Ask HN: What do you think about video interviews?

[sjohn92]

Hi, I know some people don't like one-way video interviews, where answers are recorded and can be watched later by employer. I feel situation will be changed after whole WFH and corona situation in favor of employers. What do you think about that?

[ksaj]

I helped a company test a platform for doing this (from the security point of view, though). I have to say, at least for myself, I wouldn't put myself through that. In the process, I saw some of the results, and absolutely everyone being interviewed came across super awkwardly. I can easily imagine a whole lot of excellent applicants being denied just because of how they react to having to talk in whatever meaningful way into the lifeless void. Great idea when searching for a radio announcer or newscaster, though.

If you want to know a person, you probably actually need to talk to them as a person. I've done Skype interviews, and those were perfectly fine from my point of view. But I can just as easily imagine myself losing a lot of gigs for being just as awkward as those applicants seemed if I did one of those pre-recorded interview types.

FWIW I thought about it then, and my decision was if the company is too lazy to talk to me in person, even if by phone or video, then they don't need me. If they need robots to do interviews, they probably would prefer robots to do my job, too.

[sjohn92]

Thanks ksaj for your answer. Most people I talk to say similar things. I have belief situation will change after remote work culture becomes widespread because of corona lockdown