Although recruitment is sometimes carried out collectively, most companies favour individual interviews with a maximum of one or three recruiters (in general, the future N+1, the HR director, the N+2 or even the CEO).
Recruitment is based on the needs of the department, and therefore on a pre-established job description, including for this position – and not in relation to its previous occupant – the concrete criteria and constraints, the position in the organisation chart and above all the skills required – whose mastery is indispensable – requested – whose knowledge is necessary - and desired – which may be incidental and/or acquired subsequently.
These skills are fairly frequently classified as knowledge: the candidate's knowledge, including knowledge about your company and the sector of activity, in know-how: operational, pragmatic abilities in the trade or equivalent functions, and in interpersonal skills: interpersonal skills, personality, motivation at work and for the job. Remember that interpersonal skills are just as important as knowledge and practice, as they contribute to a healthy working atmosphere and group cohesion. It is recommended to evaluate each skill in a numerical way (e.g. give a mark out of 100) in case the choice proves difficult at the end of the course.
It is advisable to select about ten applications before the interviews, eliminating those that are unsuitable for the position, highlighting the most interesting ones and keeping a few profiles on which you are hesitating, for example those that are a little far from the profile you are looking for but which present complementary elements, whether it be international experience or the particular interest of the covering letter.
A short telephone interview with the candidate then allows you to confirm or deny your pre-selection.
If you wish to use selection tests, think about choosing them according to your objective and the criteria of the job: you will find on the market tests of logic, personality, knowledge or more technical tests according to certain jobs. It should be noted, however, that candidates are often seasoned in these tests and that some tests will require you to train in their use, as they are quite complex.
These tests are not intended to place your candidates in a "box" but to give a basis for the interview with the recruiter. And there are some very questionable ones as to their relevance. Don't hesitate to ask your HR department to help you choose if necessary.
A recruitment interview is a negotiation between a candidate offering a service and a company offering a job. It is therefore an exchange of information between these two parties, one on his or her background and skills, the other on the company, the service to be produced, the position and its environment. The company's objectives can be named at this point by the recruiter.
A thorough reading of the CV and cover letter allows you to ask the right questions and check your initial impression. It is also important to welcome the candidate, as it gives him or her an image of the company from the outset and initiates the relationship that he or she will have with you if you choose to do so.
Take time to get to know her, use active listening (rephrasing, open-ended questions, body synchronisation, acceptance of quiet time, alertness to body messages) and listen a little to your intuition.
When there are several of you in the selection, take some time to talk with your partners at the end of each interview, on the spot. If you have found the ideal candidate, you can ask him or her to be patient during this exchange.
If the candidate seems to correspond to the profile you are looking for, present the company culture, its history, the position, the nature of the contract, and answer their questions sincerely. And no, talking about money is not taboo during the recruitment interview, on the contrary: it allows you to measure both the person's ambition and the value they attribute to their skills and background.
At the end of this interview, name your impression and ask him/her for his/her. If you select him or her, explain to him or her the follow-up and deadlines.
Confirm your choice in writing as soon as possible, and if possible inform unsuccessful candidates with a courteous explanation, they may be asked to reapply later. Moreover, the lack of response is very often the cause of discouragement and reduced self-confidence among job seekers.
If, at the end of the interviews, you still have a large number of candidates, list by criteria the numerical evaluations attributed to each one by competency and simply add up the totals by deciding on an "eliminatory mark" taking into account the degree of importance of each criterion (weighting) according to the position to be filled.