| Basics, these should be obvious, but ... 1) anyone who will work with the person should be a part of the interview process. 2) everyone in the interview process must have a copy of the candidates resume 3) everyone in the interview process must have READ the resume 4) foreach, pre-written question, you should have a list of expected answers and what you would score them. Typical interview consists of 3 question categories, with a forth being money which is a trump issue in most cases (if too expensive then cannot afford them, therefore a no). Write your questions to support giving a score in each of these categories: Can they do the job, Can they get along, Will they do the job. Can they do the job is answered by their technical skills as listed in the resume. These skills you need to validate in the interview. I typically ask them to explain what they did / what was their role in a recent project. Expanded with what challenges did you encounter, how did you overcome them. Based on the level of detail, I know if they did it or attended meetings where it was discussed (surprising how often people list meeting attendance as skills). Communication can fall under the topic of 'can you do the job' as well as 'can you get along'. During the interview, I will ask technical questions where I expect the person to know the answers, and I am just looking for a yes / no. Then I hit them with my zinger, 'Whats the difference between A and B' (with both of the A and B being things they said they knew). In the old days it was typically the difference between a B Tree, and a Binary Tree. No one remembers the difference, not even me, not even after reading it, but I know they are different. The scoring on this is: -10 for a BS answer (I write what they say down, because I need to validate it), 5 for 'I do not know' or the correct answer, 8 for 'I do not know, but I know where to find the answer', 10 for 'I do not know, but I know where to find the answer' and they include the answer in the thank you note (I hate the thank you note, but it does provide value). Can you get along - that is various people interacting. IMHO 10% of the people in the world do not like you for no good reason. You dislike 10% of the people in the world for no good reason. (hopefully those 10% are the same). That said, you have to gauge how tightly they need to interact with someone as to how valuable their opinion about being able to work with them is. I like the other comment about see how they interact with people who are completely non important. Consistent behavior is a good thing. Will you do the job - This gets down to why they want the job, besides the cash. Everyone wants money, what you need to determine, if you hire this person for x dollars a year, will they leave to a competitor for x + y dollars. (where y is 10% of x or less). You must take notes during the process. After the interview score them. Have everyone score them. A common tactic is to try to be the first or the last to interview because people favor them. If you score immediately then you quantify your choice, and not a whimsical decision. |