Interviewing is a mandatory skill for leaders. But what if I told you that mastering the art of interviewing isn’t just about finding the “perfect” candidate?
Leaders who understand the value of interviewing skills know that it is a doorway to building high-performing teams that are both engaged and diverse. Hence, leaders must focus on developing this skill and learning what it takes to master it. This also enhances your brand as a leader who is consistently capable of building high-performing teams.
BTW here is my much-liked article on building high-performance teams –https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/strategies-creating-high-performing-team-ravindra-hunashimarad-n68ac/?trackingId=MQnrdY0UQbmrrdoI4vha2w%3D%3D
Coming back, the secret of mastering interviewing is realizing that it’s not just one skill, but a combination of different skills working together to ensure the best possible hiring decisions. This requires a deep understanding of subtle cues and ‘reading between the lines’ to accurately assess candidates.
The High Stakes of Hiring:
Hiring the wrong person can be a real setback. It can lead to decreased productivity, a toxic team environment, and even damage your company’s reputation. Imagine the ripple effect of a mismatched hire – it can impact morale, slow down progress, and even threaten the quality of your work.
With over a decade of experience interviewing hundreds of candidates, I am happy to share my learning with you all. Here is a summary of key focus areas if you are willing to master interviewing!
Focus on Body Language: Body language provides interviewers with valuable insights beyond the spoken words. By paying attention to the candidate’s communication style, body language, and how they interact with you during the interview, interviewers can gain a more comprehensive understanding of their personality, communication style, and overall suitability for the role, also it helps in identifying potential red flags.
Every Resume Tells a Story: The way a resume is written can reveal a lot. A candidate who has taken time to prepare his resume showcases ownership, authenticity, and presentation skills. After all, no one in the world can write your story better than yourself. Analyze the candidate’s resume to understand their career narrative and how it aligns with the role.
Personality Match: The candidate’s personality should match the role’s demands. By carefully considering personality fit, we can increase the likelihood of hiring candidates who will be successful and happy in their roles. A candidate’s personality should also align with the existing team dynamics.
Introduction vs. Resume: Consistency between the introduction and resume presents credibility and a strong, cohesive impression. The introduction should mention the same key skills and experiences highlighted and should align with the candidate’s stated career goals on the resume. Someone inconsistent indicates a lack of attention to detail or nervousness. If the discrepancy is significant or raises serious concerns, it’s important to investigate further and carefully consider its implications before making a hiring decision.
In-Person vs. Virtual: In-person interactions foster a more personal and human connection, leading to a more accurate assessment of a candidate’s interpersonal skills, assertiveness, cultural fit, communication style, creative abilities, and leadership qualities. Observing non-verbal cues like facial expressions, body posture, and hand gestures enhances understanding and builds trust. F2F meetings can help candidates get a feel for the company culture and environment.
Adapt Your Questions: Be innovative in questioning. Allow the interview to flow naturally, adjusting your questions based on the candidate’s responses. While a structured approach is encouraged, an unscripted conversation can often reveal unexpected strengths, passions, motivations, priorities, experiences, and how they think on their feet. Flexibility also allows interviewers to delve deeper into areas of particular interest based on the candidate’s resume, experiences, and responses.
Understand Long-Term Plans: Gently inquire about the candidate’s long-term career plans and how they envision their professional growth. This helps determine if the current role can provide opportunities for growth and development that align with their long-term goals. If not, they may become disengaged or seek opportunities elsewhere, leading to high turnover costs.
Understand Candidate Expectations: Explore the candidate’s expectations regarding the role, responsibilities, compensation, company culture, priorities, and growth opportunities. It also helps you assess whether the candidate is truly a good fit for the role and the company culture. It allows you to select candidates who are not only qualified but also likely to be happy and successful in the position and also avoids potential disagreements and conflicts later on.
Avoid Interrupting and Listen Actively: Value the candidate’s perspective by giving them the opportunity to fully articulate their views. By avoiding interruptions and actively listening to candidates, you demonstrate respect, create a positive interview experience, and gather more insightful information to make informed hiring decisions. It also helps you to adjust your questions based on their responses.
Define Essential Skills: Clearly define the must-have skills for the role and ensure that your interview process effectively evaluates the presence and depth of the mandatory skills required for the job. This allows you to frame appropriate interview questions that directly assess a candidate’s proficiency in those areas. This ensures you’re gathering the most relevant information to make an informed decision.
Focus on Approach: The way a candidate approaches a question can reveal their character, values, perception, communication style, and beliefs. This is often more valuable than the specific answer, as it shows how they approach challenges in general. Pay attention!
Be Aware of Unconscious Bias:Unconscious biases also known as implicit bias, can subtly influence our perceptions and decision-making. Focus on evaluating candidates based on mandatory skills for the role and observable behaviours. By being aware of our biases, we can build more diverse and inclusive teams.
Encourage Candidate Questions: Pay attention to the questions that candidates ask during the interview process, as that reveals their level of interest and engagement also you can gain insights into their priorities, and how they think.
Demonstrate Respect: Treating candidates with respect is not just a matter of courtesy; it’s a reflection of your company’s values and a crucial aspect of employer branding.
By focusing on these key areas, you’ll not only improve your interviewing skills but also create a positive candidate experience and build high-performing teams that are the foundation of a thriving organization.