The best interview technique: Let’s start by defining it!
Finding and hiring the bestcandidate for the job isn’t easy.
Once you find qualifiedcandidates, you need to apply the rightinterviewing method to select the bestone among them.
But that’s not all! If you want your top candidate to acceptyour job offer, you also need to provide a great candidate experience.
➡️ Download - it will help you provide a seamless candidate experience!
According to LinkedIn’s recent survey, an overwhelming 83% of talent say a negativeinterview experience can changetheir mind about a role or company they once liked! 😮
Thus, the bestinterview technique is the one that achieves two main goals:
1. It helps employerschoose the best person for their open job position.
2. It ensures a positive interviewing experience for candidates.
Not that we cleared that up, let continue in our quest for the best interview technique! 🥇
There are many different interview techniques
There are a number of differentapproachesto interviewing job candidates. As a result, there is an array of many different types of job interviews and numerous different interviewing techniques.
An interview can bestructured, semi-structured or unstructured. It can be behavioral, situational, skills or experience focused. It can also be formal or casual. You can conduct it over the phone, via videoor in person. You can interview onecandidate at the time or hold agroup interview, etc.
There areso many waysto conduct a job interview. The questionis - what is the best way to conduct a job interview? Whichinterviewing technique is the most effective? Keep reading this blog post to find out! 🙂
The most popular interview techniques
Let's start by investigating which interviewing techniques are the most popularamong HR professionals.
This is exactly what LinkedInhas asked more 9,000 talent leaders and hiring managers across the globe in their latest research.
Here are the results:
The most frequentlyused interview technique are structuredinterviews. Structured interviews are being used by 74% of HR professionalsaround the world.
Behavioralinterviews come second in a tight competition. This interview technique is being used by73% of HR professionals around the world.
More than 88% of HR professionals have rated these two interview techniques (structured and behavioral interview techniques) as effective.
These results are quite expected. However, this research contained a very surprisingand unexpectedfinding. There is anotherhighly effective, yet underutilizedinterview technique!
Best interview technique you never use
So what is this mysterious highly effective, yet underutilized interview technique? 🤔
Brace yourself, the answer is coming… :drumrollplease: 🥁
➡️ Work assignments - sometimes also called job simulations.
According to LinkedIn’s report, only 32% of respondents use this technique, even though 84% say it is effective.
It certainly seems that these work assignments are worth considering! Thus, let’s dig a little deeper to find out what this interview technique is all about.
What are work assignments?
Work assignments are exactly what their name says they are - a type of assignment a candidate would work on if hired. Basically, work assignments are small projects or tasks which a candidate has to complete duringthe interview.
Let me give you a few concrete examples for the purpose of clarification. Let’s say you are looking to hire a sales professional. If you want to use the work assignment technique, what it would look like? You could create a mock sales call or meeting.
You can create many different types of work assignments. Depending on the role you are interviewing for, you could ask a candidate to write a short copy, outline a presentation, solve a certain problem, brainstorm a few ideas, solve a certain problem, etc.
Work assignments benefits
Work assignments allow employers to directly observecandidates’ skills and performance, which significantly improves the interview’s predictionof candidates’ on job success.
Work assignments are beneficial for candidatesas well. Completing real-life job tasks helps candidates to know the kind of work they would be doing if they accept the job. In other words, they cantry out a joband see if it fits them.
The secret formula for a successful interview
According to research and many HR professional’s everyday experiences, there is a simple formula for the most effective interview technique.
Let’s break it down into3 simple steps:
Step #1: Conduct a structured interview
First of all, you should always conduct a structuredjob interview. Why? Because structured job interviews are more efficient than semi-structured or structured interviews when it comes to predicting job performance.
Meta-analysis research shows that structured interviews are up to twice as effective at predicting job performance than unstructured ones!
Thus, if you want your job interview to be effective and accurately predict job performance, it should be properly structured, methodical and consistent.
In other words, you should prepare interview questions beforethe interview and ask each of your candidates the samequestions in the sameorder.
Step #2: Ask behavioral interview questions
The second step in conducting the most effective job interview is to ask the right interview questions. The question is...what type ofinterview questions should you ask your job candidates? There are so many differenttypes of job interview questions!
Actually, almost all HR professionals have their own list of what they swear are the best interview questions to ask candidates. Most of these questions are typically related to candidates’ credentials, technical skills, experience and self-evaluations and are used in so-called conventionalinterviews.
However, research shows that behavioralinterviews are more valid and accurate for making hiring decisions. Behavioral interviews are based on the evaluation of candidates’ pastbehaviors.
In other words, in a behavioral interview, candidates are being asked a specific type of interview questions - so-called behavioral interview questions.
Step #3: Give your candidates a work assignment
Finally, a third step of the best interview technique is to give your candidates a so-called work assignment. In this part of the interview, you should give your candidates atask similar to the one they’d actuallybe doing in their new job if you hire them.
Most employers skipthis step. That is a big mistakebecause work assignments are themost predictive aspect of the whole recruiting process. Work assignment gives you the chance to directly observe how the candidate does the job, instead of relying solelyon their words.
Some candidates are very good at interviewing, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they will performbetter at the job as well.
OK, so your candidates can talk the talk. But can they walk the walk? The onlyway to find out is by giving them a work assignment!
Start applying this interview technique today - it’s well worth it!
Okay, so I know what you’re thinking - preparing for the structuredinterview, carefully choosing the right behavioralinterview questions, coming up with the appropriate work assignment...it is a lot of work.
You’re absolutely right. This interview technique is more complicatedthan conducting a traditional interview. However, if you want to be the best, you need to invest some additionaltime and effort. This is the onlyway to the top.
Besides, it’s lesstime-consuming than hiring the wrong candidate and then having to start your whole recruiting process all over again. Not to mention the incredibly high cost of making a bad hire! According to Career Builder, the average cost of a single bad hire is nearly $15,000.
The choice is yours.
Frequently asked questions
What is considered the best interview technique? The best interview technique combines structured interviews, behavioral questions, and work assignments, offering a comprehensive approach to accurately assess candidates.
Why are structured interviews popular among HR professionals? Structured interviews are favored for their efficiency in predicting job performance, as they provide a consistent and methodical approach to evaluating candidates.
How do work assignments improve the interview process? Work assignments allow direct observation of candidates' actual skills and performance on job-related tasks, making them a strong predictor of on-the-job success.
Why are behavioral interview questions important? Behavioral interview questions are crucial as they assess candidates based on past behaviors, providing a more accurate indication of future job performance.
What are the benefits of combining different interview techniques? Combining various techniques like structured interviews, behavioral questions, and work assignments ensures a holistic and accurate assessment of candidates, reducing the risk of costly hiring mistakes.
