
Online recruitment not easy today
How to conduct an interview in online recruitment? What to ask a candidate to understand more truth?
Have you experienced any obvious failures at work?” This is a tough question for many candidates to answer honestly, especially in the early stages of an interview. Most will respond with something like, “No, I haven’t had any failures. It’s been great! Just wonderful, believe me!” This kind of answer is understandable, but unlikely to be entirely truthful. After all, no one, no matter how successful, can honestly claim to have never faced setbacks in their career.
We recommend rephrasing this question repeatedly until the candidate understands your point. “What really went wrong?”, “What was your biggest mistake?”, “What did you do wrong?”, “Which aspects of your job did you dislike?”, “Where do your colleagues outperform you?”. Don’t let the candidate avoid answering. Keep pressing until you get a clear response.
What can you tell me about the people you've worked with
Now, let’s move on to another crucial question: “What can you tell me about the people you’ve worked with?” This question is based on the idea of verifying recommendations, which Brad Smart calls the UPR — “the threat to check references”. The wording and order of questions in this part of the interview are key to getting the right result.
First, ask the candidate to name their boss. Then, ask them to spell the name for you, while you write it down. “You said it’s John Smith? S-M-I-T-H, right?” By making the candidate dictate the name, you send a crucial message: you will indeed be calling this person, and it’s in the candidate’s best interest to tell the truth.
After this, ask them to describe what it was like working under John Smith. Ideally, you will hear a glowing tribute to their former boss, someone who supported them and helped them grow over the years. A neutral answer, however, signals that something may be missing — either positive or negative.
At worst, you might hear that one boss was incompetent, another a jerk, and a third completely unbearable. Surprisingly, some candidates don’t make the connection between what they say about previous employers and what they might say about you as their future boss. What kind of “compliment” might you receive if you hire this person? You can be sure that this won’t be the most significant issue you’ll face.
values
Now, ask: “Which of your qualities does Mr. Smith value the most?” Be careful with the wording: “values” instead of “would value”! This phrasing is the equivalent of asking for the name spelling earlier. “Mr. Smith values” signals again that you will actually ask him this question. The candidate realizes they must tell the truth, as you will confirm it with just one phone call. Such small life hacks will show a lot..just check