5 Tips For Hiring During A Pandemic

How do you interview and hire a new employee without meeting them face to face?

This is a question that many companies have been facing in the wake of COVID-19. When posed with this question myself, it sparked my curiosity on how I could be more innovative in my thinking and how to best adapt our recruitment process.

For me, it was about putting myself in the shoes of each candidate and evaluating how I could best portray our company while providing them with the greatest possible experience. Having very tight deadlines for hiring meant that I also had to adapt my internal company processes, to gain as much information as possible from the candidates in a very narrow time frame.

So how did I achieve this?

Here are my top 5 tips.

1. AN ONLINE QUESTIONNAIRE WITH TARGETED QUESTIONS

Phone or virtual interviews can be very time consuming for the hiring manager and there are always specific questions you want answered before making verbal contact. Creating an online questionnaire with tailored, job specific questions can be extremely helpful in obtaining that information. There are many online platforms where you can create these forms, in an extremely easy and straight forward manner. This provided the answers that I needed as well as offering valuable insight into the candidates working style.

2. SHOW THAT YOU CARE

The small details matter! You are going to stand out from the other companies if you show compassion and authenticity during the interview process. That sounds straight forward, but more often than not, hiring managers are so busy focusing on the task at hand that these small details are easily forgotten. Remember a time when you were having a bad day and a stranger asked if you were ok? There is nothing more refreshing than that, especially during this pandemic when everyone is affected in different ways. Taking these thoughts into consideration during my interviews, I made a point to humanize myself and to ask how they were doing. This shows that you and the company that you work for genuinely care for people. It is also important to communicate openly with the candidates throughout the interview process, without being able to give them a warm, in-person reception, it is especially important to show them that their time and efforts are valued.

3. TELL YOUR STORY AND HAVE A STRUCTURED INTERVIEW PROCESS

Be prepared! It is particularly difficult for a candidate to get a sense of your overall company culture by a virtual meeting. Therefore, it is so important that you prepare beforehand by thinking about the important elements that best describe your company, the culture and the role that you are recruiting for. The more information you can convey, the better! Add an extra interview round where other team members can get involved in the process. This is a great way to get everyone involved and allows you to get a better sense of overall culture fit. Likewise, keep the candidate informed on who they will be interviewing with so they can prepare questions of their own. And, of course, make sure whatever technology you are using is working properly.

4. ASK THE RIGHT QUESTIONS

When you can’t meet people face to face there is even more emphasis on discovering whether a candidate will be a good cultural fit for your organization. Asking targeted questions allows you to gain insight into their values and personality, so you can make a more informed decision. It also keeps the interview exciting and allows the candidates to be more engaged in the process. For example, if you had a candidate applying for a client facing role, one question you could ask would be “Tell me about a time when you went above and beyond a client’s expectations?”. If customer service is highly valued by your organization, this question can be used to test your candidate's commitment to that value. You will learn far more by asking them to name an example of their customer service expertise than you will by simply asking if they believe in going above and beyond.

5. MAKE IT THE BEST ONBOARDING EXPERIENCE YOU CAN

Everybody has experienced those ‘first day jitters’ at a new job. You have so many things to think about. Where do I need to go? What time do I need to be there? Am I dressed appropriately? Am I going to fit in with the team? We have all been there! Now try to imagine all those feelings, plus having to deal with the uncertainty of living in a pandemic. That is why it is so important to have a plan! Have a detailed onboarding document outlining the structure and expectations for the first few weeks. Introduce them to the team, make them feel welcome and have frequent check ins with them. This makes them feel secure and it allows them to feel a part of the team from day one.

The world is rapidly changing and there are many unknowns, but I encourage you to look at this situation as an opportunity to think differently, adapt your processes and be authentic. We are all in this together, so let’s do what we can to make our recruitment processes and workplaces as positive and supportive as possible.

Hayley Spears

Manager, People & Culture