The Basics of Prescreening Job Applicants
Steps You Can Take to Prepare for Interviewing Job Candidates
Nov 19, 2008
Going through the job interview process is one of those necessary tasks that most people would rather not do. But there are ways you can make the whole ordeal just a little bit easier on yourself. The best way is by properly prescreening potential job applicants. This can save both yourself and the applicant time that could otherwise be put to better use for the both of you.
Tools to Conduct an Interview
So what are some of the ways you can properly prescreen a job applicant? Well you already have the tools that you need for the job. Your company’s job application and the resume of the applicant. It is preferable that you have potential job applicants send in a copy of their resume if they have one. If they don’t you can have them come in to fill out an application. Either one is meant to provide a snapshot of the potential employee to you.
Check Things over Thoroughly
Now it’s time to sit down and take the time to look things over. To start you should make sure that you have a job description handy. This of course is to remind you of what kind of employee you are looking for to fill your job opening. The first thing you need to look over is how neat the person was when they prepared their resume or application. You want to see that the person is intent on making a good first impression with you. A resume filled with typos is a bad sign. As is an application with scratched out mistakes and poor spelling.
Have Applicants Fill out Your Application
Keep in mind that having a job applicant fill out an application even if they have provided a resume is a good thing. For one it allows you to compare information between the two and your application may contain questions that their resume did not already answer.
Previous Work Experience
Another key point to look for is in their previous work experience. Have they jumped from one job to another a bit too often? This can be a sign that they might not stick around. Of course past work experience can also help you determine whether the person has the skills you are looking for. Often people will apply for jobs that they are not really suited for. There are a great many reasons for doing this but just because they want to learn something new does not mean you have the time to teach them.
Why Prescreening is Important
By prescreening your job applicants you should be able to narrow down the field some. Instead of holding 20-30 interviews many of which would be with people that are totally unsuited for your needs you should be able to narrow the field down to 5-10 qualified people. So take the time. It will be well worth the effort because your time is valuable and you shouldn’t be wasting it.
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