How To Conduct Better Job Interviews

How To Conduct Better Job Interviews

Sitting across the table from a prospective hire, it’s easy to shoot a few questions off the top of your head. But that’s hardly going to help you find the best from a bunch of candidates. On the contrary, such a casual approach to conducting job interviews could leave you with a smooth-talker, who is a shirker at the workplace. In other words, a bad hire—and, an expensive mistake. Wasted salaries, severance payments, the cost of re-hiring and going through orientation and training exercises again are costs that any business can do without. In fact, a survey by Right Management puts the cost of a bad hire at one to five times the position’s annual salary. It also identifies lower employee morale and decreased productivity as the most common non-monetary outcomes of poor hiring decisions that cost organisations nevertheless.

That’s why it helps to set in place a well-designed interview process. Planned interviews help weed out candidates who genuinely aren’t right for the position. They also help identify candidates who may not think well on their feet, but would be an asset for your organisation. After all, “interviews are stressful for even the most accomplished candidates—it takes a tremendous amount of gumption to put oneself on the line,” says D.P. Singh, general manager, human resource, C&C Constructions. To figure out how to improve your interviewing skills, read on and learn more from experts who’ve mastered the knack of  interviewing. 

Recognise the Right Talent

Body language is an important tool in the hands of an interviewer.

Start well

Set the criteria: You can choose the best candidate only if you are clear about what you’re looking for. So, before you start the hiring process, you should have clarity about the skills, knowledge, and personal qualities that would help the new recruit succeed at work.

This could involve a brain-storming session with the concerned business head, since they’ll know what technical skills and knowledge are needed,” — Zafrullah Khan, senior vice president, HR Glenmark Generics.

“ISO certified companies have to adhere to prescribed recruitment procedures, which set the criteria for the interviewing process,” adds Singh. For instance, detailed job descriptions must be prepared and translated into factors the candidate will be interviewed (or tested) for.

Formulate appropriate questions: Next, frame questions that help evaluate the candidate for the set criteria. “An interview process is designed to probe a candidate’s skills and knowledge, and to understand whether they fit the organisation’s culture,” shares Pravin Subba, head, HR, Greenply Industries.

Questions asked during an interview may be knowledge-based, situational, behavioural, or stress-inducing queries. These categories should depend on the position for which you are hiring. For example, test skills and knowledge of the candidate, if you’re hiring for entry-level positions. On the other hand, candidates for senior posts, should be questioned more on behavioural aspects, since past behaviour sets a precedent for future ones.

Prepare candidates: Start the process with a few minutes of warm up—exchange pleasantries and explain how the interview process is going to work, with the idea of establishing a rapport with the interviewee. “Then, gradually ease into the question mode. First discuss the candidate’s positive experiences, and only get down to clarifying inconsistencies in the CV after that,” suggests Singh.

Some organisations also emphasise treating potential employees like important guests from the moment they step into the premises. “We go so far as to ensure the waiting time before the interview starts is just right—long enough to help them feel comfortable in the environment, but not so long that they feel a lack of professionalism on our part,” adds Subba.

Dig deeper

Understand body language: “Body language is an important tool in the hands of an interviewer. The candidate’s body language says a lot about him. Also, the interviewer can use gestures to help the interviewee feel more relaxed,” opines Ritul Pathak, manager, HR and administration, Pioneer India Electronics.

So, what should you be looking out for? “Signs of nervousness,” says Pathak. If the candidate only maintains eye contact with one of the interviewing panelists, usually the one he is replying to, he’s nervous. Or, he might be sitting on the edge of the seat. “If you sense that the candidate is uneasy, ask him some personal questions about his family and education to make him comfortable. Then proceed further,” suggests Pathak.

Use confidence-boosting gestures like smiling, leaning forward, and nodding in agreement with the candidate. Middle and senior-level candidates, however, are expected to show some assertiveness, carry themselves confidently and proffer definite answers.

