The Interview Process.

there has to be a better way

Photo by Laula Co on Unsplash

The Interview process is largely broken in the Software / Tech Industry. Multi-stage process that goes on and on and is often set out to trick the candidate.

There has to be a better approach?

I recently applied for a role for a UK Government Civil Service position and I was incredibly refreshed by the process. Here it is

• A detailed Job Description that includes everything a candidate needs to know including an outline of the process. Everything upfront and clear.

• The Candidate is asked to fill in a form to gather data about them. The form covers areas of previous employment and also asks for a personal statement and guides the candidate on what that should contain based on the job requirements. There is a request that all personal identifiable information is removed (name, age, etc) to help mitigate bias.

• Once this application has been submitted there is a selection round where a shortlist of candidates is created.

• The shortlisted candidates are then invites to ONE (yes 1) interview. The interview is in the following format.

  • The candidate joins the call and after the introductions a discussion topic is given to the candidate. The candidate has 20 minutes to prepare, the interviewers leave to call. After the 20 minutes there is 15 minutes on the discussion topic.

  • After this there are a series of questions on Behaviour related topics - the areas are provided before the interview and the candidates are encouraged to write notes for assist them in answering, and they’re given details of suitable format for answers (STAR is recommended). A day before the interview the actual questions are sent to the candidate.

  • There is time set aside for the candidate to ask any questions they might have.

During the whole process clear communication from a human.

That’s it. Everything upfront. No surprises, no tricks. Everything set up to help the candidate.

And I think that really is the most important part of this process - it’s set up to get the best out of the candidate. Interviews shouldn’t be a trap. They shouldn’t be some sort of way to try and catch someone out.