Top questions to ask candidates on a telephone interview

4 mins read

about 2 years ago

They may not be everyone's cup of tea, but telephone interviews have a lot of advantages. They are fast, easy to arrange and arm you with just the right level of information to begin whittling down your applicants.

Of course phone interviews present challenges too. Mostly arising from the fact that you can't see the person you are talking to. Here's a primer on the kind of questions you should ask to get the best out of your phone interviews.

Keep things simple...

It's important not to get carried away with telephone interviews. Remember they are intended as a screening measure to decide who to invite for a face-face interview. You don't need your candidate's entire life story. Simple questions are the best policy.

Candidates can often be nervous, which can make for an uncomfortable conversation where you fail to get the insight you need on your candidate. Put interviewees at ease by introducing yourself, explaining how long the interview will last and telling them how it will be structured.

What type of questions should you ask?

Remember to keep things simple. The lack of visual interaction means that phone interviews are not suited to complex questions that require lengthy answers. Of course, you want your candidates to be thorough with their answers - but don't attempt to ask anything too brow-furrowing.

Questions should be geared to find out more about the applicant - expanding on the information supplied on a CV and cover letter and assessing whether their professional experience is suited to the role. Here are our tips for the best phone interview questions to ask candidates.

1. What made you apply for this position?

Does your candidate sound like they want the job? Look for a passionate answer. You want a candidate who really cares about getting hired by you, rather than someone who sounds indifferent and apathetic. Genuine enthusiasm shows that your candidate believes they have what it takes to succeed in the role.

2. Screening questions

Screening questions allow you to gauge whether an applicant has the essential minimum experience or skills required for the role - such as expertise with a certain piece of software or a key qualification. Example screening questions might be:

Are you willing to travel?
Do you have a clear driving license?
Do you have PRINCE2 certification?

Screening questions will always be determined by the type of role you are recruiting for - and should be led by the job description. They are a simple way to make sure no unsuitable applicants make it through to an in-person interview and can be as simple as yes/no questions.

3. What experience do you have that will help you succeed in this role?

Look for evidence that the applicant has studied the job description. They should provide concrete examples that prove they have the experience required. Ideally their answers will also show how they have applied their knowledge/experience to provide tangible, measurable results.

4. Why are you leaving your current job/Why did you leave your previous job?

If your candidate launches a full scale diatribe about how much they dislike their current employer, it should probably set your alarm bells ringing. Seek out candidates who are hungry for a fresh challenge or who have been waiting for an opening in this particular field or - even better - with this organisation.

5. What challenges are you looking for in a post?

6. What is important to you from a job?

7. How would you describe your approach to work?

This set of questions is great for finding out more about the professional mindset of your applicant. How ambitious are they? Are they looking for professional development? What's their self-discipline like? Listen carefully to how they structure their answers and look for similarities with the person specification document.

8. What motivates you?

9. What type of work environment do you perform best in?

These questions allow you to assess how well the candidate will fit with your organisation's environment. Do they need a lot of assistance or are they self-starters? Do they prefer working alone or are they great collaborators? Sometimes individuals simply aren't suited to certain working environments, no matter how talented they are.

10. What are your hobbies outside of work?

It can be easy to forget that your candidate is a person first and a professional second. Look for signs that the person on the end of the line will click with other members of the team.

11. Do you have any questions?

It's important to field any queries your candidate may have, whether about the job or the recruitment process. Once you have answered any questions, close the interview by thanking the candidate for their time and giving them your contact details - they will appreciate being able to get in touch should they think of any further questions.

Getting the information you need from telephone interviews is about keeping things simple and looking for evidence that your candidates have the essentials required for the role. Come the face to face interviews you will have saved a lot of time by filtering out unsuitable applicants, meaning less time asking basic questions and more time deep-diving into the people behind the CVs. Just the way it should be.

Interviews Article

You may also be interested in

2 mins read

How to create a great recruitment strategy

Getting your recruitment strategy right is key to hitting your business goals. Here are some expert tips to help you set up your company for success – and the shortcuts to keep you ahead of your competition.

What is a recruitment strategy?

A recruitment strategy is a clear plan that explains what roles you’ll recruit for, when, why and how. It should be tied to your overall company objectives.

Your strategy must be possible to implement and easy to communicate. While you can tweak your tactics, the strategy must always be clear.

Unsure how many employees you’ll need? Hiring temporary staff helps you expand quickly and risk free.

The core aspects of a great recruitment strategy

Growth Plans

In order to scale up your workforce, you’ll need to hire – which takes time and resources.
Create a measure to help you identify which areas of your business will benefit most from increased headcount.
This could focus on return on investment or opportunities lost.

Shortcut: Unsure how many new employees you’ll need? A recruitment agency will give you access to temporary staff and contractors to help you expand quickly and risk free.

Employer Brand

Make sure your employer brand and message are attractive to your target audience, particularly over social media. A well-known brand is a big selling point to talented job hunters.
Be open and transparent about the company’s working culture to ensure you attract candidates that will match your business.

Shortcut: If your brand isn’t well known, a recruitment agency can contact candidates directly and spend time promoting your employer messages.

Skills Audit

Use your company objectives to identify developing areas of the business, then decide on the skills you will need to succeed.
Your recruitment strategy should include ways to find and bring new skills into the company.
Employers often focus on advanced digital and technical skills, but you should also consider bringing in candidates with different experiences.

Shortcut: When interviewing for a role you’ve never done yourself, your recruitment consultant can offer interview tips and support to build your confidence.

"You can tweak your tactics, but your end goals must be clear."

Flexibility

If your company needs to adapt quickly to an unpredictable market then hiring permanent staff may not be the right option.
Your strategy should include a plan for temporary staff and contractors to cover projects that are likely to change at short notice.

