2. Create an Interview Plan 

Having an interview plan will save you time (and possibly a headache!). Think about where you will conduct your interviews. Do you have a dedicated meeting room? Will you need to book a venue?

Before you even think about scheduling times and dates, you'll need to know where to invite your candidates. Communicate the plan to your interview team, ensuring they know to arrive on time and with a copy of the job description, their own notes about the candidate and their allocated questions.

When you're ready, ensure that candidates are made aware of their interview slot, and remind them to arrive on time also – one delay at the start of your interview schedule can lead to major congestion at the end of your day. Planning (and sticking to the plan!) will help you control your interview process, ensuring all candidates get a fair shot at the position, and giving you more time to make the right decision.

Schedule 45-minute interviews with all candidates (or as much time as you feel is appropriate). Depending on the role, you may wish to carry out the interview remotely. You should also make yourself (and your team) aware of the different types of job interview and deciding which approach will be most useful for your company. You can learn more about interview types in this useful article from FRS Recruitment.

3. Start with an Introduction

When you initially meet your candidates, first impressions go both ways – make sure you have your phone on silent!

Before the interview, be sure to introduce yourself and explain your position with the company. You can also let candidates know what they can expect from the interview process before you begin to ask any questions. This will help to put your candidates at ease - and will lead to a more natural, relaxed interview for all parties.

In addition to giving them an overview of how things will proceed, it's important that you set expectations. For example, you might want to say "I'll start by asking some questions about yourself and your background, then ask questions about your experience with x." It’s perfectly acceptable to guide your candidate along the interview – just remember to ensure that you are fair and unbiased, giving all candidates the same opportunity.

4. Develop Questions in Advance - and Prepare to Adapt!

Come prepared with a list of questions you want to ask, but feel free to modify this list based on what information comes out during the conversation.

• Try to avoid asking “yes” or “no” questions. Ask open-ended questions that require more than a single word answer. For example, you should ask "How did you become interested in this field?" instead of "Are you interested in this field?"

• Ask questions that elicit a personal story. For example, "What was your first experience with this field like?" 

• Listen to the answers and ask follow-up questions if necessary. 

• Don't be afraid to ask for clarification if you don't understand something.

5. Take Notes 

If you are hiring for multiple roles, or if you are interviewing many candidates, it will be virtually impossible to make an efficient decision about the right person for the job without taking notes through the day. Take notes on what candidates say, so you can refer back to them later if needed. It also helps you remember details from different candidates' interviews so that you don't end up forgetting something important about one candidate when interviewing another.

A good idea is for each interviewer to take notes during each interview about their own impressions of the candidate as well as things which may have been said by others that relate directly or indirectly (e.g., "I heard that Sally Smith was asked this question..."). This way it's easy for people who didn't attend a particular interview session - but do want some input into hiring decisions - not only access information but also contribute new ideas without needing face-to-face contact with all potential employees first time round.

Conclusion 

An interview is a critical part of the hiring process. With the right preparation, you can master the art of interviewing. Be sure to make use of the resources at your disposal: there are lots of hints and tips online if this is your first time carrying out an interview. We recommend this article on Indeed.ie on “How to Conduct a Job Interview”.

If there’s one thing to remember about interviewing, it’s that you should always be prepared. With a solid plan in place and some great questions, you can do the best job possible at finding the right candidates for your company.