We spend a lot of time in interviews, and if the candidate doesn’t end up getting hired, it can feel like time wasted. One way to cut down on some of this time is to set up a virtual interview online. These meetings make it easier to schedule candidates quickly because they don’t have to juggle travel time to your office for the traditional meeting. While the virtual interview may not work for every job, it’s a good way to meet candidates quickly to speed up the hiring process and potentially steal candidates away from your competitors.

Here’s how employers can prepare to add virtual interview tools into your interview toolkit and the benefits these online meetings can bring.

Preparing for the Virtual Interview

The benefits of virtual interviews for employers are the same as for candidates; online meetings save time and money. The candidate can eliminate travel time and the employer can avoid flying a remote job seeker into an office. Statistics show that more employers are working the virtual interview into their hiring best practices.

The virtual interview can be by phone, video conferencing or even a set series of online questions the candidate answers. However, typically, because humans are visual creatures, we most often want to see candidates on our computer screen, which makes video conferencing a likely scenario for hiring teams and job seekers.

Employers that initiate video conferencing should follow some best practices to improve the candidate experience. This includes:

  • Allowing the recruiter to prep the candidate for the virtual interview. Even a strong candidate can be thrown off by a virtual conference call, so train your recruiting team to help manage expectations around the video interview.
  • Make the interview professional but not cold. Video conferencing can intimidate both the employer and the candidate. If the hiring manager or candidate is uncomfortable with these tools, the chances are the interview will be awkward. That’s exactly why every member of your hiring team should practice their style of speaking and appearing on camera to make the candidate feel more at home in a situation that can be awkward.
  • Test your technology well in advance, which is the same advice we give to candidates on the other end of the conference line. Position the camera appropriately so everyone in the room can see the candidate. It’s a good idea to test speaker and audio volume to make sure everyone in the room can hear the candidate and they can hear you.
  • Always check your lighting. Far too often, we see video conferencing that is too dark or too bright. A room with natural light will project the best image, but make sure the light isn’t directly behind the interviewer, so the image doesn’t wash out.
  • Talk with your hiring team about the interview questions you will ask. This is an important requisite even if the interview is face to face. Just like any interview, make sure the candidate understands who is on camera and the agenda or length of the interview.

Schedule a demo with Exelare about ways to use technology to manage the candidate interview process. We can help you streamline your recruiting efforts to send you rocketing past the competition, whether your interview is traditional or virtual.