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6 Important Questions to ask during Virtual Interview

Informative

By Christina Boodée | February 10, 2016

It’s no secret that video interviewing is on the rise. Candidates like the virtual interviews because they’re easy and can be done anywhere, meaning the candidate doesn’t have to schedule much time away from work. Recruiters like video interviews because they’re quick and allow the recruiter to interview more people in any given day. As it goes with all new trends and technologies, however, it can be a little awkward getting used to. Don’t let this discomfort you from asking candidates the right questions! Here are six questions to help you bring the two-dimensional candidate on your screen to life.

Table of contents

1. “Tell me about yourself.”

2. “Why do you want this job?”

3. “What kind of work environment do you prefer?”

4. “Where do you see yourself in five years?”

5. “What kind of qualities do you look for in a boss?”

6. “If you were here in-person, is there anything that you would do differently?”

“Tell me about yourself.”

This is a common way to start a phone or in-person interview, and it is also a great way to start a video interview. It allows the candidate to warm up and feel more at ease about the potentially awkward technology situation. Additionally, it’s always interesting to learn about candidates from what they decide to share. You might be surprised by how much you can learn about a candidate without asking specific questions.

“Why do you want this job?”

This question is crucial for two reasons: first, it shows whether or not the candidate has researched your company and fully understands the role they’re interviewing for; and secondly, it indicates whether or not the candidate has real passion for their work, your company, and your industry.

“What kind of work environment do you prefer?”

One of the biggest obstacles of video interviewing is determining if the candidate would fit in well with your company culture or not. This question is the great way to gauge cultural fit. Does their ideal work environment match the one you can provide?

“Where do you see yourself in five years?”

Get a fuller picture of the candidate by assessing their career aspirations. Would your company be a step along the path to success or the final destination for the candidate?

“What kind of qualities do you look for in a boss?”

Because of the virtual setting, your interactions with the candidate may be stunted in comparison to how they could flourish face-to-face. Asking this question can help you understand what candidate hopes for in a leader, and if those qualities match the ones that the boss possesses.

“If you were here in-person, is there anything that you would do differently?”

According to a 2013 study published in Management Decision journal, researchers found that interviewers perceived the candidates they video-interviewed less favorably than those they interviewed in-person. First of all, make yourself aware of this unconscious bias that might cloud your judgment of a candidate. And secondly, ask this question to get the candidate’s perspective and see how the interview might have changed in a different setting.

A survey of over 700 people conducted in July 2015 revealed that over 70 percent of these professionals had used real-time video interviewing in their hiring processes—it seems that this trend is evolving into something more permanent. Embrace the future of recruiting and continue to find the right candidates by including these questions in your video interviewing process!