[scarface74]

I love phone screens. It tells me early on whether I need to waste my time taking off work, going across town etc.

On the interviewing side, I have had 6 phone screens with different companies in one day -I was able to “work from home” to do it.

On the interviewer’s side. I was able to screen 6 people in one day and bring in only two.

A “resume fit” means nothing. People say all sorts of things on their resume but they fall apart when you actually talk to them.

[lj3]

This. Some companies proceed directly to the "build us something" or "take a quiz" portion of the interview process. I always insist on a phone interview (preferably with the hiring manager) before doing anything else. 5 minutes of frank conversation can save you hours of wasted time.

Also, you'd be surprised at how different the role they want to fill is from the one they posted.

[scarface74]

Exactly. Just like the company is juggling a lot of candidates, historically, I am usually juggling multiple companies where I am somewhere in the interview process.

[flippyhead]

Or the reverse: someone might not be good resume writing, but if you suspect this, talking to them can occasionally find some hidden gems.

[pmiller2]

I would guess those people don’t get phone screened, either, because the resume (in the absence of a referral) is what gets the interview.

[hahamrfunnyguy]

Agreed. They're a time saver for all involved. A surprising number of candidates can't answer basic programming questions about access modifiers or the difference between interfaces and abstract classes. Why bring them in if you know they won't meet the criteria?