One third of everywomanNetwork members admit they’ve had a few unsuccessful hires throughout their time as a recruiting manager. If you’re one of them, you’ll know that really getting under the skin of the polished performer sitting across the table from you is easier said than done.
In her webinar, Spotting a killer CV, everywoman expert Pippa Isbell uncovers the common mistakes recruiters make and how you can avoid the same to ensure your future hires are as successful as can be.
Mistake 1: Not realising the interview starts as soon as the candidate enters the building
“A jerk in the lobby is a jerk on the job,” cautions Pippa Isbell, whose words serve as a reminder that it’s very easy for a candidate to be on their best, most polite behaviour in the boardroom. Brief the receptionist and whoever will be bringing the candidate to the interview room and follow up with them later. If you’ll be meeting and guiding the candidate yourself, pay attention to their body language and overall demeanour before the interview starts. Are they chatty? Curious about the building or interiors? Happy to engage in small talk?
Mistake 2: Kicking off the interview with ‘Tell me about yourself…’
Six in 10 everywomanNetwork members think this is the most effective way of getting to know their candidates. But the question is so open to countless interpretations, you’re unlikely to find what you’re looking for. Some interviewees might assume you want their life story, leaving you to wonder at their capacity to self-edit or communicate succinctly; another might guess you’re after the warts and all truth about their current role, which can create a rather one dimensional impression.
Much better is to begin the session with some neutral chat, designed to put the candidate at ease before you delve into the nitty-gritty.
Mistake 3: Failing to tailor your question set to the candidate’s CV
The most successful CVs are those that have been tailored to the job on offer – a factor most recruiters look out for, but, on reflection, don’t flip around when the time comes to prepare for interview.
Of course, you might still have your list of standard questions, but paying beyond-surface attention to the candidate’s CV will inevitably throw up others, designed either to bring out the best in them (“Can you tell me more about that saving you made for the department in your last job?) or to navigate any red flags such as gaps, job durations or missing qualifications. This should be a straightforward process if you’ve put the work into the job description and have a solid grasp of the skills and capabilities needed in the successful applicant.
Once you’ve established the points that naturally arise from the CV or application form, craft them into open-ended questions. Your intention should be to uncover actual rather than hypothetical scenarios to reveal common traits with your vision of the ideal candidate. Don’t be afraid to go off script if the candidate’s responses invite probing around their actions or reasoning, you’re alerted to any reluctance to offer detail, or instinctively feel the need to dig deeper and further into the core of the candidate.
Mistake 4: Failing to distinguish between what’s essential and what’s the icing on the cake
Even if you’ve tailored your question set, you can easily come unstuck in the hiring stakes by not paying careful attention to the ‘could haves’ and the ‘should haves’ of the successful candidate.
Many organisations use a weighted scoring system to grade candidates’ answers against the demands of the job they’re applying for. If yours doesn’t, there’s nothing stopping you taking this approach informally, and it might just prevent you from making a misplaced match. Found a candidate with a popular and well-written personal blog? That’s not much use if writing skills only make up 5% of the job responsibility. Spend some time thinking about what is essential and what are simply nice to haves, and ensure you manage your time so that the most important ‘shoulds’ take up the larger chunk of the allotted minutes.
Mistake 5: In a bid to avoid unconscious bias, you overlook ‘cultural fit’
Recruiters must absolutely beware of unconscious bias – snapping up or dismissing a candidate based on your own biases towards or against individuals of a certain gender, race, age, social group or even prejudices you might have about service length in previous roles or individuals from a particular company. To be on the safe side, always get a second opinion before making a decision.
But in remaining consciously open to candidates from every walk of life, don’t shy away from ensuring your star applicant’s values are a good fit with those of your team. You might ask them what sort of team environment they thrive in, the values they hold dear in their chosen workplace, how they’d describe your company from the outside looking in, which practices they’d like to bring with them from their current or past organisation and how they like to work with others. If in doubt, invite members of your shortlist to meet with your team in an informal setting before making your final decision.
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