EFFECTIVE RECRUITING AND INTERVIEWING

At any organization, much of their success can be attributed to the hiring of talented and motivated employees with diverse skills and attributes.  

HIRING MANAGER’S ROLE Your role as the interviewer and hiring manager is to: Gather information about the candidate and assess his/her potential for success on the job Conduct an interview and select the best candidate for long term results  

Pre-Interview Research Contact Information – don’t shy away from those out of state Objective – career or job opportunity Education – organization requirements Experience – demonstrated success/experience Gaps Honors & Activities – work life balance?

The Approach Welcome the candidate Create a professional and relaxed atmosphere

Introduction Explain your role and where you fit into the hiring process

The Interview Ask open-ended questions and keep them job related. Preparing questions ahead of time will help the discussion flow better, allowing you to gather the information needed to assess the candidate. Be an active listener and let the candidate do most of the talking. Try to follow the 80/20 “rule of thumb”: the applicant talks 80% of the time and you, the interviewer, talk 20% of the time. Provide an accurate description of the position. Take accurate and job related notes, but not on the resume.

The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and other federal and state agencies have issued guidelines for employers regarding prohibited areas of inquiry during the hiring process. Questions regarding a candidate’s personal characteristics including race, color, creed, religion, national origin, citizenship, sex, marital status, age, physical or mental disability, veteran status, sexual orientation and gender identity are prohibited as they are neither relevant nor necessary to the hiring process.

Unfortunately, sometimes the candidate’s first response to your question is not enough to assess. To obtain additional information you must ask follow-up questions (PROBES) to get the candidate to describe the missing parts. Be sure you have enough information from your first question before moving on to your next question.   PROBING Probing the individual’s answers is critical to verifying if the candidate had demonstrated success, is a sole contributor or team player and can achieve goals. Always identify the “I” versus the “we.”

Closing the Interview End on a positive note. One last question can be “Now that I’ve told you more about the position, would you please explain why this position would be the next job for you?” Sell your organization even if the candidate is not the right person for the job.

The Follow Up   All candidates chosen or not are your advertisement to the organization’s culture and experience. Protect the image of your organization. Provide good customer service/candidate care.

The Decision Once the interview is completed: Review all the information you gathered from the applicant Evaluate the applicant soon after the interview while the information is fresh in your mind Compare the candidate’s competencies with the skill set required for the position, in conjunction with the qualifications of the others interviewed  Questions: Who met all critical requirements the best? Who brings the best relevant experience? Who has the ability to fit in to the organization’s culture?