The Top 8 Tips on How to Conduct a Video Interview

Businesses struggled to find methods to survive as the pandemic spread, and now working and hiring from home is the new normal. A significant percentage of companies have adopted or are in the process of enabling their whole workforce to work from home - and this will last even after the pandemic subsides.

Organizations have focused on establishing a positive Work From Home (WFH) atmosphere for employees, whether through ergonomic setups or flexible rules. They’re tolerating a variety of approaches to make the process even easier, and the recruiting business is no exception.

Human resource experts continuously attempt to find ways to make the recruiting process as efficient and effective as possible while maintaining the company’s sustainability and WFH rules. One way of doing so is through remote interviews.

How to Conduct Video Interviews

Remote interviews are becoming increasingly common. They're quite different from ordinary face-to-face, on-site interviews, which most of us have had before in our careers. They are performed without the candidate and interviewer physically meeting each other and are conducted either through phone calls simply or, more commonly, using video and other technologies. It eliminates geographical limitations, automates applicant screening, and enhances hiring quality.

Here are important considerations to set you up for successful video interviews with your applicants:

Tip 1: Prepare for the Interview Process

There is a lot that goes into the preparation of the interview process. Some of the following steps you must take are:

Examine your Present Interviewing Procedure

Transitioning to remote interviewing is an excellent opportunity to examine and optimize your current procedure. It is a chance for you to focus on how you usually choose applicants for interviews. An example of this would be by adding online assessments to the process. These are crucial in assisting you to narrow down your prospect pool, as you won't be able to meet and chat with people in person. Through this method, you can evaluate candidates in a remote setting for the skills and abilities required.

With remote interviews, you have the option of using one-way video interviews, two-way conversations, or a combination of the two.

If your recruitment pipelines are frequently filled and time constraints prevent you from arranging video interviews, you may conduct a one-way video interview with your applicants to interact with them remotely and assess critical abilities prior to the final screening round. This can be done by posting a series of questions beforehand where the candidates will have to respond to them by recording.

As for a two-way remote interview, the importance of communication cannot be overstated. They can be just as difficult for the applicant as it is for you, so allow yourselves to fully converse about everything the job entails and the work environment. Treating it like a face-to-face interview can help with this as well.

Choose the Most Appropriate Technology

Choose a tool that is simple to use and can provide the most value. There are several tools on the market to choose from, and making sure you have the appropriate tools is critical to success. Before you choose an interviewing tool, think about what you want to get out of it.

Consider how user-friendly it is, what functionalities it has, whether it covers everything from onboarding to ongoing support, how secure your data is with that specific platform, and how compatible it is with computer and mobile devices.

Choose your Space

To conduct an interview, find a quiet location away from distractions. Choose a peaceful location where you may communicate with the candidate without being interrupted. The most essential thing is that applicants can see you and everything around you throughout the interview. So, make sure the background is clean and well-lit, thus giving the candidate a positive impression.

Keep in Mind Other Etiquette

You want to demonstrate to all possible applicants that the interview is just as professional as if you were meeting in an office. Dress up professionally, remove any obvious clutter from your desks such as children's toys and other personal items, think about lighting, lock your door, silence your phone, etc.

Tip 2: Clearly Communicate Your Procedures

Ensure that your coworkers and applicants are well-versed in your remote recruiting regulations and processes for a smooth remote hiring process. They should be informed of your hiring process's dos and don'ts. Make a thorough document outlining the hiring process that you can share with candidates to keep them informed. Inform them that the job interviews will be conducted via video interviewing. Furthermore, you must provide them with precise instructions, such as:

How to use the video interviewing tool and how to download it
Who is expected to attend the interview?
The interview's time and date
What to do if there's a problem connecting
What the applicant should prepare (if they need to prepare something)
If the interview will only be in audio or video
Do you need to screen share with them, or do they need to screen share with you?
Any interview tips

It's preferable to over-communicate when doing remote interviews as it may be the candidate's first time, and the tools you're using may be unfamiliar to them. The more details you provide on what to expect during the interview, the simpler it will be to evaluate applicants entirely on their relevant abilities and expertise, rather than their capacity to use remote interviewing technologies or how they react to surprises.

