Setting up interviews might not sound like a troublesome task; however, without the right tools it can be a time consuming and clunky process, for both hiring managers and candidates.

Inefficient interview scheduling practices are often admin heavy and will likely slow down your recruiting, which isn’t ideal if you’re trying to reduce your time to hire.

But how can you speed up this process to free up more time for you, while still providing a good candidate experience?

Reduce back-and-forth emails using technology

We’ve all been there – you suggest a time and the candidate can’t make it. Then your candidate suggests a revised time but you’ve just booked another candidate in for that particular slot.

Recruitment technology, such as an applicant tracking system (ATS), can simplify your interview scheduling process. Webrecruit ATS, for example, allows you to input your availability and then allows candidates to select their own interview slots based on this. As soon as a candidate selects an option, it gets added to your calendar and disappears from the list, meaning other candidates can’t select it – simple!

By giving candidates a choice of slots, it shows flexibility and gives the interviewee some control in what can be a nerve-racking experience. It also makes your life a lot easier, particularly if you’re looking to schedule interviews with several candidates for a specific role.

Send consistent invitations and emails to candidates

Providing a positive candidate experience is important at every stage of the recruitment process and your interview invitations should be no exception.

Consistency is key; you need to ensure that all candidates being interviewed for a role receive the same communications. Standardising these elements of your process also help to reduce the risk of unconscious bias.

Consider creating email templates to ensure all communications are sent out in a consistent format; this will speed up the process of sending invitations and guarantee that candidates receive an equal experience.

If you don’t currently have a recruitment system in place, you can do this via Outlook, however an ATS will allow you to send interview communications quickly and to multiple candidates.

Provide as much information to candidates as possible

When interviewing candidates, you need to give them the best possible chance to succeed. You should start this when sending your interview invitations by equipping candidates with all the information they need to prepare for their interview.

Make sure you communicate key details, including:

• The format of the interview – Will it be an initial phone chat, a video interview of a face-to-face interview?
• Any technical details – If it’s a telephone or video interview, make sure they’re provided with a telephone number or access link (or set expectations for when candidates will receive this).
• Directions – If it’s a face-to-face interview, provide details of the address and any directions if it’s difficult to find (Webrecruit ATS links up with Google maps, allowing candidates to see clearly where the interview will be held).
• The anticipated duration of the interview – This is always helpful to know, especially if the candidate will be interviewing from home as they may have to make arrangements to ensure they have access to a quiet environment.
• Any pre-interview tasks – If the candidate is expected to present on a particular topic or complete a skills assessment, they should be made aware and given the details.

By providing candidates with all the information possible when sending your interview invitation, this will give them the best possible chance of excelling in their interview and will minimise the chance of them having to come back to you and ask questions.

 

Looking to improve your interview scheduling and management? Book a demo of Webrecruit ATS and find out how technology can help you do so.