Digital Recruitment – Talking to an artificial prompt on a computer screen may not be what you typically expect from a job interview, but that’s what more candidates are experiencing during the pandemic. The pandemic has prevented face-to-face interviews from taking place and has forced companies to think outside the box when it comes to digital recruitment. One popular emerging solution is asynchronous video interviews, or AVIs, where people film themselves answering a set of questions, with no interviewer present.
The case for asynchronous video interviewing
An asynchronous video interview is where candidates have a fixed amount of time to record answers to standardised interview questions, predetermined by recruiters. The filming is at a time convenient for the candidate on a computer or mobile device.
Asynchronous video interview is one of the latest HR tech that can replace the early stages of the recruitment process and are popular in several industries from customer service and sales to manufacturing and professional services. Recruiters, business professionals or AI software then review the videos to narrow the pool and invite selected applicants to progress to the next stage.
HireVue, one of the leading interview technology companies, says AVIs are now used by more than 700 businesses in the US, including a third of Fortune 500 companies, who collectively have conducted over 10 million interviews through its platform. Modern Hire, another interview technology platform, supported over 20 million assessments and interviews and saw a 40 per cent increase in users in pre-pandemic 2019.
In 2016, investment bank Goldman Sachs had already switched their graduate and vacation recruitment process to be 100% AVI in the initial rounds, choosing to partner with a tech firm to create their platform. According to the bank, the digital nature of AVI has allowed them to reach a greater diversity of students, rather than the more limited ivy league universities where they had been focussing their on-campus, in-person recruitment.
The four ‘Cs’ of asynchronous video interviews
Convenience
Asynchronous videos are convenient for both the hiring organisation and the candidate. Set up an interview with the most critical questions and send invitations to candidates, who can respond at a time most convenient to them.
Collaboration
Asynchronous video interviewing allows you to make the digital recruitment process more collaborative. Instead of having one hiring manager in charge of screening candidates, you can involve more members of a team to review candidates, provide comments, and give assessments.
Cost (and time) savings
Asynchronous video interviewing will cut down on time spent screening candidates. In the time it would take to screen one candidate during a 30-minute telephone screening call, 6-10 recorded video responses can be filtered at a time convenient for the recruiter.
Compliance
Because asynchronous video interviewing standardises the digital recruitment process and allows all candidates to be asked the same questions in the same manner, it allows companies to ensure non-discriminatory recruitment and selection processes. Interviews can also be stored for over a year for record-keeping compliance.
Three things you should know about digital recruitment
1. Be transparent with candidates during digital recruitment
When conducting video interviews, it’s essential to be transparent with your candidates, whether about the verification of diploma certificate or interview process. While video interviewing is becoming more common in digital recruitment, it will still be a relatively new experience for many candidates.
Start the interview off by explaining the process, telling the candidate how you’re using the videos and why, sharing where the recorded videos will be stored, providing tech troubleshooting tips, and answering any questions.
2. Put the candidate experience first
Remember to always put the candidate experience first, including when conducting video interviews. Introduce the brand, allow applicants to re-record their interview, and find ways to make the video interview engaging.
Make the interview more interactive by asking candidates to share something related to their work and the role they’re applying for. For example, ask a teacher to share a sample lesson plan or a developer to demo a new mobile app.
3. Choose the right software
As with any process that involves relatively new technology, it is vital to choose the right asynchronous interview software to meet your digital recruitment needs. There is a dizzying array of providers out there so ensure you know your criteria for software selection.
Do you want to reduce the time spent on phone screening and implement one-way virtual interviews? Or do you want to conduct live video interviews? Or both? Listing down your requirements will help you focus on the desired functionalities when researching options.
Summary
While candidates may struggle to adjust to the shift towards digital recruitment, recruiters may also see it as another technological hurdle. However, the benefits far outweigh the pitfalls, which means it is likely to increase in use and popularity over the next year. For those thinking of implementing AVIs for digital recruitment in the year ahead, the secret sauce is to apply the human touch and get your software selection right to set yourself up for future recruitment success!
