When recruiting new talent for your business, you’ll want to use your interviews to find out as much as you can about potential candidates – to see whether they’ll be a good fit in terms of skills, expertise and personality.
However, a common mistake that interviewers make is to turn their interview into an interrogation and that isn’t going to help you or get the best out of candidates.
It is the interviewer’s job to thoroughly assess the candidate, to ask the questions and to make the decision about whether there will be a job offer at the end of it all. In an interview situation then, the interviewer naturally has “the power”, or so it would seem…
We’re currently operating in a very candidate-led market. There are plenty of opportunities available and candidates can be pickier about what they want from their next role because they have so much choice. If you’re interviewing a candidate today, they may well have other interviews lined up this week, or even a job offer on the table already.
This means that candidates have plenty of power too. They’re assessing whether your company is a good fit for them, if the opportunity offers what they are looking for and ultimately, if you do offer them a job, they have the option of accepting or declining.
It’s easy to assume that the candidate wants to work for your company as they applied for a job with you, however, as both parties have power it’s important to remember that an interview is a two-way street.
We recommend working through your questions first and letting the candidate do 90% of the talking. Once you’re satisfied you know what you need to and you’re feeling positive about the candidate it’s time to deliver your best sales pitch.
Tell the candidate about your company, what it’s like to work there and how they will be making an impact in their role (if they get the job). Let them know more about the training they will receive and any progression opportunities and rewards. The aim is to have them leave the interview wanting the job more than ever.
Then give the candidate the opportunity to ask their own questions. This will not only help them to learn more about the company and the role, but it should also indicate to you what’s important to them.
During your interviews and throughout the rest of the recruitment process, you should treat your candidates with the same respect and courtesy that you would treat your current employees. The opinion that candidates build of your company and you will be formed on every encounter and piece of correspondence you have with them.
While hiring a new person is a big decision and you can be busy with other tasks, it’s important to update your candidates in a timely manner. Leaving them hanging for a couple of weeks whilst you think about your decision or look for other options doesn’t look professional and isn’t fair.
Interviewers should aim to give their candidates a good experience if they want to have the pick of the best talent. Good people won’t be short of offers at the moment, so it’s down to you to make sure they choose your company.
Are you looking to recruit new talent? We specialise in recruitment for graduates, wholesale, distribution and manufacturing industries, recruiting skilled individuals at all levels for over a decade. Get in touch with us today to see how we can help shape the future of your business.
