What are the stages of the job interview process?

Woman in a wheelchair, shaking hands with a hiring manager, after navigating the stages of the interview process.

Your preparation for the interview equips you with a number of questions that will help you get to know and evaluate candidates. But there’s plenty more to do before, during and after the interview to ensure your success.

To give you a great chance of hiring the right people, follow this process:

Before the Interview

  • Give candidate’s time – Once you have reviewed CVs and made your selection, give your chosen candidates a couple of days notice so they can make the necessary arrangements to get to the interview.
  • Explain the interview structure – If there are going to be expected to take tests or bring in examples of their work, don;t forget to tell them so they can come fully prepared.
  • Explain the process – Even before they meet you, let them know about how long it will take to make the hiring decision and how many stages to the interview there are.

During the Interview

  • Put candidates at ease – Interviewing can be stressful, so do your best to help candidates relax. Make sure each candidate is greeted and escorted, if necessary, to the interview location. Start with low-key questions.
  • Don’t judge on first impressions – We’ve all met them, people who don’t make a great first impression but end up being great employees. To make sure you don’t overlook these diamonds in the rough, withhold judgment until you’ve had the chance to thoroughly evaluate a candidate’s capabilities and potential.
  • Tell the candidate a little about the job – While you don’t want to dominate the interview time, you should start with a brief summary of the position, including the prime responsibilities, reporting structure, key challenges, and performance criteria. This will help the candidate provide relevant examples and responses.
  • Don’t be afraid to improvise – Plan your questions, but don’t feel you must ask only those you’ve chosen in advance. Be responsive to what the candidate tells you, and build new questions off their answers.
  • Listen – If you are doing most of the talking during an interview, you will not be able to obtain enough information to distinguish between candidates or to determine a candidate’s true competencies. A general guideline is to spend 80% of your time listening and only 20% talking.
  • Take notes – While you won’t want to transcribe everything the candidate says, do write down important points, key accomplishments, good examples, and other information that will help you remember and fairly evaluate each candidate. An interview guide, prepared in advance, will make note-taking easier and give you a structure for capturing key information.
  • Invite candidates to ask questions – This can be the most valuable part of the interview. Why do they want to be here? Is it the challenge of the job, advances in the industry, or something specific about your company? Or is the candidate fixated on salary, benefits, and time off? If the candidate has no questions this should be a red flag, especially for senior-level employees. Make a note of what the candidate asks, and be sure to follow up if you can’t provide the answer immediately.
  • Follow legal interviewing guidelines – It is critically important that every interviewer at your company understands and follow legal hiring guidelines. The easiest way to keep your interviews fully compliant is to ask only questions that relate to the job, eliminating the potential for bias by not introducing questions or scenarios that will elicit irrelevant information.

After the Interview

  • Let candidates know – A pet peeve of many job seekers is that they are left hanging after an interview, or they are promised follow-up that never comes. If the candidate is a good fit, be clear about what the next steps will be. And if the candidate is not a good fit, make the call as soon as possible out of courtesy.
  • Compare notes and reach consensus – The post-interview evaluation is the time to compare notes and advance the hiring decision. Each interviewer should be prepared to back up remarks and recommendations with specific examples and notes from the interview.
  • Deepen the questions as you narrow the field – Subsequent interviews with finalists are valuable opportunities to learn more about them. Consider recreating a real business challenge the individual would be facing.

The job market is always competitive when looking for good people. Companies need to realise that they’re selling themselves as much as candidates are. It’s important to treat people well during the interview process.

Your interview process reflects the value your company places on each candidate and, by extension, each employee. Be a good ambassador for your company by conducting a professional interview, communicating honestly, and basing hiring decisions on an honest evaluation of each candidate’s capabilities. Not only will you make great hires, but you’ll build goodwill and enhance your future recruiting efforts.

Before You Interview, Make Sure You Attract Top Talent

The time-honored job interview is where you begin to narrow down your field of candidates and get a sense of whether they might be the right fit for your organisation. But before you get to that stage, you need to ensure that you’ve called in the best candidates. Where you post your job advert matters, which is why you should consider Monster’s global reach. Post your job advert at no cost to you today.

Woman in a wheelchair, shaking hands with a hiring manager, after navigating the stages of the interview process.