Tip 3: Listen and Concentrate

Video conversations need a higher level of focus. When we communicate with someone, just a small amount of what we say is spoken. 70% to 93% is nonverbal communication. Body language, facial emotions, eye contact, hand gestures, body posture, and even tone of voice all add depth and meaning to what we're saying.

When conducting a remote interview, most of these nonverbal indicators are difficult to detect, making communication more difficult. As a result, you must pay close attention to what the interviewee is saying.

Tip 4: Focus on Company Culture

Even employers are assessed by applicants. One of the most difficult aspects of having a video interview nowadays is that candidates do not have the opportunity to go around your office and get a sense of the business culture. During the interview process, attempt to emphasize your company's culture to catch their attention and interest. Make sure they grasp your company's vision and objective and how it will assist them in achieving their goals.

Give them some background information, such as your company's culture and principles. Share stories and cases about how the culture really is, don’t just state your values. Tell them everything about you, paint a picture for the applicant by describing the behaviors you expect workers to exhibit for each value, and provide best practice examples to assist applicants in understanding what you mean.

Tip 5: Create a Procedure for Conducting Remote Team Interviews

You'll almost certainly need to include many people in the remote interview process - at the very least, recruitment managers. Your applicants may also want to meet their future coworkers. So, establish a standard procedure for how this may operate and ensure that everyone is aware of when this will occur during the interview process.

If your peers aren't used to being present during interviews, teach them how to conduct remote interviews. Inform them of the agenda and sequence of events, such as assigning them to observe and take notes.

Moreover, ensure that everyone in the team is on the same page. Verify that your entire team is participating in the process and is aware of where you are at all times. This is done to keep the interview session moving ahead.

Make sure that everyone on your team understands how many stages of interviews there are, who is engaged in each one, who is in charge of them, and what is expected of all interviewers for each one. Also, be certain that everyone understands who is ultimately in charge of recruiting choices.

Tip 6: Always Have a Contingency Plan

Technology is used in remote interviews. Technology, however, has the potential to fail. So, in case something goes wrong, have a backup plan. If the connection fails, for example, make sure you have the candidate's phone number so you can simply transition from a Virtual interviews are becoming increasingly common to a phone call if necessary; alternatively, have a mechanism in place so you can postpone as soon as possible. So, be prepared with a backup plan in case of unanticipated events.

Keep in mind that even if you've completed all of the necessary preparations for the video interview and have checked everything such as if the program is in place and operating properly, sometimes, a mistake is still possible.

Some examples of “Plan B” include determining alternative techniques of conducting the interview, rescheduling the interview to suit the applicants' schedules, or even switching to a pre-recorded interview are just a few options.

Tip 7: Obtain Feedback

Once you've completed the video interview, follow up with the applicants by sending them a thank you message for their time and cooperation. Receiving comments on the hiring process may go a long way toward making them feel appreciated. After which, you may also inquire about the candidates' interview experiences.

You'll be able to shape your own thoughts based on the comments, and you'll learn how applicants actually feel about the interview process. This will aid in the development of a more objective hiring approach.

Tip 8: Practice Before the Interview

While this advice is usually given to applicants and is usually offered by recruiters themselves, it is just as important for recruiters to practice what they preach. Prepare yourself by practicing what you'll say. Examine if the questions are comprehensible and if you can be properly heard by practicing with a trusted remote work employee. This is so that they can enlist any flaws you need to work on, inquire about their experiences, and ask them questions.

Recruit Top Talent With Lanteria

At Lanteria, we love everything HR - from the people that need to be recruited to the software involved to help ease these processes. It is an exceptional product, offering features like candidate self-service portals, recruiting reports, candidate tracking, and much more. Reach out today to learn how Lanteria HR can streamline your recruiting processes!