Interviews - The boot on the other foot!
A lot is written about interview technique from the perspective of the interviewee but what about good techniques to enable the interviewer to make an informed decision at the end of the interview?
A lot is written about interview technique from the perspective of the interviewee but what about good techniques to enable the interviewer to make an informed decision at the end of the interview?
Whilst a good many interviews nowadays are conducted by qualified HR professionals, there are still a large proportion of first and second interviews carried out by unqualified HR assistants, fee earners and office managers. Interview technique isn't a skill we are all blessed with from birth and is just as much a skill, which is refined and improved with practice, as actually undergoing an interview.
One of the most important things to remember when interviewing, at no matter what level of recruitment, is that you are the face of your company and the image you project is the image the candidate will take away with them.
Even before you meet the candidate, impressions count. Strive to have as streamlined a procedure as possible, so that you are able to identify a good CV quickly and arrange an early interview. Delay in interviewing can lead to you losing the candidate. If the delay is unavoidable, communication is the key and if you are using a recruiter to assist you, ensure that you keep them advised so that they are able to control the situation and ensure that the candidate maintains interest.
Maybe you aren't really that bothered about what a prospective office junior thinks of you and your firm; but what if that person's parent is a senior partner at a rival practice? What about when that same candidate has become a 2 year PQE tax or finance specialist and your firm is desperate for a candidate with those skills? What about when that prospective office junior becomes senior Counsel at one of your major target clients'? That might sound daft and maybe even a little extreme but believe me, it happens! Indeed, that person who you haven't even bothered to notify of feedback after interview might someday be the person interviewing you!
You might think that where you interview isn't important. It is. Candidates coming to your firm will be looking around them, imagining what it would be like to work for you and environment is an important factor in a candidate's decision as to whether to accept an offer of employment. That doesn't mean that you need state of the art offices, with comfortable sofas and plasma TV in reception in order to secure great candidates. However, it can make all the difference to both your visiting clients and interviewees to receive a warm and professional welcome, an offer of refreshments (a glass of water is helpful to relieve a dry mouth, which usually accompanies interview nerves!) and as short a waiting time as possible to be received.
Most see a room with seating either side of a desk or table to be too formal and rigid, nowadays. If this is the set up you are faced with, then you can make things more informal and relaxed by moving the chairs to the same side of the desk, perhaps getting the desk moved to a less intrusive position. A relaxed area with coffee table and easy chairs is ideal.
Your aim is to make the candidate feel as relaxed as possible because that way you will get the most out of them, gaining full answers to your questioning and getting an insight into their personality.
It is a good idea to open up the interview by thanking the candidate for coming along and running through some information on your company, the ethos and general environment in which people work, information concerning the job the candidate is interviewing for and HR information, such as hours of work and benefits offered.
Ideally you would have already sent a written job description and personnel specification to the candidate or recruiter, to enable the candidate to prepare in advance. It is also good practice to provide full information on others who are sitting in on the interview, to include their name and status/role in the firm.
This is an opportunity to really sell what the firm and the role have to offer. That might sound unnecessary but in a competitive market where perhaps most of your competitors are looking for candidates with the same skills and experience it is essential, to enable you to gain the edge and that vital acceptance, should you decide to make an offer.
Additional benefits might sound trivial but "perks" such as dress down Friday, lunch vouchers or firm-bought lunch, social events, contributory pension and the "buying and selling of holidays" are all extras which could be the persuasive factor for a candidate who has two offers to decide between.
Plan to spend between ¾ and 1 ¼ hours at interview. This should give you more than enough time to welcome your candidate, set out what your firm has to offer the candidate and then establish what the candidate has to offer your firm.
Once you have outlined things from the firm's stand point, invite the candidate to talk to you about their CV.
Use open questioning, i.e. questions which are difficult to answer with a straight "yes" or "no". Key words to start your questioning are what, when, why, where and how.
Don't be afraid to allow pauses in the conversation. Silences act as prompts to the candidate that is their time to speak, to embellish their answer and to speak freely.
Other indicators you can use are open body language (crossed legs and arms act as a visual barrier), a nod to indicate you are interested and listening to what the candidate is saying, eye contact to indicate the same, picking up on aspects of what the candidate has said to indicate interest and the desire for more information or explanation and the summarising of what has been said, again to indicate you have listened and understood.
