SIMPLE TIPS FOR CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS
1. Control the interview – it is your show!
2. Don’t buy first impressions – most people make up their minds within the first ten minutes. This may be a mistake. You may miss out on a great candidate that takes a while to feel comfortable selling themselves.
3. Help interviewees feel at ease – they will open up and talk more.
4. Spend more time listening than talking. Get your candidate to talk 80% of the time. Hiring authorities usually talk about 50% of the interview.
5. Have a purpose for every question otherwise you are wasting valuable time with your candidate. If this person is a great candidate, in this market you will lose out to one of your competitors.
6. Take notes. Do not rely on your memory. Tell your candidate before your interview that you will be taking notes – this puts them at ease.
7. Don’t make assumptions. Look for repeat patterns of behavior to draw conclusions about the candidate.
8. Don’t tell your candidate what answer you want them to give. Avoid leading questions. Don’t tell them what you are looking for until they have given their responses.
9. Be systematic. If you are interviewing several candidates, be sure to ask them the same questions. Stick to the same general issues in order to be able to compare them fairly.
10. Be honest. If you know for sure that the candidate does not fit your opportunity, it is not fair to lead them to believe that they are still in consideration. The professional thing to do is to tell them that while their background is great, you don’t think it is a match for this opportunity. The dreaded “ding” letter is much more painful because they still hope they will be the one!
These Tips are simple, but they are also good solid basics to remind you to keep your interviews professional and fair. Most importantly, these Tips will ensure positive results!
Nancy J. Phillips, CPC
