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Interviewing

Cover letters: Are they still necessary in 2020?

02/27/2020
With more organizations moving to online applications, is the traditional cover letter outdated—and do employers care?

Terrible job interview? Note that for the record

02/18/2020
Tell members of hiring committees that it’s important to make note of a candidate who interviews poorly. That’s especially true if the candidate isn’t selected and the interview was an important reason why.

Retain every résumé, application you receive

02/03/2020
When you receive résumés and applications for open positions, it’s best to keep those documents even if they are from people you don’t end up interviewing. Here’s why: If you are later sued for failure to hire or promote, you may need those documents to justify your decisions.

Their last job isn’t the true picture

01/09/2020
Recruiting and retention expert Mel Kleiman of Humetrics says that we make a mistake conducting job interviews when we immediately fall back on asking about the applicant’s current job or their last one.

Keep careful notes about every job interview

01/08/2020
Always document what applicants tell you during job interviews. If you reject the candidate and she later claims she revealed protected information during the hiring process, you will have records to counter her claims.

1-hour interview, in 5 stages

01/02/2020
An hour, give or take 15 minutes, is about right for an initial job interview—long enough to obtain basic information and an impression of the applicant, and short enough to fit in a busy schedule.

Candidates lose interest if employers won’t negotiate

11/19/2019
Hiring job candidates in a tight labor market often requires sweetening the pot with nonmonetary perks. New research from global staffing firm Robert Half confirms it.

Closing the interview: Which questions to ask, and which to be prepared for

10/24/2019
Avoid asking difficult questions last. Finishing on a positive note is part of creating a good candidate experience.

How to determine an interviewee’s integrity?

09/26/2019
Asking an applicant “Are you honest and trustworthy?” won’t get you any useful data in a job interview.

When should managers check references?

09/26/2019
While HR departments handle reference checking at most organizations, many supervisors are willing and capable of handling reference checks, too. But that doesn’t mean you should let supervisors handle reference checks for all openings.