Cross-question: “An interview aims to judge how well the interviewee is selling himself,” says Subba. That’s why the interviewer should focus on guiding the conversation forward and giving the candidate ample opportunity to talk. Cross-questioning keeps the conversation flowing. “It’s like passing the ball back in the interviewee’s court again and again, to verify his statements by making him share more details,” adds Subba.

According to him, “It may be difficult to validate cited figures, but the process adopted to achieve those targets can be understood. This allows you to understand the interviewee’s approach to providing solutions, or bringing in fresh perspectives in the system.”

For instance, a candidate for a sales supervisory position might say, “My team did ‘x’ amount of business.” Subba suggests asking what distribution model was used, who the CnF agents were, how many people he managed, and what the attrition rate of sales representatives was. The way a candidate handles counter-questions helps determine if he’s fudging responses, or really knows his job well enough to have delivered as he claims.

Use assessment sheets: When you’re interviewing a stream of candidates, it helps to take notes describing the performance of each, so that their responses don’t get mixed up. Some firms even tell interviewers clearly what to record to rule out any subjective bias.

We use assessment sheets to show what competencies to mark the candidates on—and help rule out irrelevant personal prejudices,” — Pravin Subba, head, HR, Greenply Industries.

“Assessment sheets should differentiate between critical and non-critical factors,” suggests Khan. For instance, the critical criterion for a typist’s position may be ‘ability to type at least 50 words per minute’, but for a senior manager, it may be ‘has successfully led a team of not less than 40 people’.

Wrap up

Give the candidate an opportunity to ask you questions after you have asked yours. “That way, the main process is not sidetracked and you rule out the possibility of the candidate taking control of the process,” opines Singh. 

Also, let the candidate know if you’re planning to supplement the evaluation process with a test. Written knowledge-based tests are commonly used for entry-level recruits, or for positions where knowledge is essential, such as jobs in research and development. “We also use psychometric test for middle- and senior-level candidates. Such tests help determine the personality traits and also the ability of the recruit to handle stress—a vital quality in leaders,” says Khan. Reference checks are the last step in the process, since they help reconfirm that answers haven’t been fudged. “We consult referees supplied by the candidate as well as one industry source (not from the candidate’s current place of work) to check on his background,” adds Khan. Follow this, and you can be almost sure of not making a bad hire.

Question hour

There’s no right or wrong when it comes to questions you can ask in an interview. However, queries usually fall in one of these four categories:

Fact-based or general: Questions like “Why would you like to work for us?” help understand what drives the candidate and whether he fits the organisational culture. Queries related to the candidate’s subject of expertise, motivators, and so on also fall in this category.

Situational: Situational questions ask what the candidate would do if placed in a certain situation. For instance, a sales candidate could be asked, “What would you do if a potential client offered to place an order, if you give him a bribe?” Since such answers may be easily fudged, it’s best to stay clear of situations that are too unrealistic.

Stress: Stress questions aim to put the candidate in a stressful situation to see how he reacts to interpersonal confrontation. Such questions are mostly used for candidates for middle and senior-level positions.

Behavioural: Behavioural interviewing is about seeking specific examples that demonstrate the interviewee’s skills. So, instead of asking, “Are you good at following up proposals?” the interviewer would ask, “Tell me about a time when you had to follow up a proposal”. Such questions are useful because their answers are intended to come from actual past experience and so can be double-checked.

Tips for Success

Do your homework: Don’t waste time in asking questions whose answers are already in the candidate’s resume. Study the resume before the interview. If need be, google the candidate for more information.

Interviewing panel: There should be at least one HR representative and a line manager present at the interview, to arrive at a balanced conclusion about the candidate.

Review dress sense: Some interviewers consider the potential recruit’s dress sense as a part of body language, since it shows how serious the candidate is about the interview.

Avoid discriminatory questions: Stay clear of questions that are likely to be considered discriminatory. These include inquiries about personal matters, such as weight, religion, and marital status.

Adopt a holistic approach: Try to use the whole interview to evaluate each criterion. Don’t jump to conclusions based on one answer.

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