What do you do if you're a novice recruiter trying to evaluate candidates' qualifications and fit for a role?

Everyone has to start somewhere, so the best way to go from Novice to Pro is ask all of the questions! Never be afraid to go to a teammate or mentor to pick their brain on industry specific questions and learn what their process and strategy is when they are working searches. Sit in on calls to hear how they lead conversations and see what questions they are asking. Be sure to communicate with clients and hiring managers, and if it seems like you're over-communicating, you aren't!

A long-term hire who fits into the company culture surely needs to be evaluated well. Apart from the skill matrix, and hire time, comp factor. We need to understand - What value he/she will bring to the department & what problem the candidate will be solving regularly & how the skill is aligned with the business growth. Ask the hiring manager to share a success story/failure story of any recent hires, What are the top 3 success factors of the role? The interview will not revolve around only the skills matrix!

To nail candidate evaluations, first, deeply understand the role beyond the job description. Chat with the hiring manager and team to grasp key skills, experience, and team culture. This ensures you're spot-on in finding candidates who match the role and vibe seamlessly.

Very critical and most important step. I remember hiring for a role in my early recruiting day and I jumped into sourcing without paying much attention to understanding it better. Result - wasted 2 months and a bad Hiring Manager experience. Since then, I make sure that I run an intake meeting and cover imp. aspects of the role - like asking question on what skills are needed, why is it needed, how would the role would grow in future, talent landscape research, competitors, etc. This would not only make you a competent recruiter but also helps in building relationships with stakeholders.

We all started somewhere and it can be tough trying to learn everything and not feeling like/looking like an idiot. The best advice I can give is to be genuine, ask a lot of questions, try to understand, and try to add value in ways you can. I tried to find every opportunity I could early on to learn and get involved with the people I needed to build relationships with on the client and candidate side. I'd encourage all junior-level recruiters and salespeople to do the same thing.

First understand the Job description which will primary have must have should have and nice to have skillset. You will never get a 6feet 2 inch left handed candidate with blue eyes. Be flexible on your should have and nice to have. There are skills that can be learned over time and on job. Not all the candidates would have had an opportunity to work on specific skillset so relax. Validate the candidate fundas and eagerness to learn or what the person has learnt in last 15 or 30 days. Answers to select will start falling immediately. Candidates who do not answer immediately or request for questions for multiple times are not you want to select. Candidates must be enthusiastic as the interviewer to answer and not bluff around the bush

Understanding the role in healthcare recruiting is crucial, especially when considering the specialized knowledge required. For instance, if hiring a dietitian, it's essential to recognize that nutrition expertise isn't just about academic qualifications; practical experience and a genuine passion for patient health are vital. Engaging with the healthcare team to understand the nuances of their work environment can reveal the importance of soft skills, such as empathy and communication, which are just as critical as technical skills in this industry.

Begin by studying the job description to understand the requirements. Prepare structured interview questions focused on key criteria like experience, skills, and cultural fit. Utilize behavioral interviewing techniques to uncover relevant examples from candidates' past experiences. Seek input from colleagues and consider using assessments or tests to supplement evaluations. Trust both objective criteria and instincts when assessing candidates. Finally, seek feedback from hiring managers to validate evaluations and improve skills over time. Through continuous learning and refinement, novice recruiters can effectively evaluate candidates and make informed hiring decisions.

Resumes are one thing but in sales, you gotta get on the phones and talk to these candidates. Some people are awesome sales people and bad resume writers. One thing is for sure, if you get an awesome person on the phone then you'll get a lot of confidence and keep the momentum going and if it's an awful call, you'll learn so very much too. Moral of the story, get on the phone and talk to people.

Exactly! Not all resumes are written perfectly. If you find a hint of a good resume, look for their other online presence - Linkedin, social forums, or if they have a website or portfolio. You can also look for their recommendations and references to ascertain your hypothesis of a good candidate. industry associations and certifications could be another pointer to help in deciding a candidature while resume reviewing.

