Tips For Conducting Interviews In Your Workplace

Last Thursday's episode of The Apprentice saw the five candidates face the interviews stage, facing a tough panel of interviewers who picked apart their business plans.

Philip Brennan, Founder and MD at BusinessComparison, has put together some tips for anyone facing their own upcoming interview, or conducting interviews at their place of work.

“Interviews can be daunting but remember, not many interviewers will be as harsh as those on The Apprentice! The interview panel wants to see you do well - they are looking for someone who will be a good fit for their team and they hope that you are the person they’re looking for.

“My advice to business owners and managers who are holding interviews right now as part of their hiring process is to make the candidates you meet feel comfortable and welcome, whether the interview is taking place online or in person.

“Before each interview, be sure to quickly have another look at the candidate’s CV, as well as anything else they have shared with you. You might find that there is something specific in their experience you want to ask them about, as well as the standard questions you’ll be asking every candidate.

“Be clear with everyone you interview about what the next steps will be, and if possible, stick to what you said you’d do. This is especially important when it comes down to the final few candidates. If someone has invested their time into your interview process, met multiple members of the company and completed a task, it’s just good manners to let them know that although you enjoyed meeting them, you’ve decided to go with somebody else for the role. You never know, this candidate might apply to work in your company again in the future and you want to leave them with a good impression.

“Make sure you take notes and if there are multiple people on the interview panel, make time to speak together to compare your thoughts after the candidate leaves. If you find that you don’t agree on who you want for the role, go right back to the job description and review the tasks together. Who do you think would be able to excel in this role, and who do you think would fit in with the team the best? What you’re looking for is someone who fits both of these criteria.

“On The Apprentice, the candidates are competing to win investment for their business. Presenting to investors is one of the key routes to securing funding, so these skills are essential for entrepreneurs. My advice to anyone wondering how to approach this is to rehearse out loud until you feel totally comfortable with what you’ll be saying. Also, while it’s important to get all the essential information across, it’s just as important to be concise. Impress the investors by giving a focused, lucid presentation.”