Don’t Be a Fool: How to Fool-Proof the Interview Process

Companies used to have the upper hand when interviewing. They had jobs and plenty of eager candidates. Today, with historically low unemployment, skills gaps, and competition for employees, it’s a candidate’s market. That makes the job interview more important than ever.

The interview kicks off the employee journey, and lets companies demonstrate their brand and culture. Done well, an interview can help both sides feel confident about the hiring decision and, if the candidate says yes, sets them up for a positive career start. Done poorly, the interview can leave a negative impression, fail to elicit or share critical job information or result in a bad hiring decision.

An effective interview process doesn’t just happen automatically. Horror stories abound from both sides of the table about interviews that went south: like the one where the candidate brings their parent or spouse into the interview with them, or where the recruiter cancels the 7 a.m. international call with a candidate five minutes before it’s scheduled to start and asks to reschedule the next day, a Saturday.

But have no fear: we have tips for creating a fool-proof interview process that helps ensure the right person says yes to your offer.

Final Thoughts: Bringing new people into your organization is a serious responsibility. These employees, at any level, can impact your projects, culture and financial success. By fool-proofing the interview process, you can improve your selections, making better matches between the job and the interviewee. When you do that, you increase the likelihood that your candidate will say yes to the offer, and start a positive career and relationship with the company.

Richard Maltz