If screening job applicants over the phone doesn’t seem to be getting the results your organization needs, don’t give up hope just yet. Phone interviews may not be the best way to screen candidates — there’s no substitute for a face-to-face interview — but conducted the right way, they’re a great way to weed the wheat from the chaff.
Speed Dialing
One of phone interviewing’s biggest upsides for employers and hiring managers is the fact that it speeds the interview process up by leaps and bounds. That’s also the downside. Just rattling off a list of questions and taking note of the answers may reveal some aspects of a prospective employee’s personality and preparedness, but if you’re in a hurry to move on to the next phone interview, you may miss subtle clues that would lead to a follow-up question in a face-to-face interview. The bottom line: use phone interviews to make screening candidates quicker, but be willing to spend a little time on the phone for the best results.
Operator Error
If you’re screening tons of interviewees over the phone, but don’t seem to be hiring the right candidates for the positions, take another look at your screening questions. If you ask mostly yes or no questions, or ask questions that don’t require much of your potential employees, then you’re wasting your time with phone interviews. What you get from your interviewees is what you give — give them questions that challenge them to think past rote answers.
(Pre)Screening Your Calls
Yes, the job candidate should come prepared for all interviews, including phone interviews, but if you’re not pointing them in the right direction, you’re missing a great chance to make phone screening really work for you. Give candidates a little homework to do before the interview by sending them copies of the job description and other pertinent information for the job, and ask a few questions based on this information.
Go To Video
Screening applicants via phone is good; interviewing through video is even better. It’s not quite as good as the in-person interview, but interviewing a potential employee via online video chatting software is enough like the real thing that it makes the difference. Be prepared for some pushback, however; to be on the safe side, give applicants the chance to decide between interviewing by phone or video.
If screening applicants by phone still isn’t improving the hiring process enough for your organization, it’s time to call in the professionals. Staffing Partners’ employment experts have qualified, experienced professionals ready to step into the positions you need filled. Call us today to see how our experienced Bend recruiters can help you make hiring easier.
