The world has undergone many changes in the past two years because of the pandemic. The workforce was forced to work from home, and the recruiting have had to be done remotely. Organizations across the globe should also adapt to the changes to run their business effectively.
Hiring from home can be challenging both for the recruiters and the candidates. Although you can find plenty of job interview tips for candidates on the internet, it is rare to find effective tips for conducting online interviews.
This article discusses some fantastic tips for conducting seamless online interviews.
The Best Tips for Conducting Online Interviews
Assemble all the necessary tools.
As you are conducting interviews online, you must prepare all the necessary tools. Ensure that your online tools will work effectively on a wide range of devices such as desktops, mobiles, and tablets. Another important aspect is that the online tools you have selected should be open for customization to improve the hiring process for your organization.
Prior preparation is a must.
As you are conducting the interview online, you need to run a technical trial to avoid any glitches in the interview. The most commonly used video conferencing platforms for online interviews include Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, Zoom, and Skype. If you are using any of these platforms to conduct online interviews, don’t skip the trial run of these platforms. From camera to microphone, check every aspect of the platform. When using a mobile or laptop, make sure its battery lasts till the end of the interview.
Put together your questions.
This is one of the essential factors you should consider while doing an online interview. You must prepare your questions beforehand if you want the online interview to run smoothly. Most people conduct the interviews with the idea that they can wing it on the spot. However, you need to understand that preparing the questions beforehand and asking questions on the spot will have a lot of differences. While questioning on the spot, you may not cover all the questions as there are chances that you may forget a few. But, if you prepare before the interview, you will have a clear sense of direction in which you want to drive the interview and the relevant information you want to extract from the candidate.
Keep an eye on the time.
Whenever you conduct an online interview, always keep an eye out for time. Since you are not conducting interviews face-to-face, you may or may not be conscious of time. Since it is remote hiring, you may be interviewing candidates across the globe. You should be aware of the time settings that work for both of you. Also, the candidates can lose interest if the interviews run for a long time.
Answer the candidate’s queries.
As you are preparing to ask the candidate questions about them, the candidates may also have a few questions for you. So you need to be prepared to answer the candidate questions. You must answer the candidate questions regarding the mission, vision, strategy, benefits, and perks associated with the particular job role. Also, it is pretty advisable to research and find information about the candidates.
Keep it professional
Be it an online interview or an offline interview, a recruiter needs to be professional. A recruiter is projecting the company’s image and identity. So you must have professionalism even when you are interviewing online. Throughout the interview process, be professional, be it how you act or dress. However, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be friendly at all. Ensure you dress professionally and the background visible to candidates is distraction-free.
Help the candidates
As new you are for this virtual interview set up, the candidates are too. They don’t have the proper guidance to lead them and become successful through the interview process. However, if possible, your interview team can create a guide to the video conferencing platforms along with the tips to ace the interview. This little guide will also help them present their best in the interview. You should pass such positive energy to the candidates before the interview to positively influence them.
No distractions
Both your time and candidates’ time are precious. This is the other important online job interview tip. You must respect the candidate’s time and be fully present in the interview. Avoid distraction; before the specified time, you can put your mobile on silent and ensure no one interrupts your interview at home and finds the best wifi spot to conduct an interview. Don’t move around or chat with others as the candidate may lose focus.
Wrapping up
These are a few recruiter interview tips that will help you effectively conduct online interviews. Provide the necessary assistance to the candidates from the start to the end of the hiring process. It would be helpful to inform the next steps of the hiring process at the end of the interview. Follow these tips and hire people that will add value to your organization.
To receive and stay updated about related content:
