Interviewing like a pro
The interview is where your preparation pays off. Understanding the job on offer and what you want from it allows accurate advertising and by now you should have some good candidates in front of you.
Preparation
- Make space in the diary
Ideally, all interviews should be carried out over the space of two to three days to enable good comparison between candidates. This will mean you have to clear your diary. It’s also important to get through interviews quickly because good candidates will be getting offered other jobs and if you muck around you will miss out! - Develop a set of questions and tasks to test the match of the applicant with the selection criteria.
When asking questions, ask the applicant to give examples of demonstrating the skill or attitude required. People can easily give you a theoretical answer but it’s harder to make up examples. Past behaviour is also the best predictor of future behaviour! It’s also a good idea to get the person to do some reading, writing and maths in front of you, if this is important. Other work tests, like loading the silage wagon, may also be appropriate.
There are also some stupid ideas out there on selection criteria. One example, the speed with which the person gets out of the truck to open the gate, is not a reliable indicator of anything! If you want to check on enthusiasm and work speed ask their referees, who can give a long-term picture. Make sure you are testing the right things in an appropriate manner. - Select and prepare the interview team
Ideally two people should be involved throughout the interview process, as each will have a different perspective on the applicant. One of those should be the direct manager of the new recruit. The same people should do all interviews to get a consistent picture. Plan which person will ask each question.
Carrying out the interview
- Introduction
Before the interview, make the applicant feel comfortable with general conversation. During this time you may find out about issues that are not relevant to their performance of the job, such as marital status. This information must not be used in making a decision, as it may be regarded as discrimination. - During the interview
Inform the candidate that you will be making notes and then do it – don’t rely on your memory. Keep largely to the prepared questions so that you get all the information you need from each candidate so you can evaluate them all on the same criteria. Make sure you allow time for the candidate to ask questions so they can sort out any concerns in their head. - At the end of the interview
Check if they are genuinely interested in the job but under no circumstances offer them the job at this point. Inform each candidate what the process will be and when you hope to get back to them. Once the candidate has left, summarise your views across the interview team and give them a score, say out of 10, against each of the selection criteria.
Other considerations may include:
Timing of the Interview
An interview should last no more than 60-90 minutes and this should include a quick tour of the farm facilities and the accommodation. You can always opt to have a second interview with the preferred candidate. The more chit-chat you are engaged in with the candidate, the more you will be biased toward selecting on team fit (whether or not you like them), rather than being objective on the skills, experience and attitudes they bring to the job. Some flexibility may be required if the applicant is coming from a distance.
How much to show people
Accommodation and the farm dairy should be shown on the first interview as they are often deciding points for a candidate.
Presence of partners at the interview
Having partners sit in on the interview is not useful, as you will get a clouded picture of the person’s abilities. However, you do want to make sure the partner understands the role and what it means for their partner. It is also good to show partners around accommodation and farm facilities and introduce them to the facilities available in the local community. It is possible to do this at the same time, if another person is available to talk with the partner while the interview is conducted with the candidate.
Getting team buy-in
It is useful for the candidate to meet the team, as team fit is important. It is more appropriate to do this at a second interview.
One or two interviews?
Scheduling a second interview can be useful, especially for more senior positions. Usually only the first two candidates would be invited back and they would have demonstrated real commitment to the job following the first interview. The second interview gives you a chance to check up on anything that may have been a slight concern at the first interview and because you can take longer, it gives a chance to have a closer look around the farm and meet the rest of the team.
- For more information: Fact Sheet: Recruitment and Selection
View PDF (485kb)
Make it easier: Template: Interview scoring View PDF (49kb)
Example: Interview questions View PDF (60kb)
