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Why Businesses Should Consider Conducting Virtual Interviews

by Becki Leonard, PHR, SHRM-CP, on April 22, 2020
Conducting virtual interviews isn’t just a growing techy trend; it is a benefit to you, your employees, and your bottom line. What better way to showcase to your potential candidates that you are agile and offer modern day virtual recruiting? Here are the three benefits your business should consider conducting remote interviews.
 

They Create Flexibility

By interviewing people remotely, you don’t have to leave your office, but your candidates don’t have to leave their homes. Think about passive job seekers. Remote interviews allow a busy, full-time employee more flexibility to pursue a new career opportunity without having to take a day of PTO. Similar scenarios impact a wide variety of candidates and circumstances, ranging from simple things like having a car in the shop or not being able to find a babysitter, to more complex situations like the coronavirus pandemic we are currently experiencing. This extra flexibility can be the difference between a candidate accepting an interview or having to turn it down.
 

They Expand Your Candidate Pool

By conducting remote interviews, you can expand your search nationally without having to be worried about you or the candidate having to pay for travel to and from your location. Additionally, younger generations look to relocate for job better opportunities, namely millennials, which 82% believe relocation is necessary to continue to move up the corporate ladder. Depending on the size of your business, you could even expand your search globally, since 40% of millennials wouldn’t mind moving to a new country if it meant having a better job.
 

They Keep Your Team Prepared

Routinely conducting remote interviews means your team is ready for when you have to conduct remote interviews. A massive storm or global pandemic shouldn’t keep your business down, and having a team that knows how all the remote systems work will keep your hiring process from coming to a complete stop until you can be back in the office. Plus, as many of us have recently learned, a few days out of the office can quickly turn into months of closed doors which is entirely outside of your control.
A prepared team is also more confident and comfortable in using technology (think about your first Zoom meeting vs. your tenth). This reduces stress on your team, which is always a benefit, but that in turn reduces the chance of human error, leading to a smoother experience all around.
 
It’s going to take time for businesses to adjust to this new normal we are all in now, but we are here to help. If you need help creating a plan or policy for remote interviews, contact LandrumHR to learn more.
 
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Becki Leonard, PHR, SHRM-CP

Becki has over 25 years of Human Resources experience and holds a business degree with a concentration in HR. She is certified as a Professional in Human Resources (PHR) by the HR Certification Institute (HRCI) and a Certified Professional through the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM-CP). She also holds her SHRM People Analytics Specialty Credential. At LandrumHR, Becki has worked with the staffing, PEO, and consulting divisions of the company. She currently holds the position of Managing Consultant for hrQ, their national Human Capital Consulting firm. Becki is passionate about helping organizations best manage their greatest resource – their people. A teacher at heart, Becki focuses on helping business leaders understand the “why” behind the “what” so they can move forward with confidence in their decisions.

View more blogs by Becki Leonard, PHR, SHRM-CP