Why Interviewing Top Talent “As You Find Them”
Wins the Hiring Race
In today’s fiercely competitive job market, where top talent is in high demand, the traditional, drawn-out hiring process is not the most effective way to hire. Employers who cling to the “wait and batch” interview strategy are likely to watch their ideal candidates slip through their fingers and be snapped up by another company. The modern approach? Interview candidates as you find them.
The Cost of Delay: Losing Out on Top Talent during the Hiring Process
The traditional hiring model often involves collecting a pool of resumes, scheduling multiple interviews over several days or weeks, and then making a decision. While this approach might seem efficient from an internal scheduling perspective, it’s a recipe for disaster in a talent-scarce market.
Here’s why waiting is a critical mistake:
- Top talent moves quickly: The best candidates are often in high demand and receive multiple job offers. Delaying the interview process gives them ample time to accept another opportunity.
- Competitors are faster: Your competitors are likely adopting a more agile hiring strategy. By waiting, you’re giving them a significant advantage.
- Candidate experience suffers: A lengthy hiring process can create a negative impression of your company. Candidates may perceive it as disorganized or indecisive and we hear this often.
- Opportunity cost: The longer a position remains vacant, the greater the impact on productivity, team morale, and overall business performance.
The “As You Find Them” Approach: Seizing the Moment and no more mistakes during hiring.
The “as you find them” approach involves interviewing promising candidates as soon as their applications are received. This strategy offers several key advantages:
- Increased speed and efficiency: By streamlining the interview process, you can make hiring decisions faster, reducing the time it takes to fill critical roles.
- Enhanced candidate experience: Candidates appreciate a responsive and efficient hiring process. It demonstrates that you value their time and interest.
- Improved access to top talent: By moving quickly, you can secure top candidates before they’re snatched up by competitors.
- Greater flexibility: This approach allows you to adapt to the changing needs of your business and fill urgent roles quickly.
- More relevant interviews: The information is fresher on both sides. The candidate has your job fresh in their mind, and the interviewer has the resume fresh in theirs.
Implementing the Agile Interview Strategy
- Prioritize speed: Streamline your internal processes to minimize delays.
- Empower hiring managers: Give hiring managers the authority to schedule and conduct interviews promptly.
- Utilize technology: Use applicant tracking systems (ATS) and video conferencing tools to facilitate efficient communication and scheduling.
- Be prepared to make decisions: Have clear decision-making criteria in place and be ready to make offers quickly.
- Focus on quality over quantity: While speed is important, don’t sacrifice quality for speed. Ensure that you’re thoroughly evaluating each candidate.
- Have a solid interview process: Even if you are interviewing individuals as they are presented to you by your recruiter, have a solid interview plan that you can follow, and that can be adaptable to everyone.
The Future of Hiring: Agility and Responsiveness
The modern hiring landscape demands agility and responsiveness. Employers who embrace the “as you find them” approach will gain a significant competitive advantage in the race for top talent. By prioritizing speed, efficiency, and candidate experience, you can build a high-performing team that drives business success. In the end, it is better to have filled the position with a great candidate, than to have a perfect interview schedule.
READ: 7 Transferable Skills to Uncover in a Candidate Interview
Match Point Recruiting is a boutique consumer goods executive search firm in Bentonville, AR
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