According to Peter Capelli in his 2019 article in the Harvard Business Review, “Businesses have never done as much hiring as they do today and have never done a worse job of it.” He goes on to describe the interview as the “most flawed process in American business.” Sadly, he isn’t overstating the situation, and it leads to some significant outcomes that deeply impact work culture and business success overall.
The interview is your company’s first impression for a prospective candidate, and how it is conducted can say a lot about your workplace culture. Unfortunately, most companies don’t require any formal training to conduct interviews and, even worse, often task their most junior employees with conducting them. An untrained interviewer likely doesn’t have the skills to ask effective questions, draw out unrehearsed answers, or know what to look for in a candidate, and that can end up costing you thousands of dollars in hiring mistakes.
Wondering if your interview process is exposing a lack of training? Read on for some sure-fire signs that you need a revamp.
1) High New Hire Turnover Rate
If you are noticing a high rate of turnover within the first six months of hire, you need to take a hard look at your interview process. The turnover could be a product of poor interviewing skills, failing to set clear expectations of the job role, and ultimately the selection of a candidate who wasn’t suited for the position.
2) Low Quality Hires
If you find yourself wondering at the low quality of workers you have coming into your business, stop and do an immediate deep dive into your interview process. High quality workers are out there looking for work, but if your interviewers are not well trained, they may never identify them. If you are getting a consistent flow of low-quality hires, the problem likely isn’t the workforce, it’s the person choosing it.
3) Slow Recruiting Time
Does it seem to take forever to find the right person for the job? The problem may lie in the path you are taking to identify a candidate. Slow recruiting times could indicate several issues. Hazy job descriptions, unclear expectations for the candidate and the interviewer, and poor reviews regarding the interview process and possibly your work culture, all work to deter top notch candidates from applying to your job posting. When they do get in the door, a shoddy interview experience could be causing your best applicants to check out of the process before you get a chance to scoop them up.
4) Poor Job Fit
One of the most telling signs that your interview training could use an update is a consistent issue with job fit among new hires. Even a great candidate can have trouble adjusting if the job description and job expectations are not clearly communicated and they find themselves in a job they aren’t suited for. Learning to spot the appropriate candidate for a job position is a difficult skill to hone that takes training and experience, but it is one of the most overlooked soft skills in the human resources arsenal.
Prioritizing the training of your interviewers is one of the best long-term investments you can make in your business regardless of the size of your company. Good interview training helps protect your business from unintentional (and illegal) discrimination and bias, ensures a positive and consistent process and will ultimately result in better hires and less turnover for your company.
Deep End Talent Strategies is excited to launch Interview Dive to equip your interviewers with the tools and skills they need to find great talent and represent your employer brand well. Questions? Contact us at info@deependstrategies.com.