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How to Hire the Right Candidate

Written by: Mickey Parsons

Article Overview: How you interview is as important as whom you interview. Interviewing is an art, experts say, which takes preparation, an awareness of interview approaches, and a knack for asking “the right” questions. The following tips, culled from a variety of expert resources, should help you hire the right person for the job.

How to Hire the Right Candidate

How you interview is as important as whom you interview. Interviewing is an art, experts say, which takes preparation, an awareness of interview approaches, and a knack for asking “the right” questions. The following tips, culled from a variety of expert resources, should help you hire the right person for the job.

Prepare for the interview ...

● Understand your organization. Be able to clearly communicate the mission, vision, and values of your company.

● Define what competencies are required for high performance in the particular job. If another person will be the candidate’s direct supervisor, get his or her input — especially if the job (systems analyst programmer or printing press operator, for example) requires a skills set you’re unfamiliar with.



● Perfect your job application. In an effort to make it easy on job candidates, many employers make job applications quick and easy. The problem is they fail to ask questions that can be revealing and are legal to ask. For example, many employers don’t include a question about previous Driving Under the Influence convictions (especially if driving isn’t part of employees’ jobs). But the question is legal, according to the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. If the potential employee lies and says “no” and you run a background check, you might uncover the lie. And that will give you some insight into the person’s character. Some questions might also want to ask include:

---Tell us about periods of unemployment.

---Why are you applying with our particular company?

Don’t be afraid to leave a paragraph for the answers. The answers reveal not only the information but also a candidate’s communication skills and writing ability.

● Ready the group. If you’re holding a group interview, give each interviewer a role in the process. For example, the supervisor should ascertain the technical skills of an individual and make sure the job history matches what he or she is looking for.

● Read the resume. Sure, it sounds obvious, but many people don’t take the time to thoroughly review a resume before the candidate steps in the door. That means that you might miss a characteristic that would make the candidate perfect — or worse yet, an inconsistency that reveals a “white lie.”

Once the candidate’s there …

● Outline the interview structure for the candidate. First, give a brief description of the company, and then outline the job duties. Finally, ask the applicant questions. After that, give the candidate the opportunity to ask you questions. This sets up the parameters of the interview, keeps you both focused, and gives the candidate an idea of what to expect.

● Ask open-ended questions. Do not ask questions that require yes or no answers. Make the person talk.

● Mix in some behavioral questions. These questions are based on the premise that the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior in similar circumstances. Instead of asking applicants how they would act in a hypothetical situation, these questions ask how they handled a similar situation in the past (e.g., Tell me about the last time you had to handle a problem of staff dissatisfaction. What was the problem? What happened? Was it resolved satisfactorily?).

● Ask one question at a time — and make them brief. Sometimes interviewers ask a series of questions all at once. The candidate will probably only be able to retain the first or last one, which means that you won’t get all the answers you need.

● Don’t interrupt. If the information is pertinent, let the candidate finish his or her thoughts. Jot down new questions that occur to you or points that need to be clarified so you will remember to ask it later.

● Don’t let periods of silence fluster you. Give the interviewee a chance to think of what she wants to add before you hustle her along with the next question.

● Shut up. The interviewee should speak at least four words for every word you utter. If you’re talking over the candidate and overselling the job, you won’t be looking at and listening to the interviewee to see whether or not he or she wants the job.

● Debrief the candidate after the interview. Ask: “How do you think the interview went?” “What did you find most interesting about the opportunity?” “What about this position concerns you?” This will help you identify any obstacles to a job acceptance in advance so you have the opportunity to counter them — particularly if the person interviewed is a desirable candidate.

●Let candidates know when the position has been filled. Follow up with the candidates via e-mail or phone. This is one more way of extending a professional courtesy, and it gives the interview process closure.

Some interview don’ts ...

● Don’t show off. You shouldn’t use the interview to showcase your knowledge, vocabulary, charm, or other abilities.

● Don’t break the law. Under the Commonwealth Sex Discrimination Act, 1984, it is illegal to ask questions that aren’t related to a person’s capacity to do the job. Avoid questions relating to marital status, plans for having children, child-care arrangements, religious practices, racial background, or physical disability.

● Don’t get too chummy. Keep all your questions job-related. If you spend the interview chatting, you may make a hiring decision because you liked the candidate versus whether the person is truly qualified for the job.

● Don’t be afraid to ask for help. If interviewing isn’t really your thing, seek the advice of a coach or collar a colleague who always snags top employees and ask for support.

Related Articles
  Recruiting Strong Salespeople - The Sales Candidate Pipeline
  Carol Quinn's Interviewer Tip #1
  Interview Tips & Tricks for Companies
  Good Interviewing is mostly listening
  Using Pre-Employment Tests Can Save You Money

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