May Newsletter
Kelly Piggott
I offer a free 3-month replacement on any person I place in your business because I’m that confident in the people I place!
We have survived the April showers and are now well into May!
And with that brings the heat, the sun, and the BBQs of summer. We for one cannot wait for the Summer to begin properly.
But what about turning up the heat on your candidates? How do you do that to know that they are the perfect one suited for the job?
A job interview is often seen as just a “by rote” exercise rather than the golden opportunity it could be to get the best from your potential new employee.
What Questions Should We Be Asking?
The job interview is a nerve-wracking time, even for us holding the interviews.
In today’s competitive market with hundreds of candidates available for each job being able to sort the wheat from the chaff and find that one person who fits well into your business is difficult.
Very difficult.
So asking quality questions in an interview is crucial. Here are our tips to help get you ready for conducting interviews that will bring out the best in your candidates.
Step 1 - Think About The Job and the Company
Picking the appropriate questions beforehand can help you hire someone who matches the company's values and job description.?
With that in mind you should definitely think about what questions would best fit and give you the clearest idea of someone’s suitability.
First of all think about the job itself. You will (most likely) have a job description you can print off and read and make notes on, so why not start there?!
What questions bubble to the surface when you think about the job? Are they technical? Is it about a specific area of the industry they need to know backwards?
Or is it more transferable skills or soft skills that would be best suited? Is communication or project management key things they will need?
Whatever the role is you should consider this preparation vital to making sure you get a good list of qualifying questions.?
You should also consider the company and its culture. How do you all work at your best? What kind of environment do you have and what personality or behaviour would best fit it?
Not only this you should look at the person’s CV and see if any questions crop up from reading it. Do you want further details on a job or a project? What about that qualification that you haven’t heard of before?
Step 2 - Group them into categories
These categories could be:
● Basic Questions
○ The classic “Tell Me About Yourself” through to “What do you know about us” can go here. Our recommendation is to keep this section VERY short.
● Work History Questions
○ Have you got questions about their CV? Their history or qualifications? These questions probe a little deeper into the history and track record of the person.
● Personality Questions
○ You’re looking for someone who can fit and blend with your team. So asking these questions will help you find a specific work ethic, communication style and approach to teamwork that suits you.
● Industry / Technical Questions
○ These are the harder technical questions and “give me an example of X” questions that will prove that the person has the experience, skills, and knowledge to do what it is you need them to do.
● Behavioural Questions
○ Behavioural interview questions help you evaluate how a candidate reacts in real situations. While there's no right answer to these questions, they demonstrate how candidates apply their knowledge and decision-making skills.
Using a mix of all of these questions will stand you in very good stead and give you a comprehensive view of the candidate.
Step 3 - Write them down and then use the questions as a guide only
Write the questions down and then don’t use them as a script.
领英推荐
You should tailor your questions to the individual the same way they tailored their CV to meet your needs.
By tailoring the questions and writing them down it means you won’t forget any vital questions but can still go “off topic” when you need to to connect with the individual and find out more about them.
It’s amazing what a small bit of preparation can do to your recruitment and interviewing technique (and subsequent success rate in hiring and retention).
In The News
Imposter Syndrome Affects Us All
Looking for a new role can trigger ‘imposter syndrome’, the feeling of self-doubt experienced by over 60% of UK workers. This chronic disbelief about how you don’t deserve your job or success or that you can never meet others’ expectations is something experienced commonly as we take on more responsibility.
As a result, people feel like imposters or frauds at the workplace – and it doesn’t matter how high you’ve risen, what promotions or results you’ve achieved, or even how much you are praised at work.
Globally, imposter syndrome is said to affect 82% of the workforce, according to a 2020 review published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
The way to beat it? The link is below.
Double Jobbing Risks
A fraud prevention boss is urging recruitment agencies to be vigilant amid a rise in cases of so-called ‘double jobbing’.
The insider threat manager for Cifas says workers caught moonlighting while on sick leave or juggling two full-time remote jobs are often agency staff.
Many of these people are employed by local authorities and the NHS, including doctors, social workers and accountants.
In addition to being sacked for gross misconduct, some have been sent to professional misconduct hearings, barred from their professions, and some even have faced criminal prosecution.
What’s more, is that recruiters who knowingly facilitate double jobbing are also committing fraud.
Time is of the Essence
In today’s market, you can’t be slow.
Swiftly responding to applications is a crucial strategy for employers aiming to draw and keep the best talent.?
Not only this, even if you are rejecting candidates, candidates now anticipate rapid feedback from companies and often prefer outright rejection over being left without any response.
Achieving fast response times, however, is easier said than done. Today’s recruitment scenario often overwhelms companies with a massive influx of applications per job?
However, promptly replying to applications should remain a top priority.?
Quick responses not only convey respect towards people but also makes you an attractive employer, capable of hiring the best talent.?
The Pillars of Candidate Attraction
Candidate attraction isn’t as simple as writing an ad, posting it out to all the big job boards and hoping for the best.?
If that’s all you’re doing then you’re missing out on some brilliant candidates.
You need to consider the three pillars of candidate attraction – Where, When and What:
These are the foundations of the recruitment process and can mean the difference between making consistently great placements and consistently missing out.