- It is very important as managers

to know how to hire the best people for the job.

In fact, there's probably no other tool

that is greater than learning effective techniques

to interview and hire the people

that will actually do the work.

I'm going to take you through the steps you need to know

to prepare the interview setting,

effective interview techniques,

and then conclude on what to expect when discussing salary.

Let's discuss how to make the interview a productive one.

First, set up the physical location

or the video or phone conferencing.

If it's an in-person interview,

make sure you schedule an office or conference room

that is private and comfortable.

Make sure to offer them water or coffee

and welcome them to your company.

Make sure all of your calls are turned off or forwarded.

If you're doing a video conference,

take time to send the candidate all the video

and web conferencing details

and send a test link to make them make sure

that it works on their end.

Now, secondly, arrange all interview questions

and be prepared to ask the same questions

to every candidate.

It's easy to go on a tangent

and not stick to your list of questions.

But if you ask everyone the same exact questions,

only then you'll be truly able to distinguish between them.

Take special care to listen carefully during the interview.

You should be listening more than you are talking

and asking open-ended questions rather than yes or no

to provoke more conversation.

Note-taking is equally as important

to help remember what was said,

especially if interviewing multiple candidates.

Take caution to prepare your notes thoughtfully,

because if there ever was a hiring discrimination case

brought forward, all of your notes and scribbles

on the resume could be summoned.

Schedule typically one hour for in-person interviews

and just a half an hour for preliminary phone interviews.

Also, I personally like to begin the interview,

after exchanging pleasantries,

to dive right into their application or their resume.

I like the applicant to walk me through their work history

and educational background as part of the introduction

and a guide for the inevitable

tell-me-about-yourself question.

Ask detailed questions surrounding

what they accomplished and how and why.

And of course, please be as professional as possible,

as a candidate is making a judgment on the company

based on their interactions with you, the manager.

Lastly, be sure not to ask applicants

what their prior salary was in their last role.

In some states, it's now illegal

to ask applicant what their prior salary was.

It's a sound practice to let candidates know upfront

what the salary range is before coming in.

Typically, no one wants to move backwards in terms of salary

and you could both be wasting your time

if the salary range does not work for the applicant.

There's no better honor as a manager

than hiring a fantastic person for a dynamic role

within your company.

I challenge you to use these tips

when interviewing your next candidate.

I guarantee you will experience a smoother

and more efficient process.

(chill music)