It's important not to evaluate a candidate based on their CV alone, but rather by considering their ability to make a positive contribution to your company. When reviewing CVs, it's essential to look for clear indicators of a candidate's qualifications, such as relevant work experience, training and skills. However, don't limit yourself to these elements... Career progression and project results can testify to ambition, motivation and the ability to take on challenges.

I never look at employment gaps on a resume. There are numbers of reasons for employment gaps and it really isn’t a company’s business to ask about them.

Once you have a thorough understanding of the role you're recruiting for, the next step is to review candidates' resumes. Here's how you can effectively review resumes: Review Job Description:: Check for Basic Qualifications: Assess Relevant Experience ::Check for Keywords and Buzzwords:::Look for Career Progression :::: Review Education and Training:::: Evaluate Skills and Abilities

A resume (or CV) can be a great indication of a persons ability/fit for a role but sometimes people aren't good at writing CVS. A good recruiter will find the positives in a CV and ask the right questions to guide and discover the true potential of the candidate... I will often fill in the gaps a Candidates CV is missing when sending the CV to a Hiring Manager. After all, A lot of the time the ability to create a good CV doesn't correlate to high performance in the role they're applying for. Picking up the phone and getting a feel for the person is always best IMO, it is hard to judge a persons career, personality and aspirations from a couple of pieces of paper.

Importante entender que nem todo mundo sabe fazer bons currículos e uma boa parte não consegue transcrever tudo aquilo que fazem no dia-a-dia profissional. Isso faz com que o recrutador precise entender muito a posição a qual está buscando e também possa buscar nos Cv's os principais KPI's necessários para seguirem a uma abordagem / entrevista. No momento da entrevista é que conseguiremos entender melhor a construção da carreira e todos os conhecimentos técnicos adquiridos pelo executivo ao longo de sua trajetória.

Another thing to look at on a resume is where they worked. See if they are a competitor of yours, and if so, they would be doing essentially the same thing for you. I always research the company they are at or just left to get an understanding of who they are and what they do.

When assessing candidates, focus on key aspects like relevant experience, education, and skills that align with the job. Look beyond the resume's surface to understand career progression and project outcomes. Remember, a resume is just part of the picture; don't overlook great candidates with less-than-perfect resumes.

Learning and understanding resumes is a recruiter's and sourcer's super ability. Knowledge of universities, faculties, companies, courses. I believe that CVs should be approached critically as candidates are always trying to show themselves at their best and also embellish.

I would heavily rely on my seniors to share their experience. As I wouldn't know the "ABCD" of recruitment i would seek guidance and take their experience to evaluate each candidates. Mostly my methodology would be to see the skill set mentioned in JD should match with the resume . I would do telephonic interview and post that i would like to meet up the candidate to ensure he has the right skills.

When I was a new recruiter, I asked experts to help me and sometimes still do. There's no shame in asking a hiring manager, what question will tell me if someone is the right candidate, or if I ask this question, what answer am I looking for. When I was an IT recruiter I had binders of technical questions with the technical answers from programmers, so even if i wasn't technical, I would know if the answers were right, and it helped me understand the technology and become a better interviewer.

Lean on the candidate and ask them two types of questions. 1) How would you rate your experience with X skill? 2) Tell me about your exposure to X technology and what you've done with it. Question one, allows the candidate to quantitate their knowledge of the skill, but 2 gives them the opportunity to elaborate. You can tell how well someone knows something by how easily they are able to talk about what they've done with it. This isn't going to be a perfect equation every time, but the better someone can talk about a tool and what they've done with it, the more comfortable I feel that the candidate knows what they are doing.

When you're starting out in recruiting, interviews are your go-to. Craft questions covering tech skills, problem-solving, and behavior. Keep 'em open-ended to get candidates talking about past experiences. Listen up! It's not just about what they say but how they say it. Watch for communication style, confidence, and team fit clues.

Interviews go beyond assessing competencies. They offer an opportunity to deepen the candidate’s understanding and integration potential. In addition to technical questions, it is essential to explore relational skills, which are often underestimated but just as important. I highly appreciate the integration of real-life scenarios or case studies, as it offers a relevant assessment of the candidate’s ability to manage stress and solve problems in concrete situations. Remember that the interview is two-way. The candidate also evaluates the company.

