With the market being highly competitive, we are keen to support all our clients with relevant advice to ensure an effective interview process that secures the best talent for your team.

Candidates who have had a streamlined interview process are more engaged with the opportunity, as it paints an extremely positive picture of the working environment that they are potentially going to be joining. So check out our key points to consider when creating the perfect recruitment plan:

1. Length of time in between interview stages
Due to talent being in higher demand in the current climate, we are finding that interview processes are needing to move quicker than usual. Typically, our clients are completing the interview process from initial engagement to completed offer in 2-4 weeks. Our research has shown that if there is a prolonged window of little or no engagement with the candidate in which the consecutive interviews fall later than a week apart, the likelihood of the candidate dropping out the process increases by 38%.

2. Visibility into the team
If your recruitment process is culturally driven, it is important to provide as much visibility into the team and key stakeholders of the business. Our research shows that offer acceptance rates are drastically improved when a candidate has met with a number of individuals within their potential team/squad/department as it gives them a real comfort on the business culture and the engagement to the day to day of the role. We typically see this being conducted in a speed interview or round table format. As a final stage, most of our clients have a final sign off stage with the CEO or another member of C Suite. This is highly regarded by candidates as it allows them to start building rapport with the visionary of the business and gives them comfort on the culture that is being cultivated from top down.

3. Face to Face / video interviews
Video interviews have become something of the new norm over the last 18 months. When surveyed on the preferred method moving forward, clients have suggested a blended approach of both virtual and in-person interviews. Our latest research would suggest that this approach is effective; the offer acceptance rate increased by 30% in April 2021 for all interviews that had an in-person meeting conducted (typically at final stage). We believe that a face to face interview only strengthens the commitment a candidate has to a business, with a real buy in to the vision, culture and working environment. Our candidate perception survey consistently documents culture as the highest factor in attracting/ retaining employees. Therefore, the more exposure a candidate has to this within the interview process, the more comfortable they become in accepting an offer.

4. Task Based Stages
As part of a formal interview, we advise that clients include an interview test or exercise, particularly for the more specialist roles. This can be anything from a role play, presentation to data analysis. This is crucial in testing a candidate’s practical ability, but where you include this in the interview process can be significant. We find this stage is most effective as a 2nd or 3rd stage due to the level of engagement and buy in that a candidate will have to the business and role. It is at this stage that the candidate is comfortable investing time into a task to produce their best work, anything before runs the risk of candidates dropping out the process.

5. Informal v Formal Interactions
Our research shows that the most effective interviews have a blend of informal and formal interview formats. Formal interviews are great at looking for technical knowledge and conceptual understanding of a subject matter, while informal interviews are great at understanding the candidate’s attitude and motivations. Using both styles not only ensures a good and proficient hire, but also increases the engagement that a candidate has to the company, with building a more rounded engagement to the business as a whole.

6. Offer Communication
Top candidates are likely to have number of offers on the table so the communication of the offer in the first instance is vital and can have a big impact on acceptance rate. Understanding the candidate’s motivations and drivers is key in the presentation of the offer. For example, if the lack of flexible working in their current employer is their reason for leaving, it is key to reiterate your working from home policy. A breakdown of the full package is also fundamental in acceptance. In order for a candidate to make a full comparison to their current package they must understand the detail around base, bonus, pension, equity and the wider benefits package.

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For more information and support email kprince@crsltd.info