Get them to take you through their education; for instance why they took a particular route of study, or particular location for study. Find out what they particularly enjoyed during their studies and make sure that you know the grades they secured, if not already outlined on their written CV.
Then go through their job history, ensuring that they explain any gaps in the chronology, why they took particular jobs, why they left those jobs and what work they did. It is useful to know how much involvement they had in particular projecrequirements, since requirements can vary substantially between firms, despite the same job title.
If you have any concerns, either with an aspect of the CV (such as a reason for leaving, unexplained gap in the CV or with the candidate being non-communicative during interview) it is good policy to be open with the candidate at interview, since this gives them the chance to deal with your concerns - and they might just be able to satisfactorily explain, even if that is to say "I am feeling incredibly nervous because I am very keen on this job/firm!"
Find out what they know about the firm already and what aspects of the job/firm are of particular interest to them. Ask about their aspirations, game plan for the future in terms of career and, to gain a rounded picture of the candidate, this is a good point to ask about what the candidate likes to do in their spare time.
Towards the end of the interview is an opportune time for the candidate to be given the time to ask some questions. By this time they would have had some information from you and given information in return. They may not have any questions at this point because your interview introduction has been thorough, like their preparation for interview!
At the conclusion of the interview it is good practice to indicate roughly when you expect to be able to make a decision and how you will be in touch to confirm. If it is your procedure to conduct second/third interviews, make the candidate aware of this and indicate who is likely to conduct the interview, since this prepares the candidate for a possible return trip and a delayed decision.
We speak to candidates about their interview all the time and it is not unusual for them to indicate that they don't know how long they will have to wait to get a decision, whether there are further interviews planned, whether they will be required to return for further interview and even how the interview went.
When they have a positive indication from another firm that they are a strong contender they can be left feeling much more interested in that role. You can help the candidate to feel positive about the interview by making reassuring remarks about them and what they say where you are feeling the candidate is performing well.
End the interview by showing the candidate out and thanking them for their time.
Your job is not over yet!
The good will of your firm has not been gained easily. You have completed a professional and comprehensive interview and have been able to come to a decision on the candidate. You decide they are not for the role, you aren't convinced that they will be able to cope with the pressurised role let's say, or you think they wouldn't be committed to working for more than six months/a year and you need someone who will be with you long term.
The easiest thing to do is to move on to find the right candidate without going back to the candidate you are rejecting. But put yourself in the rejected candidate's shoes. They have given up their time to come to meet you. They may have had to take time off work, and spend money on travel. You may have requested they come to you for two or even three interviews before rejecting them and this will have been a considerable commitment from the candidate.
Your firm trades in correspondence, so it certainly won't come across as very professional if you can't even send a letter to inform the candidate that you will not be making an offer. Some feedback on the interview demonstrates that you have fully considered the candidate and enables the candidate to use your advice to improve their interview technique for the future. Feedback will mean something more than "didn't feel you would fit in" or "we have seen other candidates who better fit our requirements", since those expressions are bland and lack the flesh on the bones to enable the candidate to do something about their persona or experience for the future.
You might think that where you interview isn't important. It is. Candidates coming to your firm will be looking around them, imagining what it would be like to work for you and environment is an important factor in a candidate's decision as to whether to accept an offer of employment. That doesn't mean that you need state of the art offices, with comfortable sofas and plasma TV in reception in order to secure great candidates. However, it can make all the difference to both your visiting clients and interviewees to receive a warm and professional welcome, an offer of refreshments (a glass of water is helpful to relieve a dry mouth, which usually accompanies interview nerves!) and as short a waiting time as possible to be received.
Most see a room with seating either side of a desk or table to be too formal and rigid, nowadays. If this is the set up you are faced with, then you can make things more informal and relaxed by moving the chairs to the same side of the desk, perhaps getting the desk moved to a less intrusive position. A relaxed area with coffee table and easy chairs is ideal.
Your aim is to make the candidate feel as relaxed as possible because that way you will get the most out of them, gaining full answers to your questioning and getting an insight into their personality.
It is a good idea to open up the interview by thanking the candidate for coming along and running through some information on your company, the ethos and general environment in which people work, information concerning the job the candidate is interviewing for and HR information, such as hours of work and benefits offered.
