When conducting employment interviews, having a well developed job description and knowing in advance what questions you can and cannot ask will enable you to gather the information you need to make a well-informed hiring decision while protecting the human rights of individuals.
The purpose of a job interview is to meet job candidates as well as validate and perhaps seek additional information to what is provided within their resume in order to determine whether or not they are qualified and would be a fit for the position and the organization.

When it comes to interviewing potential candidates, less talking by the interviewer is definitely more. The purpose of conducting job interviews is to learn more about each candidate’s experience and qualifications as they relate to the position for which they have applied. It is also an opportunity to validate the information that they have submitted in their resume. Two common mistakes that I often witness employers make when conducting job interviews are talking too much and asking leading questions, often unintentionally and without even realizing they are doing it.

The Canadian job market has been steadily improving, with 305,000 jobs created in the past twelve months, representing a 1.8% rise in employment (Statistics Canada, April 8, 2011). We are once again entering a candidate’s job market, with many employers reporting challenges finding the talent they need for some niche positions. Many need to source candidates nationally or in some cases, internationally, signaling the need for video interviewing to narrow long distances and facilitate the recruitment process. For others, they are finding that video interviewing is an effective and efficient recruitment process.

It’s official…once again Dr. John Sullivan has predicted a future trend that is becoming a reality. In June of 2009, Dr. Sullivan predicted that “within a few years the “interview from anywhere” approach will become the standard practice for all but final hiring interviews.” Here we are, one and a half years later and the number of companies that have implemented these solutions has tripled and the early adopters are using live virtual interviews as the de facto standard first step in the candidate assessment process.

It is often said that, we remember a third of what we hear, half of what we read, and 100% of what we feel. If you were to ask recent job applicants how they felt after having gone through the recruitment process at your organization, what would they say? Respected? Frustrated? Enlightened?

Peer interviewing is the process of hiring with the input of employees in the organization. Peer interviewing is done by employees of the specific work group of the position available. In other words, employees get to participate in choosing their future co-workers.

Candidate Evaluation Forms provide recruiters within your company with a list of criteria and ratings for potential candidates. Interviewers can use it to record important information during the interview. The Candidate Evaluation Form ensures a level of fairness and accuracy when comparing candidates after the interviewing process.

Employee background check lists should include a review of references. But to be strategic, you’ll want to think about how best to use references in recruitment. Here’s how.

Pre-screening job applicants allows employers to narrow down the pool of applicants to those who are the best fit for the position—without spending hours doing in-depth interviews.

Interviewing potential employees is a tricky process. Although resources abound for employees seeking job interview secrets, interviewing potential employees seems to have eluded the media.