We are a leadership consultancy that prides itself on our organisational value of Care, not just for the organisations we work with and their missions, but also the individuals we support through the hiring process.
Since 1995 Oxford HR has led thousands of search processes globally and worked with various panels, some of whom have conducted fairer and more engaged interview sessions than others! As such, we would like to offer the following recommendations for Board and Senior Leadership teams, on how to conduct a fair, inclusive and equitable online interview process for your candidates, and ultimately, make the best possible hire.
Pre-Interview
- Work with your Search Consultant and let them guide you in the importance of certain steps and measures, to ensure a successful and enjoyable interview process for all involved.
- Sometimes it helps to run pre-candidate meetings for Boards to check everyone is happy with set up, lighting, volume etc.
- It is useful to have an agreement up front regarding cameras. Either to have cameras turned on when the candidate speaks, or have administrator rights to mute and turn cameras off when required. Ideally Oxford HR would recommend always having cameras on for any interview.
- Ensure your panel meets in advance to discuss the goals, questions, who will speak to which skillset and how you want to be perceived. Remember interviews for leadership roles go both ways, so smiling and engaging is a must – candidates will also be assessing the attitude, engagement and knowledge of the panel members. No matter how many times you have interviewed, your approach, attitude, and engagement are crucial.
- Make sure everyone knows how to use and uses the mute button when required – no candidates need to hear a snoring dog in the background!
During Interview
- Act as you would if you were all sitting together for an on-site interview: be dressed appropriately, ensure that there are no interruptions, and do not read or respond to emails or check your phone. Maintain eye contact with the interviewee.
- Focus on creating an atmosphere of warmth and civility. Allowing the candidate to feel comfortable and confident enough to gain an accurate assessment of their capabilities is essential.
- Listen actively and attentively to the candidates’ responses, taking notes and using the scoring sheet (if preferred). You should also observe the candidates’ body language, communication skills, and interaction with your other panel members.
- Ensure the panel stick to the agreed questions for all candidates that are being interviewed – even small changes can create subtle but significant differences in the ears of the candidate, which then makes it very hard to fairly compare answers.
General/final points
- Always bear in mind that conduct in a panel interview and the impression given to the candidates, reflects on your organisation and leadership.
- Show as much excitement, investment and interest in filling this role as you would expect from the interviewee, to keep the interest of your top candidates.
Suzie Mills
Suzie joined the Oxford HR Team in January 2019 as our Communications Director. She holds a BA (Hons) in Journalism from Cardiff University and has worked in Marketing for over 13 years.
Prior to working for Oxford HR, Suzie has developed campaigns and worked on the global strategies for companies such P&G, Nissan, Delta Airlines, Barclays, COI, World Horse Welfare, Vodafone and VTECH. Suzie is particularly interested in how technology and digital innovation can contribute to the global UN goal of ending hunger and poverty by 2030 and global problems in general.
Suzie is a Trustee on the Board of the charity CMV Action, endeavouring to support awareness and fund vaccine research for this virus.
