Are you missing out on top applicants through the interview process? It could be your interview technique.

Interviews are one of the most important steps in the recruitment process. It’s a chance for you to showcase the benefits of working for your business, and applicants to convince you of their skills and experience. Let’s look at some tips to ensure you are prepared and professional when completing your next interview.

Firstly, interview preparation is a must. You should:

• Read through the applicant’s resume thoroughly and write down any questions that will help clarify their experience and skills.
• Think of some of the key benefits of working for your company.
• Make a copy of the job description including daily duties, who the role is reporting to, hours of work and salary on offer.
• Arrange an appropriate space to hold the interview. It should be comfortable, with little noise and distractions. If you can’t meet with them at your office and need to meet at a cafe, ask them if they are comfortable meeting in public before you make the arrangements. They may wish to keep their application confidential if they are currently employed.

When thinking of interview questions, base them on your job description and team fit requirements. Write down the essential experience and skills needed for the role, and create a list of questions asking the applicant to explain how they demonstrated these skills and abilities in the past. Keep the interview questions relevant to the skills and attributes required for the position, as anything surrounding their age, sex, race or family status could be seen as discriminatory.

When conducting the interview, follow a structure but don’t be a robot!

• Introduce yourself, your position in the company and thank the applicant for attending the interview.
• Before you begin firing questions, provide them with an overview of your company, the position on offer and why it has become available.
• Make them feel comfortable. The more comfortable someone is, the more likely they are to be honest and show you who they really are, making it easier for you to see if they will be suited for the role.

Don’t interrogate applicants. A lot of interviewers forget that the applicant is also interviewing your company to see if it’s somewhere they would like to work. If you bully applicants or ask inappropriate questions it’s highly unlikely they will accept the position if it’s offered to them.

End the interview by asking the applicant if they have any questions about the role or company. This is a good way to test if they have listened during the interview process and thought about the position thoroughly. You should also let them know when they will hear back from you with further feedback or a final decision.  And don’t forget to get back to all applicants you’ve interviewed personally via phone once a decision has been made.

If you know someone who’s currently hiring, why not share this post and video with them to help them through the interview process.