How has interview management changed for good as a result of the pandemic?
To help you discover how interview management has changed in recent years, we asked HR leaders and hiring professionals this question for their best insights. From the recruitment process going viral to the importance of empathy, there are several ways in which the pandemic has forever changed interview management processes.
Here are 11 ways interview management has changed forever:
- The Recruitment Process Went Virtual
- A Stronger Focus On “Selling” the Role
- Pre-recorded Responses for Better Hires
- Rapid Rapport Building With Candidates
- Work-to-life Balance Becomes a Priority
- Stay Interviews are Widely Adopted
- Focus on Candidates’ Ability to Thrive in Company Culture
- The Ability to Navigate Time Constrictions
- No Location Limits in Hiring Initiatives
- Answers from Interviewees Are More Interesting
- The Importance of Empathy in the Candidate Experience
The Recruitment Process Went Virtual
Virtual interviews weren’t very common in the recruitment process before the pandemic because nobody thought of it. During times of COVID-19, all of our responsibilities were forced to move to remote mode, including recruitment activities. Pandemic has affected the structures of many companies. Once the pandemic was over, they remained in remote or hybrid mode and began to hire new workers outside of the local area. This required them to conduct virtual interviews. Such a change saves both the company and the candidate money and speeds up the recruitment process.
Ewelina Melon, Tidio
A Stronger Focus On “Selling” the Role
With the pandemic shifting where we conduct most interviews from in-person to online, but also how we conduct them. Skilled labor is in short supply due to the “Great Resignation,” among other pandemic-related factors, and businesses are now focusing their interviews as much on selling themselves as on evaluating their candidates. Interviewers are finding more time during the interview to sell their company or employee perks, and dedicating a larger portion to answering candidates’ questions, too.
James Diel, Textel
Pre-recorded Responses for Better Hires
We’ve made great strides in interview management thanks to pre-recorded interview technology, which allows hiring managers to record interview questions ahead of time. Candidates then record and send their responses, which employers can conveniently review on their own time. The process is more convenient for both parties, and excellent candidates that might not “interview well” benefit from time on their side, so they have a better shot at landing the job without their nerves getting in the way. Management can better find the best-fitting candidate rather than the one that might be more personable in a face-to-face setting.
Samuel Devyver, EasyLlama
Rapid Rapport Building With Candidates
It has created so much flexibility in the interviewing process – especially when candidates are open to video interviews. It helps the people we interview quickly get a feel for our company culture, meet more members of the team in less time, and builds rapport prior to an in-person interview. You really get to know the person before they step in the door. Even as the pandemic slows, video interviewing will continue to be a key to the recruiting process – and one bright spot that emerged from the pandemic.
Jessica Arias, OnPay Payroll Services
Work-to-life Balance Becomes a Priority
As the pandemic took its toll and we were all forced to work remotely, people became far more aware of the importance of a healthy work-to-life balance and started demanding concessions from their employers to allow them to achieve this balance. Previously, a new employee may not have been informed of the opportunities for remote or hybrid working or the options for flexible routines at the interview stage. In their determination to land the position, this aspect may have been omitted from their thinking and the interviewer often would either omit it completely or simply gloss over the options. With work-to-life balance now a focal point of any job, this will nearly always be discussed in depth at the interview stage ensuring that the candidate is fully aware of the options before committing to accepting the position.
Jonathan Zacks, GoReminders
Stay Interviews are Widely Adopted
Since the pandemic, The Great Resignation movement began to permeate the workforce. Since this movement became more widespread, companies have now started to conduct more “stay interviews.” These interviews are designed to ask current employees what makes them want to stay at the company and what aspects of the company could be improved. The goal of this is to find ways to lessen turnover and to make the employee experience enjoyable and fulfilling, whether remotely or in an office.
Drew Sherman, RPM
Focus on Candidates’ Ability to Thrive in Company Culture
The process transformed from finding one that would fit the culture to distinguishing the best candidate that would thrive in our culture. What I have observed in our agency is that employment is not only offering an opportunity, but rather breathing life for the outstanding to be a part of our ecosystem, where we are fully supported to do well and grow strongly. And so the measure is not only based on readiness anymore, but also on the openness to adapt.
Tristan Harris, Thrive Agency
The Ability to Navigate Time Constrictions
The ability to navigate time constrictions by way of video conferencing has led to an enormous increase in the number of interviews held and qualified applicants hired. The ideal time to interview is NOW at both parties’ earliest availability. Moreover, unemployment which used to be viewed as a bad situation to find oneself in can now be flipped into a business move due to either Covid, side hustle/freelance gigs, or even parental leave without being viewed in a negative light. As a result, interview management is now flooded with more potential, which means more selection even during the great resignation.
Mitzi Runyan, Lashlette
No Location Limits in Hiring Initiatives
Most recruiters are no longer limited to locations for their hiring initiatives. The pandemic has made many businesses shift their work from the office to the online world. As operations are led online, companies become more open to widening their hiring scope to other places. Finding the ideal candidate is no longer restricted by relocation budgets. This has changed interview management for the better in 3 different facets. Lifting location boundaries is good for recruiters as they have a bigger talent pool to source from, and it’s great for the company since they increase their chances of hiring someone who is optimally qualified.
Someone who could’ve been previously disregarded due to needless location limits. Moreover, this change brought on by the pandemic is of added value for the candidate himself, who has a greater scope of opportunities to choose from, which increases the chance they’ll land a job that would bring them fulfillment and satisfaction.
Nicole Ostrowska, Zety
Answers from Interviewees Are More Interesting
Remote work and the accompanying reliance on video-conferencing software like Zoom have changed the business landscape in various ways and have made an impact on the hiring experience for employers. It also has affected the normal line of questioning. Interviewers nowadays want to know how the covid-19 pandemic affected people’s career goals. Questions related to that will be asked with more specificity and the answers have the potential to be more thoughtful. Interviewees regularly say something like, “The pandemic made me realize how quickly the economy can change and how I need to broaden my skill-set and be better prepared for unforeseen challenges.” That opens the door for probing follow-up questions and thoughtful answers.
Trevor Ford, Yotta
The Importance of Empathy in the Candidate Experience
Going through such a challenging time taught us all the importance of empathy. Empathy has evolved the interview process into a hiring experience that includes finding ways to engage candidates personally. Employers can get a better sense of a potential new employee by getting out from behind the desk to tour the workplace. Asking open-ended questions such as “Describe how you handle a day when nothing goes to plan,” or “How do you measure team productivity” gets them thinking and sparks meaningful conversation. And taking a candidate out to lunch will reveal clues about their interpersonal skills, including how they interact with others and whether they’re a good team player. With empathy at the core of our interview process, we find job interviews are a much more fruitful and satisfying experience for everyone.
Maria Shriver, MOSH
