Two-way interviews

A company’s social profile and the need to attract talent have transformed job interviews into bidirectional ones. Candidates no longer simply prepare, but research the company on social networks and want answers to their own interests.

You must be aware, therefore, that a job interview needs good preparation. Be well informed about the characteristics of the job and what skills are required of the candidates, in order to get the most out of it. But also to know how to listen, to inform the candidate correctly and to respond to any of his needs for clarification. He may want clear information about what is expected of him, the objectives of the company, the working environment, about what he is going to learn, how far he can go… It is essential to inform him about learning plans and professional development.

We must also decide how the interview will be developed. Most candidates will come prepared to answer the usual questions, so you have to look for alternatives to really know their suitability for the job.

Interview recommendations

Have you ever seen a millennial recruiting workers? Sitting on a sofa, with the candidate’s information in front of him on his laptop, his conversation headset or Skype, he directly poses situations he will encounter in the job he aspires to and asks him to describe how he would resolve them.

In the job interview it is essential to discover that what you put on your CV is real. Using hypothetical cases or the worker’s experience is a good method. Also, introduce questions that are not expected and that are going to upset you, about information of the sector, international news, controversial subjects… Your reaction will demonstrate better than anything your capacity of improvisation and your ideas.

A good recommendation is not to over-structure the interview but to let it flow, to let the candidate carry some of the weight with his explanations and questions: a comfortable atmosphere favours authenticity. It should be noted that a candidate today is required, in addition to professional skills, flexibility and capacity for innovation.

The presentation of the company and the job should be solid and attractive. From the beginning, the applicant should feel interested and valuable for the company with a warm welcome, a personal description, for example, by the recruiter, of who he is in the company, what he does, what he especially likes about his job…The job must be well explained, the candidate will have many doubts about it. Where it is going to be done, what the team looks like, the working conditions, the clients he works for or the projects he is involved in… but also what the role of the position is inside the company and what is expected of it in the coming years. The candidate can be asked what he knows about the company to evaluate if his expectations are correct or to correct his vision, if necessary.

Very interesting to describe the day to day of his job and the working environment, or even show him the offices and introduce him to the team.

And of course, candidates who have been dropped from the selection process must be properly informed. A candidate is a potential client and brand ambassador, who must take care of her reputation as an employer, applying Employee branding techniques. That is why it is so important to take care of the whole selection process.

People first | A project by Eurofirms

People First es un espacio de inspiración donde compartimos contenidos con un eje común: las personas. Desde distintas ópticas y sectores, abordamos varios temas, tendencias y noticias de interés humano.

La entrada An exciting selection process aparece primero en People first.

What makes a company attractive?

Every recruitment process is two-way and just as good candidates prepare for the job interview, they also do so by investigating the company to see if it is a place where it is worth investing their own professional skills.

The first thing you look for when valuing a company to work for is if it has a clear mission and values. We will also analyse its organisational structure, the customers it works for… Undoubtedly, the prestige that the company, its products or services enjoy on social networks carries great weight.

The second main aspect will be your Human Resources policy: if you use formulas such as flexible hours or remote working, if you work by schedule or by objectives, how much you work in teams, if you invest in training, family reconciliation and diversity management measures, how much you count on your employees to innovate. Also, if it takes care of the worker with initiatives such as luncheon vouchers, nurseries or gyms, health insurance, facilities to access the workplace… And of course, adequate remuneration.

The professional future in that company will be another relevant point: the existence of incentive plans, career development opportunities – also international – and support for personal projection, are keys. It is very attractive for the company to invest in R+D.

A good candidate is probably asking for references from company employees. Having a complete corporate page on LinkedIn, with associated workers, is an excellent way to encourage these initial contacts and to publicize the work climate.

All these aspects are increasingly valued, especially among young people. If you want good candidates, you have to be an attractive company.

The best companies to work for

Internationally, there are several rankings that decide each year, according to certain parameters, which are the best companies to work for. Their criteria are a good indication of what to do to become a company worth being part of.

Greatplacetowork.es invites companies to participate in the annual awards for the best place to work, as follows: “Getting certified with Great Place To Work® is the easiest and most accessible way to quantify your corporate culture, compare yourself with the most successful companies and grow your business”.  It offers on its website a Certification Guide to download, which guides any company in what is expected of it every year. In its ranking, the opinion of the employees of each valued company is very important, along with its people management policy.

