#TalentAttraction #Tuesday RECRUITING THE WRONG CANDIDATES? IMPROVE YOUR MANAGERS’ INTERVIEW SKILLS

By RecruiterGuy | March 15, 2022

With over 40 years of expert professional recruiting experience, I wish I counted how few Hiring Managers have formally been trained to Interview Effectively. Consider that a manager who has not formally been trained to interview effectively, certainly has not been trained to select the best candidate. Need we go further?

Of course, we need to let you know what you are missing without interview training.

This is Gold Medal Recruiting Step 4.

Recruiting Is A SALES Process

Once, I worked with a Sr. Manager who showed no emotion during an interview – not sure where she picked up that practice. Almost EVERY candidate that she interviewed and asked me to extend an offer was surprised that she liked them. If that practice is your practice, ask how many candidates in the Millennial world would even consider an offer from a manager who acted disinterested during an interview?

Like it or not, the Recruiting Process mirrors the SALES Process Perfectly. Therefore, it is your responsibility to attract the best candidates to Your Team.

Make your candidate comfortable by asking them what their ideal next position looks like. If they are describing your open position, Tell Them! If their thoughts are similar, suggest how the experience in your position will lead them where they want to go. This simple action is important because most interviewers cut to the chase without asking the candidate (buyer) what they want.

What Is The Purpose Of An Interview?

When I asked over 125 hiring managers that question, 75% responded that the purpose was to ensure they liked the person. Hmmm, did they mean that?

Their responses informed me how many had formal interview training. Very Few.

The purpose of an interview is to develop a quick professional relationship with the candidate. Help them relax so they may accurately share their information with you. Then ask the questions based on your Job Description and their experience to determine if the candidate is a job and culture fit for your team.

I May Structure An Interview Question With 8 Different Approaches

Practice utilizing interview questions using all these different approaches during an interview. Take responsibilities and skills from your Job Description (hopefully the Job Description is on target, or you will measure the wrong experience and skills). Then search the candidate’s resume for these skills. Ask them questions based on their professional experience only.

By now, almost everyone is aware of Behavioral questions, but many do not know the premise behind them. The premise is that Humans are wonderfully predictive. Once we discover a way to successfully handle a situation, we attempt to apply that solution to every situation that seems the same. Therefore, a skilled interviewer will structure a situation during the interview that the candidate is likely to experience in this new position. Then they will ask the candidate to discuss how they would handle that situation.
The next approach is a one-step question where you are interested in 1 piece of information – For instance, “Why did you leave your current company after such a long tenure (or such a short tenure)?”
The third approach is one where you ask a base question, immediately following up to probe for more information. This is a question that I use during many applicable professional phone interviews – “Tell me about a time when a force beyond your control put you behind schedule. Were you able to get back on schedule? If so, how?”
Pause or Silence technique – Structure a behavioral interview question. Nod your head up and down during their response without saying anything. When they stop speaking, stay silent and continue nodding your head. Then add moving your hand in a horizontal barrel movement to suggest that they continue. Most candidates will continue to talk – and may share information they did not intend to share.
Compare or Contrast questions are good ones to determine possible cultural fit. For instance, if the candidate says that they left a company because they could not remain reporting to a micro-manager. If your practice is micromanagement. This is a bad cultural fit.
Example is one where the Manager talks about a situation that will occur in this position and how it makes them feel or would act. Then the Manager asks the candidate how they would feel or act in the same situation.
Echo question is one where the interviewer takes a phrase from that candidate’s last response. Then asks that phrase as a question – “Left because there was a glass ceiling?”
I realize that the questions that are structured for a yes/no response are discouraged. However, there is an appropriate time and place for them. If my client needs a person to drive a company vehicle, it is appropriate in most states to ask, “Do you have a current (state) driver’s license that is clean?” If the candidate would handle money, it is permissible in most states to ask, “Have you been convicted of a felony?” Responses to either of those may be knockouts in the process for the candidate – and the Manager should be informed.

Utilize these approaches when creating and asking the candidate questions during the interview. These types of questions are key to selecting top candidates because you better understand the candidate’s skill and cultural fit.

In my business, I conduct interview training for Employers.

Talent Attraction Mirrors The SALES Process Perfectly

Over the next 12 weeks, we will explore each step of the SALES Process that is called Talent Acquisition, Recruiting, Recruitment, Talent Attraction – and in some organizations !#%@%$&$^*.

Recruiting is Not Magic. It is Focused, Hard Work.

Talent Attraction is Better than Talent Acquisition!

If you would like a conversation on how to ATTRACT talent instead of using an Applicant Tracking System or HRIS to screen them out, we should chat. Call me directly at 435-714-4425 (mountain).

My Talent Attraction speeches benefit your Association Membership and your Organizations. Please consider – If my Speech saves your members only ONE Recruitment fee, it has paid for itself.

I am available to consult with your company to improve your Top Talent Attraction strategy. Attracting and integrating Top Talent gives your company an industry edge. The process is worth the effort by improving productivity, innovation, and profitability – Look at Google, Tesla, SpaceX, and Apple. Retaining Top Talent keeps your industry knowledge inside your company – instead of with the competition.

The RecruiterGuy.com Top Talent Attraction business model is my differentiator. I focus on one client at a time and charge a flat monthly fee. This model enables me to attract new talent to your organization while identifying and suggesting improvements to your company’s Talent Attraction process, including Manager Interview Training. https://recruiterguy.com/

Why am I known as The Candidate Whisperer? See below –

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With over 40 years of Talent Attraction experience, I help organizations Recruit, Onboard, Actuate, and Retain Top Talent.

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