Using the Interview to Make a Better Hire
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One of the biggest challenges for your business is making the right hire for an open position. You can improve the quality of your hires by performing a thorough, job-related interview. The goal of the selection interview is to collect information from potential candidates in order to predict which candidate will most likely succeed in the position. By taking some time and making an effort to improve your interviews, you can make better hires that are more productive and will more likely stay with the company.
Here are some tips to better prepare for your interviews:
Create a list of interview questions prior to the interview. A structured interview helps you make sure that you collect all of the same information from each candidate. This can help you protect yourself against discrimination. But even more important, it helps you evaluate each candidate based on the same requirements.
Base your questions on job requirements. Make a list of the knowledge, skills and abilities that are necessary for the position and then write your interview questions based on those requirements.
Ask behavior-based questions. Behavior-based questions ask candidates to provide specific examples from previous experience. The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior. Some examples of behavior-based questions are “tell me about a time you had to deal with a difficult customer” or “give me an example of a time you used a creative idea to solve a problem.”
Some tips for conducting the interview:
Follow your list of interview questions and make sure you ask each candidate all of the questions. You can then ensure that you are comparing the candidates against the same criterion.
Probe for more information. If the candidate responds to your behavior-based questions with general statements such as “I always listen to the customer,” make sure you ask for a specific example instead.
Keep control of the interview. Often a candidate asks questions that take you off track. Make sure that you ask all of the questions on your list before responding to the candidate’s questions. Just tell the candidate at the beginning of the interview that there will be time at the end of the interview for questions.
Conducting a complete and thorough interview takes more time in both preparation and in conducting the interview. However, time spent on the interview is worthwhile, as you will find that you will make better hires that are more productive and stay longer with your company.
