Planned Resources recruit across the niche markets of planning, engineering, architecture and design, property, and government support. We operate​ across private and public sectors in Melbourne, Victoria, and Australia. Here, our senior property consultant Kirsten Ellis gives her top tips on how to interview candidates effectively.

Here we discuss the importance of interviews. While there’s many articles available for candidates on how to prepare for an interview, the interviewees could also benefit from being reminded of the importance of interviews. Whether its your first interview as the hiring manager or your 100th, we hope these tips help.

Let’s get right into it.

Once Planned Resources have completed an advertising campaign and pre-screened candidates for your short-list, it can be very beneficial for you to conduct a round of interviews with your ‘top picks’ to ensure that you make the right selections.

While Planned Resources give you great insight into the candidates being put forward, there are also benefits in you interviewing prospective employees directly. You can gain invaluable information about a candidate; it gives you, the employer, the chance to help determine if their qualifications – and whether culturally (more on this below) – they’d fit your team.

You can use the interview to ask the hard questions.

You can see how candidates perform under stressful or unusual circumstances. You can use the opportunity to test them on the role they are interviewing for, and it gives you a chance to assess how they’ll align to the position. Conversely, it also gives the candidate an opportunity to put their best foot forward and showcase their skills.

In addition to their skills and experience, ‘culture fit’ is equally important.

An interview can give employers the chance to determine a candidate’s suitability for the team and organisation. A great idea in addition to a one-on-one interview is to invite potential team members for a chat in the office. This will give your current and prospective employees an opportunity to interact, and you can see how well they may get along.

And remember, the more relaxed and comfortable you can make a candidate feel during an interview, the greater chance you’ll have of being able to assess their authentic self.

As an interviewer, the main suggestion I’d give is to be prepared prior to meeting.

Being prepared ensures that the interview flows without awkward silences, and it also guarantees that you’ll ask all of the questions you require while also being able to answer any questions that might come your way.

So, do your research and write down your list of questions if you need to – because asking the right questions will assist you in assessing a candidate’s suitability for the role and organisation. In addition, writing notes on each candidate can assist you in your decision-making process, particularly if you have several well qualified and even candidates.

But over an above all of this be nice, be friendly, and smile!

By: Kirsten Ellis, Senior Consultant

Kirsten has over a decade of experience working in recruitment; she brings her understanding and experience to Planned Resources team as our Property Consultant. 

Connect with Kirsten on Linkedin

Contact: 0416 238 020, kirsten.ellis@plannedresources.com.au