Ideally you would have already sent a written job description and personnel specification to the candidate or recruiter, to enable the candidate to prepare in advance. It is also good practice to provide full information on others who are sitting in on the interview, to include their name and status/role in the firm.
This is an opportunity to really sell what the firm and the role have to offer. That might sound unnecessary but in a competitive market where perhaps most of your competitors are looking for candidates with the same skills and experience it is essential, to enable you to gain the edge and that vital acceptance, should you decide to make an offer.
Additional benefits might sound trivial but "perks" such as dress down Friday, lunch vouchers or firm-bought lunch, social events, contributory pension and the "buying and selling of holidays" are all extras which could be the persuasive factor for a candidate who has two offers to decide between.
Plan to spend between ¾ and 1 ¼ hours at interview. This should give you more than enough time to welcome your candidate, set out what your firm has to offer the candidate and then establish what the candidate has to offer your firm.
Once you have outlined things from the firm's stand point, invite the candidate to talk to you about their CV.
Use open questioning, i.e. questions which are difficult to answer with a straight "yes" or "no". Key words to start your questioning are what, when, why, where and how.
Don't be afraid to allow pauses in the conversation. Silences act as prompts to the candidate that is their time to speak, to embellish their answer and to speak freely.
Other indicators you can use are open body language (crossed legs and arms act as a visual barrier), a nod to indicate you are interested and listening to what the candidate is saying, eye contact to indicate the same, picking up on aspects of what the candidate has said to indicate interest and the desire for more information or explanation and the summarising of what has been said, again to indicate you have listened and understood.
Get them to take you through their education; for instance why they took a particular route of study, or particular location for study. Find out what they particularly enjoyed during their studies and make sure that you know the grades they secured, if not already outlined on their written CV.
Then go through their job history, ensuring that they explain any gaps in the chronology, why they took particular jobs, why they left those jobs and what work they did. It is useful to know how much involvement they had in particular projecrequirements, since requirements can vary substantially between firms, despite the same job title.
If you have any concerns, either with an aspect of the CV (such as a reason for leaving, unexplained gap in the CV or with the candidate being non-communicative during interview) it is good policy to be open with the candidate at interview, since this gives them the chance to deal with your concerns - and they might just be able to satisfactorily explain, even if that is to say "I am feeling incredibly nervous because I am very keen on this job/firm!"
Find out what they know about the firm already and what aspects of the job/firm are of particular interest to them. Ask about their aspirations, game plan for the future in terms of career and, to gain a rounded picture of the candidate, this is a good point to ask about what the candidate likes to do in their spare time.
Towards the end of the interview is an opportune time for the candidate to be given the time to ask some questions. By this time they would have had some information from you and given information in return. They may not have any questions at this point because your interview introduction has been thorough, like their preparation for interview!
At the conclusion of the interview it is good practice to indicate roughly when you expect to be able to make a decision and how you will be in touch to confirm. If it is your procedure to conduct second/third interviews, make the candidate aware of this and indicate who is likely to conduct the interview, since this prepares the candidate for a possible return trip and a delayed decision.
We speak to candidates about their interview all the time and it is not unusual for them to indicate that they don't know how long they will have to wait to get a decision, whether there are further interviews planned, whether they will be required to return for further interview and even how the interview went.
When they have a positive indication from another firm that they are a strong contender they can be left feeling much more interested in that role. You can help the candidate to feel positive about the interview by making reassuring remarks about them and what they say where you are feeling the candidate is performing well.
End the interview by showing the candidate out and thanking them for their time.
Your job is not over yet!
The good will of your firm has not been gained easily. You have completed a professional and comprehensive interview and have been able to come to a decision on the candidate. You decide they are not for the role, you aren't convinced that they will be able to cope with the pressurised role let's say, or you think they wouldn't be committed to working for more than six months/a year and you need someone who will be with you long term.
The easiest thing to do is to move on to find the right candidate without going back to the candidate you are rejecting. But put yourself in the rejected candidate's shoes. They have given up their time to come to meet you. They may have had to take time off work, and spend money on travel. You may have requested they come to you for two or even three interviews before rejecting them and this will have been a considerable commitment from the candidate.
