HRO Today July/August 2017 - 59

Talent Acquisition
Learning a Lesson from Entry-Level Hiring
content should be standardized for each stage and be
structured around areas that are most relevant to the role.
Entry-level hiring is an outlier to this new norm, and provides
some valuable lessons. Consider graduate programs, in which
an entirely different strategy is necessary to handle the sheer
volume of applications.
Today's entry-level candidates have grown up in the
digital age. The way they seek employment, interact with
organizations, and make decisions about their careers are far
different than the traditional hiring process.
Forward-thinking companies are deploying more
sophisticated tools and solutions-such as gamified
assessments, video interviewing, and virtual or augmented
reality-to identify and engage top young talent. They're
designing online and mobile-friendly assessment platforms
and hosting digital assessment centers.
These interactive tools are often overlooked when it comes to
hiring more experienced candidates. Instead, TA teams revert
to the tried-and-true interview, which is seen as the easiest
and lowest-cost way to assess an individual's experience and
alignment to a role.
To help focus interview and assessment processes in a way
that benefits companies and candidates alike, organizations
should consider focusing on five principles:
1. Quality of candidate. It doesn't take long for top candidates
to wonder whether interviewing multiple times for a role is
a good use of time and to attribute this to the employer's
inability to make a decision.
Organizations need to focus efforts on quality candidates.
A long process may end in a short list, but it will consist of
low quality candidates-the only ones willing to turn up for
interview after interview.
2. Quality-not quantity-of interview. Quality, in terms of
both interviewing and decision-making, must be prioritized
over quantity. Set a limit for the number of interview rounds
by position. The number will vary depending on the level or
strategic importance of a role, and HR should also take into
account the other types of assessments that are used along
the way. Make each interview matter with specific questions
that are complementary, not duplicative. The candidate will
feel like they're cared for, and hiring teams will learn more
about them.
In organizations that hire many people for the same role-
roles such as customer service representatives-interview
3. Quality of decision-making. Too often, the final interviewers
or hiring manager assume that the candidate must be good
because they made it this far. But, that's no way to make
a smart call. Interviewers should meet to compare notes,
validate findings, and agree on a winning candidate. Why
hold complementary interviews if the information isn't
integrated to create a complete picture of the candidate
slate?
4. Candidate pool size. Every candidate should have a positive
experience, but those who make the final cut should have the
best experience. With the way processes function currently,
in all likelihood, finalists have a worse experience than those
who are rejected weeks earlier.
To avoid this, don't just cut down on the number of
interviews-cut down on the number of candidates.
Organizations are better able to deliver a consistent, positive
experience for each. In the time it takes HR to realize that
there's no perfect candidate, a near perfect hire could be
trainied to deliver at or beyond expectations.
5. Reduce time to hire. Glassdoor found that adding phone
interviews increases the hiring process by 8 to 8.2 days on
average to the hiring process. One-on-one interviews add
4.1 to 5.3 days, and panel interviews lengthen the process
between 5.6 and 6.8 days. Compare these amounts to
simulation-type exercises such as presentations, which add
just 2.7 to 4.2 days.
Strategically select the types of interviews or assessments that
are necessary for each role to significantly shorten time to
hire. If multiple interviews are required, try to hold them all
on the same day. Focus on quality over quantity.
A New Life for Interviews
The smartest companies recognize that a positive candidate
experience is paramount. TA teams must understand what is
expected from them, as well as the potential impact-losing a
top candidate-of veering from the process.
Interviewing has been around for centuries, and will always
have a place in the process. But there is plenty of room for
improvement around the basics. The good news? Making
these changes is neither difficult nor costly.
Astrid Burr is client partner for Talent Collective, an Alexander Mann
Solutions company.
JULY/AUGUST 2017
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HRO Today July/August 2017

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