Should interviews be done in person?

We did a recent poll to ask our connections the above question. The motivation behind it was the significant increase in interviews being held via Teams and other virtual meeting platforms by our clients.

Virtual meetings have countless benefits:

• Eliminates need to travel to the office (employer and potential employee)
• Can be very quick to book in and execute
• Multiple stakeholders can be involved in meetings from various locations
• It's free! No costs including commute, parking, meeting rooms, etc.

But! Even with all of these benefits, you (our connections) and we agree that virtual meetings will never replace an in-person interview. 80% of over 700 voters stated face-to-face interviews were more productive and the preferred method. So, whilst in certain situations, virtual meetings will be favoured and effective, we always recommend to our clients and candidates that we make face-to-face meetings work. Here's why:

• It gives both parties a sense of relationship and rapport building that you simply can't get virtually
• The opportunity to explore culture fit
• Exploring the business' working environment and where the potential employee could be situated is pivotal
• Eye contact - this is so important and is non-existent during virtual meetings
• Body language - we all know expression and enthusiasm can be the difference between a successful and unsuccessful interview - body language from the shoulders down is lost in virtual meetings

So! Whilst we recommend virtual meetings to candidates and clients where there may be logistical or time related challenges, we urge clients to always make face-to-face interviews work if they can!

I hope this poll has helped and welcome all comments/feedback as usual!