There’s no doubt, the interview process can be laborious, time-consuming, and even a bit stressful. It is understandable; after all, you’re choosing a new staff member to bring onto your team, perhaps for a permanent position with your company. There’s a great deal of pressure to “get it right.” To alleviate some of the associated stress that comes with the hiring process, On Line Recruitment is here to assist. The final hiring decision, however, is always up to you. What do you do when you’ve narrowed it down to two amazing candidates? How do you make the ultimate choice?
We’ve got a few suggestions on how to choose between two great prospects.
Follow-Up Interviews
Sometimes, all you need to make your final decision is another opportunity to chat with each potential new hire. Hosting a follow-up interview can be a simple way to complete this task. Ahead of time, prepare a list of highly specific questions and make sure to address any information that you didn’t cover in any previous rounds of interviews. If you are deciding between two excellent candidates, you may even opt to hold a group interview in which several of your executive employees are present. This gives you more collective wisdom to weigh in on the final decision and can help you miss something you hadn’t observed, or force you to examine things from a fresh perspective.
See the Candidate in Action (in certain roles, teaching positions, etc)
While not every industry can make use of this tip, in some businesses you may be able to see the candidate in action. This is especially true if the role they are applying for involves certain active skills. A great example is the role of university professor. While interviews and resumes can tell you a great deal about a person’s academic history and work ethic, an educational role often comes down to teaching prowess. In this situation, you can request each of your candidates to instruct a classroom session as you observe. This is an outstanding method for determining the true abilities of each candidate and it should go a long way towards helping you make your final decision.
Ask a Second Opinion
If you are a hiring manager tasked with making the ultimate selection for an open position, you may find that your choice demands a second opinion. The group interview setting, as suggested earlier, may fulfill this need. However, if this is not an option, it’s sometimes it’s as simple as asking for a fresh pair of eyes. Have a trusted colleague read over each candidate’s resume and offer their professional opinion. It may be useful to have a copy of the job description to hand. If you or your colleague examines each resume and interview results in light of this job description, it may suddenly become apparent which candidate more closely matches your company’s needs. Sometimes, going back to basics is the best solution.
Go With Your Gut
Finally, your ultimate hiring decision should be one which you feel happy with. You may not feel fully secure in your choice until the employee has begun work with you, but the right decision should ultimately feel like it was the best possible choice.
If you’ve tried the above tips and none have proven the successful, the best advice is to go with your gut instinct. Perhaps both candidates have nearly identical resumes with stellar experience and glowing references. Maybe both of them delivered winning interviews. Yet, in all likelihood, one candidate resonated more closely with you than the other. Perhaps this was a connection that you can’t quite name or just a feeling about a certain candidate’s attitude or personality. At the end of the day, you will have to work closely with this person, perhaps for years to come. You want this to be an individual you look forward to working alongside. That might be the final factor in choosing between two ideal candidates.
If you need expert assistance hiring fantastic employees or sourcing the best candidates in Australia, please reach out to On Line Recruitment and Labour Hire today.
