It is a misconception that the pressure in a job interview is always on the job seeker. With the proliferation of information due to the internet, job seekers today are very well prepared for interviews and the interview taker has to be just as well if not more prepared to make the interview effective and to find the right candidate for the job. After all, the interview taker has his or her own people to answer to, and inconsistent or ineffective interviews lead to wrong hires which reflect badly on the interview taker as well as the organization. Here are some tips on conducting effective job interviews to get the right candidate for the job.
Prepare: It is not just the job seeker who has to prepare for the interview. You need to prepare yourself or the various questions and discussions that might spring up in the course of the interview. Also, you can keep the interview standard to a certain extent to ensure that you can grade all the candidates on the same parameters. You need to list these down in advance.
Take notes: Don’t forget to take notes during interviews. Apart from the obvious benefit of having a record of everything that happened during the interview, there is the psychological aspect where candidates worry about what you are noting down and be more careful in their responses. Also, it seems more professional and creates a good impression in the candidate’s mind.
Take your time: Interviews that are too short are good for no one. Candidates understand that they don’t have much of a chance of making it and you will not be able to learn everything you wanted to about the candidate. So take your time and let both parties clear everything in the course of the interview.
Try a panel: This might not always be possible but try to have more than one interview taker in the room at one time. This ensures that nothing is missed and you have someone to corroborate everything. Also, it is a good idea to have multiple rounds of interviews with different stakeholders.
Apart from the above, use technology aggressively and be flexible in your operations. Try these tips to get the best out of your hiring.
