How to plan an effective interview

Job interviews are handy tools when you want to assess your candidates to ensure that they possess the right skills, qualifications, values, and qualities to hold down a job in your company. Even in the age of technology, job interviews still remain the most popular assessment method for candidates, among hiring managers.

Face-to-face interviews allow you to see your candidates in action in a practical scenario. If you structure the interview properly by giving it enough thought, you will definitely be able to select the best candidate out of the applicant pool with the right skills and knowledge for the job.

Interviews are also a great way for you to determine whether a candidate would fit in with the company culture. Here’s how you can effectively plan your business’s interview procedures to get the best results:

First things first. You need to initially decide on the best interview format for you.

A one-to-one meeting is not the only option you have when it comes to interviews. You have many options to choose from, such as:

Interview with a selection panel

Instead of having separate interviews for different assessments, you can select a panel of interviewers who can individually assess certain qualifications or talents of the interviewee. The interview panel will be in charge of screening resumes, preparing questions, and the final assessment of a candidate. You can choose to have an HR representative, a technical officer, a line manager, a potential co-worker, or a senior member of the business.

Group interviews

When you have a time constraint, it’s better to go with a group interview. This will allow you to interview multiple candidates at the same time and provide you with a good judgment of their competitiveness, assertiveness, and performance in a group.

Telephone or video interviews

These are ideal for candidate screening before a face-to-face interview. Virtual interviews will involve less complex planning on your side and save you both time and money for the screening process.

Be mindful when you select the interview questions

Instead of wasting valuable interview time on basic questions, you should plan your interview question in such a way as to draw out the important details from a candidate. This information would include their skills, experience, and qualities. Open ended interview questions are ideal to assess the personality of a candidate. Some common ones are:

• “Tell me about yourself”
• “Tell me about a time when you overcame a difficult challenge”
• “What do you plan to do in your first month in this job?”

Tailor your interview to be relevant to the job

Asking personal questions during an interview is unprofessional. Avoid small talk with the candidate if all you have to talk about is discriminatory topics such as ethnicity, orientation, or religion of the person.

Don’t vary your interview procedure for all candidates

Wanting to change the interview questions a little bit to suit each candidate is natural but avoid giving too much time or importance to a single candidate. Keep your interview fair and consistent for all candidates so that you can make an unbiased decision at the end of the day.

Prepare for applicant questions

Familiarize yourself with the job role and company so that you can answer the questions of the applicants truthfully. Some may even choose to ask about the benefits programs and the vacation policy. Prepare answers to all possible questions.

Secure a proper location for the interview

A busy café or office room does not make for an ideal interview location. Ensure that the candidates get to walk into a disturbance- and distraction-free area to make your interviews more effective.