Shortcut: Unless you already have an advanced payroll function, it makes sense to ask your recruitment agency to manage payroll for your temporary workforce. They look after tax, holiday pay and even pension contributions – saving you a lot of hassle.

When to review your recruitment strategy

You should always be thinking about how you differentiate your company from your competitors, and how you can be a more attractive prospect for potential candidates.

Pay close attention to all aspects of the recruitment process, and make tactical tweaks throughout the year when necessary – while holding firm to your recruitment strategy.

You should review your overall recruitment strategy annually to make sure it ties in with your wider business objectives. It’s important that everyone in the company understands your goals – so be clear and concise about what success looks like and how you will get there.

Top 10 competency-based interview questions to find the perfect candidate

3 mins read

Article

1. What are your greatest strengths?

This is a classic interview question, and with good reason.

It’s a chance for your candidate to prove they have the right skills for the role. Keep the job description in mind to see whether the interviewee understands how their skills relate to the role.

Remember you’re looking for transferable skills, not proof that they’ve done the role before.

2. What will your skills and ideas bring to this company?

This competency-based question is an opportunity to see which of your candidates stand out from the crowd.

A good candidate will show an understanding of your company goals within their answer. A great candidate will offer practical examples of how their skills can help you achieve that vision.

3. What have you achieved elsewhere?

Confidence is key in this competency-based question. It gives your candidate an opportunity to talk about previous successes and experiences that relate to your vacancy.

Make sure the achievements you take away from their answers are work-related and relevant to what you’re looking for.

4. How have you improved in the last year?

Candidates can tie themselves up in knots trying to disguise their weaknesses. This competency-based interview question is a chance to show a willingness to learn from their mistakes.

It’s also an opportunity to test the candidate’s level of self-awareness and desire to develop.

"Competency-based interview questions ask for real-life examples to show a candidate’s skills."

5. Tell me about a time you supported a member of your team who was struggling

This competency-based question will test your candidate’s ability to show compassion towards their colleagues without losing sight of their own objectives.

Those further along in their career should be able to reference training or mentoring that not only helped their co-worker but also improved team performance.

6. Give an example of a time you’ve had to improvise to achieve your goal

In other words: “Can you think on your feet?” It is increasingly important to be able to react to unexpected situations.

The candidate’s answer should highlight their ability to keep their cool and perform in a scenario they haven’t prepared for.

7. What was the last big decision you had to make?

The answer to this question should be a window into your candidate’s decision-making process and whether their reasoning is appropriate for your role.

This is a competency-based question designed to highlight how an interviewee makes decisions. Do they use logical reasoning? Gut intuition? However they manage big decisions, does their approach match what you’re looking for?

8. Tell me about a time you dealt with a difficult person

All candidates should be able to reference an experience of working with a challenging colleague. Look for them to approach this question with honesty and a clear example of working through the experience.

Rather than passing blame, there should be a recognition of the part they have played in the situation, and how they might tackle it differently next time.

It’s essential to get a sense of how candidates would fit and thrive within your company culture.

9. What was the last thing you taught?

You’ve asked the interviewee about their skills, but can they show a capability for teaching others about these skills?

This question isn’t restricted to managerial or senior roles, and should be asked whenever you’re looking for a candidate who will add value to your team.

10. Why are you a good fit for this company?

The key to this competency-based question is whether the candidate can explain how their transferable skills would fit your role. This tests both an awareness of their own abilities and an understanding of what you are looking for in a new employee.

The candidate should be able to confidently explain why they want to work for your company, and convince you that they would fit your team culture.

If you’re interested in learning more about interviews, please contact your local recruitment specialist.

2 mins read

Article

8 ways to get a job with no experience

You need experience to get a job, but you need a job to get experience... How do you get your foot on the ladder? Whether you're fresh out of education or looking to follow a new career path, feeling like you don't have the experience to land that first job can be frustrating. So, here are some of the ways you can achieve the (seemingly) impossible and get a job with no experience!

Address the issue

If you lack experience, don't try to brush over the fact. A cover letter is the perfect place to address any gaps in your CV, so use the opportunity to address any concerns the employer might have. Then...

Focus on what you DO have

Experience is important, but so is your attitude to work, your personality, your understanding of the company and its activity, motivation, resilience, ideas for the future - the list is endless, so don't get too hung up on any one thing.

Find experience you didn't know you had

Before you decide you don't have the experience, make absolutely sure this is true. Think back over your past jobs and try to draw links between the experience you need and the experience you have. Remember: it needn't be exactly the same; the key word to keep in mind is relevant. If you've organised a meeting or answered the phones, that's admin experience. If you've set up a Facebook page or created a flier, that's marketing. Think outside the box!

Create some experience

Do some voluntary work, work experience, or an internship.

“ Don't be afraid to start from scratch. Getting your foot in the door is crucial, and you never know what might come next. ”

But (as above) make sure the experience you're getting is relevant. If you're still taking your first steps, don't waste time with unrelated work, especially if it's unpaid!

Demonstrate your intent

If you really want to get into a particular industry, make sure that people know about it. Get involved in relevant industry discussions on LinkedIn, join relevant groups, attend networking and careers events, and make sure you make your enthusiasm public.

Apply speculatively

If you only apply for advertised jobs, you're going to be assessed against set criteria. Apply speculatively to companies that interest you, demonstrate you've done your research, and ask if there's any opportunities for you as you're looking to break into the industry. If the answer is no, ask if you can apply again in 6 months, and find out what you can do in the meantime to improve your chances.

Network
If you don't have the desired level of experience, you need to be trustworthy. Network, and get your contacts to recommend you. Employers are more likely to overlook the gap in your experience if you come with a recommendation from someone they can trust. Find out more about effectiveness networking.