Prior to COVID-19, the number of video interviews rose modestly over the past few years. Fourteen percent of individuals surveyed for our 2019 North American Candidate Experience Research Report, for example, had a recorded or live video interview, a slight increase over 2018. This figure has already jumped 93% in 2020 (CandE Benchmark Research Program open through September), as recruiting teams increasingly forego in-person interviews due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Of course, the number of in-person interviews will rise again if and when workplace restrictions are eased. Until then, however, lots of organizations will rely on video-based interviews as a safe, cost-effective alternative, any many may continue to rely on them. Video interviewing software also helps employers streamline the interviewing process, facilitate scheduling, and overcome travel/geographic limitations.

Unfortunately, the interview process itself is where many organizations stumble. Too few companies have a consistent and structured interview process that recruiters and hiring managers can leverage with every candidate—the kind of process that unearths potential hiring insights beyond candidates’ basic skill sets and experience. For example, what candidates can bring to your organization to help you grow and sustain the business.

You can’t expect valuable hiring insights from a disjointed or inconsistent interview process. And a sub-par interview process not only reduces your quality of hires, but it also drags down your candidate ratings in your continuous feedback surveying, those in the CandE Benchmark Research program, and reviews on sites like Glassdoor and Indeed. After all, people aren’t shy about advertising their poor interview experiences.

Get Maximum Value from Your Interviews

If you want to bring greater order to your interview process, improve your quality of hire, and lift your employer ratings at the same time, then put these three simple practices to work. They’re favorites among CandE award winning companies (i.e., those with the highest-rated candidate experiences), and they’ll help both you and your candidates get maximum value out of video-based interviews.

1. Help candidates prepare for interviews in advance. Be sure to provide them with complete instructions for setting up, testing and using whatever video technology or platform you’ll conduct interviews with. You may also want to give them some background on the individuals who will interview them. These small courtesies help put candidates at ease and allow them to give their best during your discussions. In 2019, candidates of CandE-winning companies reported that a detailed interview agenda was provided 30% of the time, 11% more often than other companies.
2. Give your interviews structure. Unstructured interviews are still used by a surprising number of companies, not because they produce great results but because they require less preparation. In fact, unstructured interviews open the door to hires that don’t quite match up to your needs. One way to add structure to interviews is for recruiters and hiring managers to create a set of fixed questions that correspond to the critical job competencies, desired behaviors, and specific personal qualities you want in your candidates. Interviewers can determine which questions to ask, in what order, etc., but providing them with a basic set of questions to draw from helps reduce interviewer biases and disconnects from talent acquisition objectives. Structured interviews also ensure that all candidates have an equal chance to showcase their abilities and are treated fairly. CandE-winning companies conduct unstructured interviews 30% less than all other companies.
3. Provide next steps and follow-up. These are essential if you’re looking to build a top-flight candidate experience. Nearly three-quarters of candidates who interviewed with CandE-winning employers were told about next steps in the process and provided with follow-up when necessary from the companies’ recruiters and hiring managers. Interestingly, 65% of candidates who were rejected after their interviews were encouraged to apply for another job by CandE-winning companies (17% higher than all companies together). Plus, when candidates are told what will happen after screening and interviews, and receive follow up as indicated, 56% are more likely to increase their relationships with employers.

It’s impossible to predict what will happen as we move toward a new normal in recruiting. But I’m willing to bet that video interviews are here to stay—and in greater numbers—because of their benefits to both employers and candidates.

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