You’ve sorted through all the resume submissions for your current job opening and gathered a stack of the most promising ones. Now it’s time to whittle that pile down by conducting a series of phone interviews.
Phone interviews provide a different set of feedback from the submitted hiring materials and face-to-face interviews. While a resume and cover letter give hiring managers their initial set of candidates, the next step in the process of gathering feedback comes in an effective phone interview.
Job candidates have the ability to really impress a company and become a top candidate. Companies can zone in on their top targets and decide who they want to further pursue.
Sending the Right Message
Treating each candidate like a potential employee goes a long way in the eyes of the person being interviewed. It’s important to be prepared but also to have those job materials (and a LinkedIn profile) within your reach when you need a reference point.
Effective phone interviews will go through similar formats to provide consistent feedback for each job candidate. Reviewing that information after all of the phone interviews will help narrow down the candidate list to the potential employees you want to bring in for face-to-face interviews. At the time, it might seem that you will remember each and every detail, but after conducting a number of interviews, a lot of that information may blend together. There is no harm in taking more notes than you could possibly need.
Hearing More Than the Answers
Remember that the phone interview isn’t just about a company interviewing the job candidate. A good hiring process features the hiring manager giving their own background, explaining more about the position and sharing information about the company’s culture. The job candidate can do research on their own but any information provided by the company will be appreciated and provide more context to the situation.
Making a great hire for your company also requires finding a job candidate who is excited to join your organization for the right reasons, and the phone interview can be a great start in that area. Actively listening to the job candidate’s answers can provide even more feedback. Excited job candidates will convey that enthusiasm through the phone and show they are eager to work for your organization.
When closing the interview, inform the candidate of the next steps in the interview process. Job candidates can be hesitant to ask that question. Being proactive in providing those details will be appreciated and result in the candidates walking away with a positive view of the company whether they get the job or not.
At CAREERXCHANGE®, we have many candidates that can be qualified for your position and who would be more than happy to speak with you over the phone regarding an open position. Feel free to contact one of the top talent acquisition firms in Florida, and we can connect you with the most qualified individuals.