No one really teaches you how to be a good interviewer. Most of the time you are thrown into a hiring process because your team needs additional help. But hiring that new team member can take up a lot of time, which is already in short supply. Being able to come out of interviews with a good perspective on each candidate is key to making good hiring decisions quickly. Here are 8 tips for how to run an effective candidate interview:
- Prepare beforehand: Be clear on what you are looking for. Review the job description and the must-haves vs. nice-to-haves. Look through the candidate’s resume for areas you’d like to hear more about. Write down some talking points and leave yourself room to take notes. Set yourself up for success. Interviewers can get anxious too!
- Introduce yourself: Take a few minutes at the beginning of the interview to walk the candidate through your background and how the team is structured. Set the stage for what it’s like to work on your team. And remember, this is a 2-way interview, so always be selling the job. The candidate market is competitive and often talent has multiple offers. You want interviewees to covet the role.
- Be conversational: Even extremely talented people can feel nervous during an interview. Start off by making the candidate feel at ease. You will get a much better gauge of how someone can perform if they feel comfortable.
- Ask the right questions: You will get more out of the conversation if you ask open-ended questions that the candidate can elaborate on. Do not forget about follow-up questions, too. Really listen to their responses and then probe further to get to that next level down.
- Understand how a candidate thinks: Situational questions can help get talent to show you how their brain works versus just responding with facts. Get a candidate to explain how they would approach a specific problem.
- Listen WAY more than you talk: You should be talking less than 30% of the interview. The point of this conversation is to get to know the candidate and what they bring to the table. If you are talking the majority of the time, you will not be able to do this.
- Allow time for questions: If the candidate was not able to ask questions during the conversation, be sure to give them a chance at the end. They most likely prepared questions for you ahead of time or thought of some as they were learning more about the opportunity. Make sure they walk away with a good understanding of the role.
- Keep the process consistent across all candidates: It is a good idea to interview a few candidates for a role but be sure to keep the interview process consistent for each so that you reduce bias and ensure fairness for all.
To learn more about any or all of these solutions, contact your Wripple Client Lead, or
request a demo.No one really teaches you how to be a good interviewer. Most of the time you are thrown into a hiring process because your team needs additional help. But hiring that new team member can take up a lot of time, which is already in short supply. Being able to come out of interviews with a good perspective on each candidate is key to making good hiring decisions quickly. Here are 8 tips for how to run an effective candidate interview:
- Prepare beforehand: Be clear on what you are looking for. Review the job description and the must-haves vs. nice-to-haves. Look through the candidate’s resume for areas you’d like to hear more about. Write down some talking points and leave yourself room to take notes. Set yourself up for success. Interviewers can get anxious too!
- Introduce yourself: Take a few minutes at the beginning of the interview to walk the candidate through your background and how the team is structured. Set the stage for what it’s like to work on your team. And remember, this is a 2-way interview, so always be selling the job. The candidate market is competitive and often talent has multiple offers. You want interviewees to covet the role.
- Be conversational: Even extremely talented people can feel nervous during an interview. Start off by making the candidate feel at ease. You will get a much better gauge of how someone can perform if they feel comfortable.
- Ask the right questions: You will get more out of the conversation if you ask open-ended questions that the candidate can elaborate on. Do not forget about follow-up questions, too. Really listen to their responses and then probe further to get to that next level down.
- Understand how a candidate thinks: Situational questions can help get talent to show you how their brain works versus just responding with facts. Get a candidate to explain how they would approach a specific problem.
- Listen WAY more than you talk: You should be talking less than 30% of the interview. The point of this conversation is to get to know the candidate and what they bring to the table. If you are talking the majority of the time, you will not be able to do this.
- Allow time for questions: If the candidate was not able to ask questions during the conversation, be sure to give them a chance at the end. They most likely prepared questions for you ahead of time or thought of some as they were learning more about the opportunity. Make sure they walk away with a good understanding of the role.
- Keep the process consistent across all candidates: It is a good idea to interview a few candidates for a role but be sure to keep the interview process consistent for each so that you reduce bias and ensure fairness for all.
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