Finding the Best Talent Through Screening and Evaluating
Although hiring the best talent is crucial for the success of a company, it can be a challenging and tough process. When it comes to screening and evaluating candidates, no matter if you require the help from a remote staffing agency or do the process on your own, there are some tips and tricks you need to take into account. These suggestions will help you identify those candidates who have the necessary skills for joining the team.
What is Candidate Screening and Evaluating?
Screening and evaluating candidates means assessing different profiles to determine if they fit the requirements of the available vacancies. This includes not only evaluating their background, studies, and technical abilities, but also identifying their interpersonal skills, career goals, and eagerness to contribute to the success of your organization.
Screening and Evaluating Process
If you don’t know where to start, you can find this process overwhelming. However, there are some standard steps you can follow to make it as smooth and efficient as possible.
Pre-Screening
Pre-screening candidates in today’s competitive talent market is the very first step that will save you plenty of valuable time. Whether you are actively sourcing profiles or just receiving applications, drafting detailed job descriptions and using pre-screening forms are great strategies to quickly identify candidates who meet the main requirements for the role.
Resume and Cover Letter Screening
Once you have narrowed the talent pool, it’s time to assess in depth the candidate’s background, relevant experiences, accomplishments, and skills. By doing so, you will get an insight of the profile and will be able to consider the distinctive features that are needed for the role.
Online Background Check
Before moving forward with the recruitment process, save yourself some headaches and carry out an online background check. With this extra but key step, you will be able to access public records information including, but not limited to, criminal records, employment history verification, and social media information.
Skills and Technical Knowledge Testing
Once the general profile of a candidate meets your expectations, it’s time to assess their technical skills. There are several methods for evaluating their proficiency in specific areas, such as a technical interview with an expert in the field, a take-home exercise, or a case presentation.
Behavioral Interviews
At this point, you will mainly focus on the candidate’s soft and interpersonal skills. To do so, it’s essential to dig into their experiences to determine their problem-solving and communication skills, team spirit, and ability to work under pressure (just to mention a few). Suggest open questions and ask for concrete examples to gain better insight of these situations.
Cultural Fit
Last but not least, you should confirm that the selected candidate fits your company's culture and values. As this can be very subjective and difficult to assess in just one or two conversations, a good tip is to involve different team members in the recruitment process to gain as much insight as possible.
What Tools are Used for Screening and Evaluating Candidates?
Technology can be one of our best allies when it comes to screening and evaluating candidates. Applicant Tracking Software (ATS), video interviewing platforms, and psychometric assessment tools are crucial to enhancing the hiring strategy, saving time, and automating processes. Some of them are TalentSorter, Vervoe, Toggl Hire, and Assess First.
How to Use AI in Candidate Screening and Evaluating?
Many professionals are not happy about the role AI (Artificial Intelligence) is playing in our lives in general. However, for recruitment and hiring purposes, we can take advantage of it and use AI-powered tools for scanning resumes in a faster and automatized way and drafting detailed questionnaires based on a specific job description to address a candidate in an interview, such as QuestBase and Traifity.
How to Screen and Evaluate Remote Employees?
In recent years, remote work has become a very popular trend. If you decide to adopt this modality, you need to consider that hiring employees may require additional considerations during the assessment process. Make the most of video interviews and evaluate the candidate’s ability to work independently and in distributed teams. Considerate not only hard skills but also their capacity to manage time, motivation, and adaptability.
Why is Screening and Evaluating Candidates Important?
As we have seen, the process of screening and evaluating candidates can take several steps and may end up being arduous. Thoroughly assessing a candidate's background, qualifications, skills, personality, and expectations will minimize the chances of employing someone who doesn’t fit the company culture and needs.
As a result, devoting time and energy to this process is fundamental to ensure that you are hiring the best talent in the market, who will inevitably contribute to your company's success. Contact us today, and we will make sure to find the perfect match for your team!