Off-the-wall interview questions, lengthy printed job descriptions and rounds of repetitive interviews are a very 1989 — or even 2003 — way of recruiting.

1. Three Steps to a New and
More Effective Interview

2. Three Steps to a New and
More Effective Interview
Off-the-wall interview questions, lengthy printed job descriptions and rounds
of repetitive interviews are a very 1989 – or even 2003 – way of recruiting.
Gerry Crispin, Principal of CareerXroads, says it’s high time for a change.
“For many years we’ve had a pretty bad approach in general to recruiting and
we continue to have a bad approach.” He says that advances in technology,
particularly social media, are only adding to the problem and make it easier
for companies to make the same mistakes – and make them faster.
Crispin is uniquely positioned to comment on companies’ hiring
processes since he hears about them constantly at CareerXroads.
His organization creates a platform for staffing leaders to have
intimate conversations about the best and worst practices
in hiring. Gerry Crispin
Crispin suggests that updated interview strategies will yield better results
for employers and job seekers alike. These three steps are central to any
new interview process:
1. Add simulations
Is the candidate right for the job? Is the job right for the candidate? Companies
are using faster and more realistic testing tools that allow job seekers to pit
A “hack day” is an themselves against the actual challenges of the job. “Today you can create a
effective type of simulation that has a very low cost-per-use,” explains Crispin. “A job seeker can
simulation for IT and intimately embed themselves in a simulation of how a job operates and what
engineering professionals it’s all about. This helps them make a better decision about whether they’re
a fit for the job.”
Many companies with high volume needs are investing in actual simulations.
Other firms with fewer positions rely on cost-effective, job-shadowing videos
to provide a realistic preview of what it’s like to work at a company. “Video is not
that interactive,” comments Crispin. “But it’s still a simulation of what a job is like
and is a significant step-up over a paragraph-by-paragraph description of what
you need to be part of a company.”
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3. Simulations even have a place in technical fields, especially for positions that
require project management skills. A “hack day” is an effective type of simulation
for IT and engineering professionals. During hack days companies give professionals
challenges, such as use their hacking skills to produce code or generate a
technical resolution within a certain timeframe. The process would be a good
self-test tool for prospects as well.
2. Try a better line of questioning
What are your weaknesses? Where do you want to be in five years?
The only legitimate What would you do if…? These questions sound familiar because they’re
interview questions
the standard interview questions that have been asked for decades. In many
are those that are
cases, employers are still asking them. That, says Crispin, needs to stop.
occupationally focused,
behavior-based, or relate “Many companies out there still take a lot of pride in creating really bizarre
to the experience the questions to surprise the individual, hoping it will show some insight and allow
candidate will have in the them to make a better decision. I consider that to be a bankrupt concept.”
company’s culture.
In the past, candidates would be subjected to a volley of standardized
questions – some related to the job and some not. “Any question unrelated to
the job which focuses on personality or biographic fit and isn’t part of a formal
predictive validation program is, in my opinion, an example of the kind of
dinosaur recruiting that has been apparent for many years,” declares Crispin.
He says the only legitimate interview questions are those that are occupationally
focused, behavior-based, or relate to the experience the candidate will have in
the company’s culture.
Crispin also advocates for giving interview questions to candidates in advance.
Giving candidates a By springing questions on candidates he says, “All you’re assessing is the
chance to contemplate individual’s ability to – at best – respond spontaneously under conditions of
questions ahead of time stress.” Crispin says giving candidates a chance to contemplate the questions
yields better results. ahead of time yields better results because candidates can provide more honest
answers for recruiters to judge them by.
3. Prepare for an honest dialogue
Tough questions from candidates about salary levels, the company’s work
environment and why previous employees left the company are no longer
taboo during interviews. That’s a direct result of the power of social media,
which allows employees, ex-employees and previous candidates to share
information and opinions about a job and a company with everyone in their
network and beyond.
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4. “The transparency of a corporation is increasing at a very fast pace, but it’s
not under the control of the employer,” explains Crispin. That transparency
makes honest, authentic dialogues between employers and candidates critical.
“A conversation is a two-way process,” says Crispin. “If you, as
an employer, are going to prepare for a one-way conversation
in which you ask hard questions, how prepared are you to answer
hard questions from candidates truthfully?”
Address this increased transparency upfront by preparing hiring managers,
recruiters and other interviewers with honest, open answers to the tough
questions that will be asked.
It’s a new decade and a rapidly changing hiring landscape. Using these three
steps for a new interview process will help employers and recruiters keep up with
the pace of change and make more strategic hiring decisions. You’ll be surprised
at how simple ways to streamline will become evident.
Using an easy reply mechanism, having more focus and saving time – these
three simple, low-cost steps will create a better experience for your candidates
and better results for your company.
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