The Corporate Reputation Business Monitor is another of the world’s reference rankings. It is based on a multi-stakeholder methodology consisting of five assessments and twelve sources of information.

Through assessments of senior management, business experts, financial analysts, journalists, etc., and other people related to the company such as university students, employees, HR managers…, plus a benchmarking of 200 management indicators, it evaluates the quality of work in companies.

Top Employers Institute recognizes excellence in the conditions employers create for workers. It offers deep analysis to assess trends and data in Human Resources. For their rankings they audit good practices in people management such as the strategy in recruitment/retention of talent, training and leadership plans, career management, etc.

Universum offers a combination of rankings + analytics + academy to build and improve brand strategy with employees. Universum Most Attractive Employers Spain, one of its rankings, analyzes the preferences of university students to work: what they value, their favourite companies, what they think of diverse companies, etc.

While the Fortune 100 list of the best companies to work for, it has awarded Google 8 times in 11 years.

In all these rankings, in general, it can be appreciated that the willingness to change and innovate are primary to be an attractive company. Combined with flexible working hours, measures for reconciling work and family life, the ability to develop personally and remuneration in accordance with the market

People first | A project by Eurofirms

People First es un espacio de inspiración donde compartimos contenidos con un eje común: las personas. Desde distintas ópticas y sectores, abordamos varios temas, tendencias y noticias de interés humano.

La entrada Every selection process is two-way. Who chooses who? aparece primero en People first.

“Being” and not “being” on social networks

The real potential of social networks is in helping to create the indispensable network of contacts that connects and supports the experience of a professional. The key is therefore to spend time getting to know and contact other professionals, to build relationships with them that add value. There are many job offers that are not published, but are covered by recommendations.

From asking questions about the work environment or about the company, to sharing information about professional developments, or knowledge of their own, the ways to participate in the global conversation are diverse, causing at the same time the construction of the brand itself. Always with a limit: don’t become a spammer.

Never do anything that you wouldn’t like to be done yourself, like contacting to sell something directly, for example. For the Human Resources and People Management departments, it is the best way to assess the reputation of a potential candidate. Social Media is also a showcase for communication skills.

The way you move inside them shows how you are socially. This is a growing value within the company, which is increasingly forced to start its digitalization process, counting on the employees. So when it comes to starting a career in Social Media, it is important to have a clear strategy of participation.

A seller’s profile

Which profiles are the most interesting on social networks? Those who are not afraid to sell themselves. Direct and motivating profiles, which give the employer the opportunity to know why he should hire them. The best examples on LinkedIn are those with a short but strategic description, with the right keywords to appear correctly in searches, and a clear statement of the value they bring as a worker.

In order to do so, it is essential for the candidate to do an introspective work or to get the help of a Human Resources or Coaching professional, who will help him discover his own strengths and what he is particularly good at.

In team leadership, creativity, project management, contact with suppliers… areas for which one was not always trained or did not have as a work objective, and in which one ended up being competent. This is a good time to ask former colleagues about these aspects through social networks and to get advice on new career opportunities.

It is also important to be clear about what you are looking for, to be consistent. The CV is a historical thread of the training and work experience but a profile shows who you are here and now. It must be changed as often as necessary according to new learning and professional interests. Without forgetting to add a personal image according to what is being sold.

Tools to highlight

Social Networks also offer various tools to contact and highlight in the professional field. Some profiles have been made relevant by selecting good information, sharing it and commenting on it with his contacts. Others have used their own blog to create an area of enriching experience for others. Both strategies require great effort and must be aligned with personal skills.

Participating in professional groups on LinkedIn is also an excellent way to generate interesting contacts and create a personal brand. So is the commitment to specialised online training (free or not) offered on various Mooc platforms, LinkedIn’s Learning section or even on specialised websites and portals.

Following the digital behavior of any candidate is undoubtedly the best way to know his personal brand, his social skills and his reputation. Social networks demand active participation from all agents in the labour market.

People first | A project by Eurofirms

People First es un espacio de inspiración donde compartimos contenidos con un eje común: las personas. Desde distintas ópticas y sectores, abordamos varios temas, tendencias y noticias de interés humano.

La entrada Personal brand: attractive candidates on Social Networks aparece primero en People first.