Remote hiring processes - how to nail it and get the best from your candidate

Remote hiring is a trend that recruiters can no longer ignore. Despite the devastating effects of the pandemic we’ve all lived through, it has also opened us up to being creative with working and hiring processes. The result? Remote hiring has provided access to a wider talent pool, fewer staffing and office costs and has even improved the work-life balance of many employees. However, working remotely poses its challenges and choosing the right employee to fit your team can be tricky. Here’s how you can make the most of it. Get this wrong and you can find that candidates with a negative online experience turn to bad-mouthing your business and recruitment approach. Don't fall into the trap and get you and your teams prepared to deliver as good an interview experience as you would face to face.

How to get the best from your candidate when remote hiring

Soft skills are crucial when choosing your ideal remote working candidate. They need to be disciplined, self-motivated and able to make independent decisions. This is more important than hiring someone to work in the office where they can rely on others for opinion and may be motivated by simply being in a work environment.

Remote working can also be lonely and isolating, and impose on their personal life. Ensure your candidate has the necessary attributes to manage their time, a lifestyle to compliment working from home and a suitable, quiet space where they can concentrate on their job. If they are working on confidential matters, you need to be confident that they can work effectively without the risk of conversations being overheard or documents being accessed.

How to perform the best remote hiring interview

To give yourself and the applicant the best chance of getting to know each other, make sure they know exactly what they'll need for the interview. Do come prepared and don’t forget to ask questions that relate to remote hiring particularly. For example, have they got enough experience working remotely? How well can they communicate with the rest of the team? How do they build relationships in a remote environment? How do they minimise distractions and manage their time? You want to understand whether they are a ‘burn the candle at both ends' type of employee, which could spell burnout in the future. How will you manage to work effectively across different time zones?

Just as with an in person interview, be committed to the interview time you have booked in. Yes things happen and can change but if you’re rearranging the time to interview a candidate for the third time, without any reasoning or apology, don’t expect them to go through your recruitment process. Etiquette for remote hiring is the same as in person. You need to treat your candidate like they are important to your business, if you don’t it shows them how they can expect to be treated when they do work with you.

Make sure you share all of the required links for the interviews with them and check your own tech is working effectively too. Set your doorbell to mute, or put a note on the door, so that you aren’t interrupted in the interview process.

Allow yourself plenty of time to get to know the applicant and give them a chance to settle in before starting the interview. Avoid looking at yourself on the screen, maintain eye contact as you would in person and eliminate all distractions that could interrupt it. The way you end the interview matters too – don’t just abruptly finish the call, thank the applicant for their time and inform them on what happens next in your remote hiring process.

Tech to use when remote hiring

Whether you choose to use Zoom, Skype, Microsoft Teams or other conferencing apps, stable internet connection, good lighting, sound, and camera will make all the difference. So much of our body language, tone and intent can go amiss, so your tech needs to provide the best representation of you.

Always have a backup plan for your remote hiring process. If your chosen application isn’t working, gets cut off or there are network issues, have their phone number or email address handy so you can stay in touch, move to another platform or even perform the interview over the phone.

Just because it's remote doesn't mean it doesn't matter

Don't fall into the trap that because you have arranged a remote interview that you are free to move it about at your own will. That's just going to annoy your candidates. Moving an interview once because of a clash is acceptable, twice is risky, any more than that and don't expect a talented hire to wait around. Think about it. What does that say about you and your business. It gives off the impression that you aren't that bothered about them as a candidate, or worse that their opinions count for very little when they join you and they will be expected to be at your beck and call whenever you feel like calling or moving a meeting. And if you fail to apologise to a candidate for messing them around and being disrespectful of their time, don't expect a good review in relation to your recruitment processes. Glass door is the first port of call for reviews and business feedback and the last thing you want is to wind up with a slew of negative comments on there.

Remember: A candidate is giving up their time to meet with you and discuss your role, as much as you are giving up your time. They will be just as busy as you are, so have the courtesy to speak with them before you start moving interviews on numerous occasions. If you aren't committed to hiring someone right now, then don't go through the process. If you're struggling with your time, then you need to get a recruitment partner to help with your processes. Cue Auxeris...

Speak to Auxeris

If you are struggling with the time for pre-screening applicants or finding the time to schedule and book interviews it might be time to work with an experienced recruiter. Our network of specialist recruiters have years of experience in recruitment and identify the right candidate for their client’s roles. They will take all of the prescreening stress away from you to enable you to meet with the best matched candidates to role and company culture. They will be able to identify why these candidates match your brief and help you to nail the interview times to ensure that there is no bad feeling created by continued rearranging of times.

Get in touch with Auxeris to find out more today.