Your firm trades in correspondence, so it certainly won't come across as very professional if you can't even send a letter to inform the candidate that you will not be making an offer. Some feedback on the interview demonstrates that you have fully considered the candidate and enables the candidate to use your advice to improve their interview technique for the future. Feedback will mean something more than "didn't feel you would fit in" or "we have seen other candidates who better fit our requirements", since those expressions are bland and lack the flesh on the bones to enable the candidate to do something about their persona or experience for the future.
What's more, if you are liaising with a specialist recruiter, such uninformative feedback will not enable them to move forwards in finding other candidates more suited to the role, which is a waste of time for all concerned.
It is therefore a good idea to make careful notes during or immediately after the interview, so that you or your assistant can refer to those notes at a later stage.
Making an offer - the nice part!
You have seen a great candidate; you want to make them an offer. Do it as quickly as possible. Never forget that someone else may be competing with you for the same candidate, so dragging on to third or fourth interview stage, simply for the candidate to meet other colleagues may not get the result you want? Acting quickly not only beats off the competition but shows you are the keenest to make an offer and get the candidate on board.
Making an offer - the nice part!
You have seen a great candidate; you want to make them an offer. Do it as quickly as possible. Never forget that someone else may be competing with you for the same candidate, so dragging on to third or fourth interview stage, simply for the candidate to meet other colleagues may not get the result you want? Acting quickly not only beats off the competition but shows you are the keenest to make an offer and get the candidate on board.
Think in advance about who the candidate will need to meet and try to get those people together at one interview. In particular, in this very competitive market for the skilled legal secretary, you need to move quickly. Seek to arrange typing assessment at the first interview and also bring in the people the secretary needs to meet. It is worth noting that many law firms are so keen to gain the best secretaries that they will make an offer to a candidate at interview or within hours of meeting.
If you can't deal with a typing assessment the same day, ask your recruiter if they have assessment results. many, like us, do have assessment facilities and are able to confirm results on spelling, grammar, speed and accuracy.
If you are using a recruiter it is usual to let them put the verbal offer, thereby securing a verbal acceptance and anticipated start date. If you are not using a recruiter and your candidate is currently employed, you should be aware at interview stage that you will need to cover off the "buy back" situation with the candidate. Recruiters worth their salt will cover this off for you long before interview stage. The question to ask at interview is "what would you do if your current employer offered you promotion or more money to stay?". Ensure you are satisfied that the candidate is committed to moving firms. It is often worth pointing out to the candidate that something has driven them to look for a new job and any pay rise or promotion by their current employer is likely only to be a short term fix of unhappiness in their job.
Once you are in the situation where a candidate has given a verbal acceptance, aim to get their contract details, or at least a formal offer letter out within 48 hours. This will ensure that the candidate resigns from their current job quickly, where relevant, and continues to give positive signals that you are keen for them to join your firm.
Follow up after a week if the contract has not been returned, to ensure all is well - or get your recruiter to do so (they should be monitoring this in any event).
Finally, ideally on the candidates start date, or at worst within days, provide them with some form of induction, so that they settle quickly. Induction will include things like where everything is (such as the toilets - so better on their first day!), how to use basic office equipment, like the telephone, copier and fax, standard procedures and form filling. A follow up with the candidate is highly recommended to ensure that they are finding their feet, happy and have no specific training requirements. This enables you to deal with any problems before they become an early resignation!
We wish you every success with your recruitment - if you require advice and/or support we are here to help! Ring 0870 111 7270 or contact us @ client@carpediemlegal.co.uk
Once you are in the situation where a candidate has given a verbal acceptance, aim to get their contract details, or at least a formal offer letter out within 48 hours. This will ensure that the candidate resigns from their current job quickly, where relevant, and continues to give positive signals that you are keen for them to join your firm.
Follow up after a week if the contract has not been returned, to ensure all is well - or get your recruiter to do so (they should be monitoring this in any event).
Finally, ideally on the candidates start date, or at worst within days, provide them with some form of induction, so that they settle quickly. Induction will include things like where everything is (such as the toilets - so better on their first day!), how to use basic office equipment, like the telephone, copier and fax, standard procedures and form filling. A follow up with the candidate is highly recommended to ensure that they are finding their feet, happy and have no specific training requirements. This enables you to deal with any problems before they become an early resignation!
We wish you every success with your recruitment - if you require advice and/or support we are here to help! Ring 0870 111 7270 or contact us @ client@carpediemlegal.co.uk
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