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Interviewing is the time that you and a candidate can impress one another. You both have a goal, and it’s when those goals align that a good hiring fit is discovered. But how do you manage your expectations in the interview? By shedding unconscious bias, you can see all candidates with a neutral mindset and make the best possible choice for your open position. Here are five ways to manage your expectations.
Do Your Homework
So often, we hear of hiring managers being completely unprepared for an interview. They come into the meeting unaware of the person they’re talking with, unfamiliar with their resume, and unable to ask anything beyond the most basic question. When you’re managing candidates’ expectations, it’s essential to make sure you’re not just stringing them along and going through the motions.
Shed Unconscious Bias
What is unconscious bias? As you might imagine, it’s the conclusions you don’t even realize you’re making about another person. For example, many hiring managers favor individuals with very similar backgrounds to their own. They may like to hire people who went to the same university or are initially from the same state. But that could mean your hiring decisions are homogenous. By avoiding unconscious bias and reviewing each candidate by their own merits, you can hire a more diverse group of candidates and benefit from their mindsets.
Have Empathy
Another aspect that sometimes gets overlooked in an interview is empathy. Many people think of this as too touchy-feely for a job interview, but that’s not the case at all. Understanding is about the ability to put yourself in someone else’s shoes. If someone is super nervous about an interview, it doesn’t mean they’re not the right candidate. It may just mean that they’re out of practice interviewing, or they are intimidated. Rather than write them off, make them feel more at ease.
Create a Process
Hiring managers often say they hire based on their gut instinct. They “know it when they see it.” But this can make a hiring decision turn rancid very quickly when the new employee doesn’t live up to expectations on the job. Instead, create a system and process that allows you to treat each interview correspondingly. This way, you have the same data on every candidate and can make a useful comparison when choosing one for the job.
Ask for Input
It can also be beneficial to have someone else in your department or company conduct an interview as well. You may have the HR representative meet with the candidate. Or you may have members of your team who will be working with them directly meet for an informal interview. Have them also take notes so you can ask for their input when you’re making the final hiring decision.
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