6 Top Tips for Interviewers When Conducting an Interview

6 Top Tips for Interviewers When Conducting an Interview

 

With busy schedules, a million deadlines and thousands of mini crises every day it can be tricky to find the time to plan successful interview questions, especially if you don’t have a human resources department there to help you along.

Although interviews are great for finding the perfect candidate, it’s also an opportunity for your business to make a good impression. The mixture of communication between yourself and the candidate allows the candidate to decide whether they want to work for you just as much as you’re trying to decide whether to hire them.

Here are some tips for interviewing someone and for conducting a job interview — from the other side of the desk:

 

• Ask questions that relate to the job role

Before conducting the interview it’s good to keep a list of the key responsibilities for the position and create a list of questions that relate to those responsibilities. If you have time, reach out to employees who work within the same or similar position on a daily basis for their input.

 

• Ask behavioural questions

Behavioural questions are a great way to see if candidates have the potential to fit into your organisation. Ask for specific examples of past performance and behaviour, with questions such as “tell me about a time when you…” or “if you were met with lots of deadlines how would you manage them…”

 

• Outline the interview structure

Give the candidate a roadmap of the interview before you get started, as this can often settle both the candidate's nerves and your own since everyone involved will know what is expected.

Perhaps begin the interview by outlining the job role and re-cap the candidate's application form. Then let the candidate know that you will be asking job-related questions, followed by an opportunity for the candidate to ask questions.

 

• Allow the candidate to showcase their skills

Hiring managers should only talk about 30% of the time and allow candidates time to describe their skills & qualifications during the interview. Make sure you ask all of your questions and that you haven’t missed anything to avoid any confusion post-interview and so the candidate knows as much about the job role as possible.

 

• Keep to a professional but friendly manner

Keep all of your questions job-related, often when hiring managers start chatting, they may hire the candidate because they like their personality rather than whether the person is truly qualified for the job role and fits in with the company culture.

 

• Follow up with the candidate after the interview

It’s vital you keep communicating with the candidate throughout the whole hiring process. It allows the candidate to know what is happening and it helps you stay organised with different potential candidates. What’s more, this is another way of extending a professional courtesy and gives the interview process closure for both sides.

 

For more information about how to prepare for hiring new candidates or if you’d like to chat to our expert team about advertising with us on 1 of our many job boards, visit our solutions page and ensure that your business is attracting and hiring top-level talent.