Conducting Job Interviews
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The ability of an individual, as an employer, to communicate or converse face to face with a job seeker in a formal manner is known as his skills of conducting job interviews. The aim of developing these skills is to be able to assess the suitability of the candidates being interviewed for a particular job.
A job interview is usually a two-way interaction. During such an encounter with a candidate, your ability to delve into his skills, qualifications, knowledge, background, career objectives, attitude and interests, as well as answer his questions about the company and job, is what your skills of conducting job interviews truly mean.
Why conducting job interviews are important
Interviews are one of the most important steps in the hiring process. Therefore, skills of conducting job interviews are essential, especially for HR personnel, in order to complete this step successfully.
The significance of conducting job interviews revolves around the fact that it gives an opportunity to the employer to verify everything mentioned in the candidate’s job application and also collect additional information through discussions and direct questioning. Interviews can also serve as a great public-relation tool. Ideal skills of conducting job interviews, therefore, can help boost the image of employer and increase goodwill for the overall company.
How to improve your skills of conducting job interviews
Following are some suggestions for helping you improve your skills of conducting job interviews:
- Conduct a job analysis. Before you start preparing for the interview, you should consult an expert on the subject matter and ask him to generate for you a list of the most important characteristics of the job, as well as the skills and qualifications that would be required to perform it effectively. Doing so will prepare you well enough to make the interview as relevant to the job as possible.
- Write down questions beforehand. For making the interview well-structured, you must be prepared with the questions beforehand. The uniformity of the questions you ask will make it easier for you to compare the responses of the candidates. However, you must be prepared to show some level of flexibility. In case a candidate fails to provide enough information in his response to your question, you may have to ask follow-up questions in order to collect all required information.
- Make a panel of interviewers. The process of conducting interviews become a lot more reliable if there is more than one interviewer. You can ask an expert on the subject to join you or even the head of the department where the position is to be filled. This way you will have someone cover up for any shortcomings on your behalf.