There are many steps you can take to determine if a candidate is right for a position. Your goal is to decide whether or not they have the skills and experience needed to be successful in a role. Additionally, you want to understand if they will be a culture fit with your team. Arguably one of the best ways to do this is by holding a panel interview. In a recent study of performance and interview ratings, Google found that “averaging the ratings of a group of interviewers was by far a more accurate predictor of success than the rating of a single interviewer.”
By gathering company leaders or team members that a candidate would work closely with if hired, you add a variety of perspectives into your hiring process. Your employees get the opportunity to ask pointed questions during this time. Additionally, your candidate will get a glimpse at the team dynamics. But how do you add a panel interview to your hiring process successfully? Keep reading for our top tips on incorporating this crucial step!
Ensure that everyone is up to speed
If your panel involves employees who have not been involved in the hiring process thus far, it’s important to get them caught up. Before the interview, give everyone a copy of the candidate’s resume. This allows them to read about the experience and formulate specific questions. Let everyone know where this candidate is at with respect to the hiring process – is this their third interview? Have they already met with key leaders in the organization? Finally, lay out the goal of this panel interview. Is it to make a final hiring decision? Or is to determine which role on the team would be the best fit?
Give everyone a chance to engage
The main benefit of holding a panel interview is access to viewpoints. Ideally, your interviewers will ask different questions and focus on varied experiences and skill sets throughout the candidates’ past. That’s why each member of the panel must have the opportunity to engage with the interviewee! More than likely, the variety of questions will spark follow-up questions from other panel members, making for a much more dynamic interview all around.
Ask for individual feedback after the interview
To avoid groupthink, it’s important to let each member of the panel form their own opinion prior to discussing as a group. Before coming together to discuss the interview, have each team member submit their thoughts on the candidate separately. This allows you to get an unbiased view of the candidate from multiple perspectives.
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