is vital to a successful interviewing process. First, you need to make sure that your responsibilities are being handled while you are conducting interviews. Depending on the type of position you are trying to fill and how many people apply, it could take you several days to meet with every applicant. If there are other tasks you need to take care of, then delegate them to other employees or make sure you have enough hours in the day to ensure the day-to-day duties of the company are taken care of.
Additionally, you want to make sure you know what questions to ask during the actual interview. The purpose of the interview is to find who is best qualified for the job and who would be the greatest asset to the organization as a whole. While you should inquire about the candidate’s past employment history and skillset, you should also ask questions to gather more information about who the applicant is as an individual. One aspect of the best employer interviewing best practices is asking questions that are unique and will keep the interviewee on his or her toes. These include:
-What has been your favorite project at a previous job, and why is it your favorite
-What would your boss have to say about your performance
-Describe a problem you had at a previous place of employment. How did you overcome it
-Are there any questions you would like to ask me
Be Mindful of the Red Flags
There are things a candidate may say or do during the interview that should be an immediate red flag. Some of them are fairly obvious like if an interviewee shows up to the office late or looks entirely disheveled. However, some red flags are not as obvious, and part of the employer interviewing best practices include watching out for the little details that show a potential candidate may not be the best fit. For example, if you ask the interviewee to talk about his or her biggest weakness and he or she says there is none, then you should take that as a sign that the candidate is unwilling to discuss what areas need to be improved upon.
Value Everyone’s Time
Although an applicant will likely be putting his or her best foot forward, you want to do the same. You want to give a positive impression of the company regardless of whether the person actually gets hired. Even if a candidate does not ultimately get the job, you do not want him or her bad-mouthing your organization to future applicants. Likewise, you do not want to give a bad impression to the best candidate. Someone coming in for an interview likely has others lined up, and if they get an offer from you and someone else but you came across as unprofessional, then the other company will get the employee you wanted.
Part of valuing people’s time includes meeting with them at the designated time. If you scheduled an interview for 10:00 A.M., then you should meet right at 10. Being a few minutes behind is okay, but you should never have a candidate waiting excessively. Additionally, you should follow up with everyone who came in for an interview as part of the employer interviewing best practices. At the end of the meeting, you should tell applicants when they can expect to hear back. Even if a candidate did not get the job, you should still send an email stating that the position went to someone else. This provides much needed closure
Show Them the Same Respect You Would Expect to Receive
Although you are the one conducting the interview, you should still be respectful. Maintain eye contact throughout the meeting. Shake the candidate’s hand at the end of the interview, and thank the person for his or her time. Even though only one person can get the job, utilizing the employer interviewing best practices will go a long way in maintaining a good reputation among the community.
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