Things to keep in mind during your first candidate interview

Interviews are grueling, tough and any other word for ‘difficult’ that you find under synonyms in the dictionary. And that’s just for the candidate. As an interviewer, you’re expected to find the measure of a candidate in a short period of time and decide if they’ll perform their role well and fit in, in your organization.

If not guided properly, novice interviewers are liable to give a bad impression of the company to the candidate (“Are they not taking me seriously?”) and draw incorrect conclusions from the experience (“We had a fun conversation so we should hire him”).

This tip sheet is no substitute for on-the-job experience or hands-on training, but it’s meant to help you feel more confident when you’re on the other side of the table.

Here’s the secret: The interview doesn’t begin and end at the scheduled time. Just like a candidate prepares to make a good impression, there’s a lot of pre and post production work to be done to provide a good candidate experience.

How to prepare for the interview?

  • Write yourself a question bank: A good rule of thumb is to make sure to have a section for every major skill/requirement you have. For instance, when Girish Mathrubootham, CEO of Freshworks Inc., interviews, he checks for ownership by asking them what they’re most proud of, the challenges they faced, how they overcame them and what they’ve learnt from it.So, in his question bank, he has “What are you most proud of?” right next to ownership. A question bank can help in two ways:
    • It provides the interview with a structure. With the questions written down, you guide the candidate through a path and make sure you have covered all the subjects you need to. HR software like Freshteam helps you structure your interview by determining what skills you are assessing for.
    • Structured questions also ensure that every candidate faces a standard interview with the same questions. The interview scorecard that Freshteam provides comes in very handy here to compare candidates on various skills.

    Also, make sure to check with someone to see if your questions are appropriate and are phrased in a friendly manner. Asking about a candidate’s age, marital status, race, or religion is illegal and can have serious repercussions.

  • Pen an answer guide too: Thoughts are fleeting. While you might be able to clearly remember your reasoning for every question you’ve jotted down, even as you do them or the next day, they won’t be as fresh in your memory a couple of weeks down the line.
  • Prepare for the interview: Read their resume, go through past experience and go in with more than an inkling. This way, you won’t seem like someone who got lost on their way to a meeting and decided to take an interview, just for the heck of it. Being prepared sets a good tone for the interview and assures the candidate that you are, indeed, taking them seriously.
  • Use the interview to discuss approach, not solve problems:  If you want someone to solve a problem, take a test or write something, don’t do it during the interview. When you have the other person in the room, focus on asking them to explain their approach rather than spend time viewing their work sample.

schedule-interviews-using-freshteam

Things you can do during the interview:

  • Use small talk to put the candidate at ease: Ask them about their trip to the office. Talk about the weather. Offer them some coffee or water. Start slow and safe. Just because you’ve done your research and prepped for the interview, it doesn’t mean you should skip over all the niceties and start the drill. Give them some time to get used to you by just chatting about nothings for a bit.
  • Clearly explain the role: Make sure everyone’s on the same page by describing the role clearly to the candidate. ,Sell them the role and remind them why they applied. Get them excited to do a good job.
  • Take notes: This will be particularly helpful when you are filling out the interview feedback form a few days later and you can’t remember what impression got about the candidate’s work ethic.
  • Give them time to ask questions: Most of these questions would be about company culture, the job role, the manager they would work for, the responsibilities of the role and so on. This will help you restructure your job descriptions the next time you publish a job opening.

You did an outstanding job at the interview, what next?

You’ve asked all of your questions, the candidate’s asked theirs, you’ve shaken hands and made your exit. However, it’s still not time to relax because the most important part of the interview is still ahead of you: the interview feedback submission time.

  • Ask for an interview scorecard: Or make yourself one by listing the qualities you’re looking for and giving a rating out of 5 stars. Most interviews consist of a conversation between the candidate and the interviewer. While this has the advantage of putting the candidate at ease, it poses a number of challenges while recording interview feedback. The Freshteam interview scorecard does this by asking you to rate every skill out of five stars and recommend the candidate for hire or not. The trouble with conversations, however, is that they come hand in hand, with unconscious biases. Research shows us that an unconscious bias is just the brain using shortcuts (like prior experience) to make quick decisions.You might even reject candidates because of this uneasy prejudice. So, make sure you substantiate every score you hand out.
  • Give your whole impression of the candidate: When filling out the interview scorecard, don’t just write down feedback in support of your decision. List everything you can remember of the meeting so that the hiring manager and the recruiter have all the information they need to make the right decision. If you don’t end up hiring the candidate, anyone can use the information in the future when looking up the candidate.A sub point of this one is, make it about the issue, not the person. Watch your phrasing and make sure you’re describing the issue and not criticizing the person.There is a whole lot of difference between, “The sample is erratic and could have used some proofreading.” and “She is a poor speller.”. Remember that your feedback will be passed onto the candidate so be tactful and considerate.
  • Don’t sweat it: It can be nerve wracking to be in the hot seat so just remember to relax and act naturally. Yes, you have a question bank but no, you don’t have to read out questions word for word. Don’t be pressured to fill the silence. Practice your I-want-to-make-you-comfortable smile so that your serial-killer eyes don’t accidentally show. Just remember, the person on the other side of the table is more nervous than you are. The interview’s about them, not you. Your job’s to just observe and participate. Good luck!First times are always memorable. Let us know in the comments below how your was experience interviewing a candidate for the first time. 

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