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Employment recruitment and relaxed interview technique.. Why it works for candidates and business.

By Matthew Coleman

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Published: 09Apr2010
Word count: 752
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Four simple tips for recruiters, employers and candidates to get the most from a job interview and some potential benefits of using recruitment agencies.

1. Create a relaxed environment

As a recruiter I believe it more illuminating to interview a potential candidate in a relaxed or informal environment. We can gain more insight into a candidate’s personality and behaviors which is critical to a successful and continued placement.

We use a local café/restaurant that has easy parking, public transport and a quiet uncluttered table. It's comfortable and the staff there have become part of our team and provide excellent but unobtrusive assistance. There is little doubt that a good restaurant combines great atmosphere and good food, it definitely makes a difference to the tone of our interviews!

We all enjoy a good coffee or tea and in this congenial type atmosphere a person is more likely to behave as they would in a social work environment. A formal interview with a potential employer can create stiffness and a potential employee will wish to impress in an effort to gain the employment.

If we view the interview process like a card game with the interviewee exhibiting certain tells then the more barriers we can break down the more likely we are to see someone's potential. A relaxed environment will more commonly give a larger picture of the candidate’s life, experience and suitability.

2. Technical vs personable

An interview should be structured to give as much detail as possible about relevant qualifications, a person’s emotional intelligence and how they relate to life in general. In some cases a persons ability to handle a team environment can be more important than their skills or qualifications.

For example printing has an incredible amount of specific technical knowledge. Whilst we have to make sure that a person is relevantly qualified our clients will make their own technical evaluation. From a legal perspective any recruiter is best advised to maintain a distance in giving advice or comment on technical knowledge.

A recruiter can be shown qualities that a person would normally hide in an employee style interview. This forms a valuable part of the recruitment service to both candidate and employer. The better a persons life or interests are matched to their employment the more likely it is to create lasting benefit to the business and wider community. It's possible a businesses success could be defined by the success of its individual employees and a successful recruiter will be aware of this fact when matching people to organisations.

3. Self improvement

The ability to grow and learn is a key element to an individuals success. Effectively all placements can be viewed with this in mind as a persons flexibility and desire for improvement will affect their approach to life.

One of our recent applicants had taken a small amount of time to research the availability of relevant studies suited to the vacant position. I was impressed with this simple act and it formed a part of the report that I submitted to our client recommending his application. It is an excellent illustration of the value of self-improvement, one that was exemplified to me when this candidate became the successful applicant.

4. Interested vs interesting

I like to see a person who exhibits a good balance between interested and interesting… i.e. willing to listen and equally willing to talk. Some people will interview me and others will barely speak at all. I consider these to be very important indicators when assessing the suitability of a person for a specific role.

I am more likely to put forward an individual who has taken the time to find out about our particular business and who is interested in the specific position and what they may bring to the role. I pay particular attention to how a candidate listens (or doesn’t listen) to my communication and their ability to be understood. It quickly shows me the suitability of a person for a senior management or service role as opposed to a technical or more introverted position.

All of the above mentioned pointers have helped me to locate the right person for the right position thus ensuring the success of the target business, the candidate and of course the continued success of any recruitment agency.

It always helps me to remember that a business success is defined by it's ability to provide a service that gives value to the industry at a reasonable price as well as maintaining sound business ethics.

Matthew Coleman is owner of http://www.printpackrecruit.com.au a dynamic and energetic recruitment company servicing the printing, packaging and design sectors in Melbourne, Australia.

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