Bad hires are an employer’s greatest nightmare. Imagine going through a long and meticulous hiring process only to make the mistake of sourcing a bad hire. A survey conducted by Careerbuilder found 75% of employers are affected by bad hires. This means about 3 out of 4 employers admitted to hiring unsuitable candidates.
So what can hiring managers do to avoid this mistake? As a recruitment agency in Malaysia, we believe that it is important for HR managers to come up with a robust interview process. A well structured interview process can give employers an in-depth insight about a candidates’ behaviour, core values and overall personality. We believe that employers will be able to make better hiring decisions when they know their candidates well.
Which brings us to the next question, how does a well planned interview process look like? Well, you’re in luck because we are going to reveal a checklist of interview tips that could help employers find good candidates in Malaysia.
1. Prepare Interview Questions
Interviewers that don’t prepare interview questions are missing out on the chance to evaluate potential candidates. You can prepare your interview questions by following the checklist below:
- Determine what hard skills are most relevant for the job by reviewing the job description
- Plan out questions that can point out the candidate’s core values
Aside from that, you should also note that there are over more than a dozen types of interview such as behavioural type interview, competency based interview, task related interview and many others that are designed to assess different skills.
Take your time to incorporate different types of questions, during the interview. This can help hiring managers evaluate a candidate’s skills more precisely.
Pro-Tip: Avoid asking generic questions like “What is your greatest strength” because you would not be able to effectively evaluate your candidates. Instead, you could opt to ask behavioural questions to get a glimpse of a candidate’s personality.
2. Organize a Systematic Interview by Coordinating With the Panel Beforehand
You can coordinate the interview by deciding who will be asking which questions. This would help with the flow of the interview. In addition, it can also prevent candidates from being asked the same question twice.
You should also decide beforehand who will be answering the candidates’ questions regarding different topics. For example, questions related to HR matter such as annual leave and sick leave should be answered by the hiring manager and questions regarding job scope and day to day task should be answered by the hiring supervisor. By doing so, the candidate will be clear about the information that they receive.
3. Give The Candidate Your Undivided Attention
Hiring new employees is a big deal for most businesses. Therefore it is essential that you focus on the candidate during the interview. Pay attention to how the candidate responds to your questions.
Candidates may emit undesired behavioural cues that you should flag. You can easily read on candidates body language by paying attention to the candidates’ eye contact, body posture, arm movements, facial expressions and dress code
Bear in mind that different personalities may react differently to different situations. A handy guideline to measure behaviour can only point you towards a general direction. Sometimes the best thing to do if you are unsure is to trust your intuition
Pro-Tip: To avoid being distracted during the interview, clear out your schedule 15 minutes before the interview to readjust your focus. This practice also prevents you from making the candidate wait too long. It provides you with a chance to show that you are a great employer who respects everyone’s time. You will have a higher chance of attracting good candidates.
4. Take Notes During the Interview
It’s easy to get details of an interview mixed up especially if you are interviewing several people in short periods of time. Therefore, it is important for you to jot down details that might jog your memory in the future.
For example, a candidates’ past experience that intrigues you or perhaps skills that you feel might be worth digging into. You will be able to get back to the candidate and ask them more questions that you were not able to think of during the interview. This way, you will be able to make better hiring decisions because you will be able to understand the candidates’ experience better.
5. Get Feedback From People From Outside of the Interview
Interviews are usually conducted in a controlled environment. This leads both the interviewer and the candidate to behave in a controlled manner. One helpful way to get a glimpse of a candidate’s true behaviour outside of an interview is by including feedback from people outside of the interview about their experience with the candidate. For example, you can ask the candidates’ reference about their behaviour
You should also get feedback from your team members about the candidate. Share the highlights of the interview with your colleagues and ask them if the candidate would be the right fit, for the team. Your colleagues may also be able to raise several questions that you may not think of during the interview.
6. Include Recruiters in the Interview Process
Recruiters are trained to help businesses find the perfect hire. Their years of experience enables them to come up with tested methods that can identify good candidates. In addition, most recruitment agencies have specialised hirers with industry-specific knowledge. This allows them to find the right candidate, according to the different skills and experience, treasured by a specific industry.
An interview plays a pivotal role in determining the quality of the next hire. Therefore, it’s best to plan out your interview process. The tips and guidelines provided above can help your organization avoid the mistake of hiring unsuitable candidates for your company.
As a recruitment agency in Malaysia, the recruiters at BGC Group are equipped to help your business find talents for you efficiently. Let our recruiters know how they can help you.
