Structured, face-to-face candidate interviewing has long been a key strategy in the corporate recruitment and selection process. In this interview style, the role in question is analyzed and questions are developed to reference specific work dilemmas that the candidate might face.

Through extensive research, this question style has been proven to effectively and accurately demonstrate how past behaviour may predict future behaviour.

If you asked members of the interview panel why these face-to-face, structured interviews are so valuable, their answers would reveal the following benefits:

•  They are important to “get a feel” for the candidate with respect to interpersonal skills, communication style as well as the ability to think on their feet.
•  They are helpful to see firsthand how a candidate will respond to the challenges put before them.
•  They are the best way to examine real experience versus the ability to answer a hypothetical example.
•  They give everyone an opportunity to experience what it may be like working with each candidate.
What these recruitment panel members are really saying is that they are using face-to-face interviews as a way to predict the future job performance of each candidate. And, while many of these interview panels also enhance their selection process with well-designed work sample assessments, sometimes it is still not enough.

This is particularly true for senior executive roles because this level of individual is typically a good communicator. And, unfortunately, these good communicators can sometimes absolutely “baffle” the best of us with their verbiage.

So the challenge is how to differentiate between candidates that appear similar on the surface but are indeed greatly different. How can you truly predict how someone might behave on the job? After all, there is nothing worse than thinking you have recruited a high performer only to learn that they are all talk and no action.

To overcome this challenge, recruiters and organizations alike have gravitated to using online assessment tools.  One of the most powerful such tool that I have personally encountered is the MERIT Profile, as it helps to discover elements of both emotional intelligence and personal character as defined by, “who you are in the dark”. This assessment tool includes an evaluation of attitudes, beliefs and commitments. Attitudes are those patterns of emotions and actions that indicate a mental state and personal disposition. Beliefs refer to personal mental frameworks from which people tend to form their opinions and make their judgements. An assessment of commitments evaluates an individual’s choices to act in certain ways and examines the level of consistency in these actions.

The comprehensive reports generated by the MERIT assessment tool include both recruitment and a development report. The reports provide both general summaries and a detailed analysis of each of the 10 characteristics of success. The results of the assessment tool can be mapped against each candidate and a summary comparative map can be used to facilitate discussion about the different elements of success.

Since there is never any perfect candidate, part of the value of the MERIT profile is also its many suggestions for development. This assists the selection committee to examine ways in which they can support candidates with a mixture of high and low scores in areas that are suitable for the position. In addition, sample areas for further exploration are accompanied by questions to help less experienced interviewers focus their questions on key issues for each candidate.

Utilizing effective interview and assessment strategies, especially those known to have high levels of validity in the overall recruitment process, will ensure that you are hiring the right people with the right skills at the right time. Not only that, hiring candidates who are most likely to succeed will save your company millions of dollars by avoiding turnover, severance and recruitment costs while improving your competitive advantage.


About MERIT Integrated Solutions
Merit
Legacy Bowes Group leverages the MERIT Integrated Solutions™ platform to provide an analytical, quantitative set of tools to help organizations optimize their human capital initiatives regarding talent acquisition, employee development, and succession planning. MERIT Integrated Solutions™ can be applied as organization wide development instruments or as talent acquisition tools through a custom performance index for individual job positions.

Learn more here...