As a novice recruiter, the first thing is to not panic while interviewing as the candidate in front of you may know a lot more than you :). However, you may want to learn a couple interviewing framework - BEI and STAR methods. Gather all the conversational points and look for cues on how the candidate would behave in a situation in future based on how they've behaved in the past. You may use some of the current situations from your organizations (you know more about them than the candidates :)) and find out the fitment. As you mature into this, I'd recommend to also start using "Competency based Interviewing" to find relevant competencies and proficiency levels.

Screening with the recruiter is very important to understand the candidate's knowledge, to be able to present it, to know the personal characteristics of the personality.

Entrevistar, definitivamente é uma arte! Deixar o candidato confortável é fundamental para que consigamos extrair todas as informações necessárias. Noventa porcento dos executivos chegam nervosos a uma entrevista, isso é normal. Portanto, deixar o clima menos "hostil" e ter uma conversa mais calma e produtiva, traz confiança e liberdade ao outro lado. Dessa forma, conseguimos criar um ambiente mais convidativo e tranquilo e conseguimos entrar nas questões tecnicas (com perguntas abertas em que o candidato possa discorrer sobre suas passagens) e também buscando questionar situações diferentes, para que entendamos seus aspectos comportamentais.

El papel aguanta mucho, por eso el verdadero filtro es la entrevista, usa una metodologia para realizar la entrevista y levantar la información necesaria, puede ser STAR o CAR, si algo no te cuadra entre lo que dice en su CV y lo que responde ahonda más. Muchos candidatos "boostean" su CV para conseguir la vacante pero en la realidad no tienen dicha experiencia. Has sentir cómodo al candidato y deja que se explaye correctamente.

As a former regional manager for a national healthcare company, I interviewed many people. The process of interviewing people has changed over the years. We used to ask questions about their experience and how they felt about aspects of a job. Later, we learned to ask them what they would do in a situation that occurs in that job. While these approaches were a step in the right direction, I learned that someone can look good in an interview but not work in your environment. You want to know how they deal with people, challenges, and stress. Can they think on their feet, or do they avoid leadership? Do they support others or try to make themselves look good? What matters is what kind of a person this is. What are their ethics?

I think cultural fit is just as important as hard skills in 9/10 positions. Great companies hire for character and train for skill.

Personal values should resonate with the values of the company and its brand. This can be learnt from the interview. Ask questions to get answers.

Assessing fit involves evaluating whether a candidate aligns with the company culture, values, team dynamics, and overall work environment. Here's a guide on how to assess fit during the recruitment process: • Review Company Culture: • Evaluate Team Dynamics: • Observe Interactions: • Ask Cultural Fit Questions: • Consider Long-Term Fit • Seek Feedback from Team Members • Evaluate Adaptability: • Assess Communication Style: • Provide Insights into Company Culture By carefully assessing fit during the recruitment process, you can ensure that you're selecting candidates who not only have the right skills and experience but also align with the company culture and values, ultimately contributing to a more successful and cohesive team.

Schaut über die Hard-Skills hinaus. Passt die Person ins Team? Teilt sie die Unternehmenswerte? Ein gutes Match geht tiefer als die reine Fähigkeit, Aufgaben zu erfüllen. Es geht darum, jemanden zu finden, der nicht nur arbeiten, sondern auch wachsen und beitragen möchte. Die beste Passform ist die, die auf lange Sicht funktioniert.

When evaluating candidates, look beyond just technical skills. Pay attention to their soft skills like adaptability and teamwork. During interviews, see how they react to scenarios reflecting your company's values. Balance technical skills with qualities that'll help them fit into your team and culture.

It helps if you can find ways to actually picture the candidate in the role. The most obvious way is to see if they actually took the time to understand your organization. The other is to develop two likely scenarios that could occur in the position and pose them to the candidate like a mini case study.

Assessing fit is crucial for novice recruiters to ensure candidates align with the company culture, team dynamics, and job requirements. It enhances the likelihood of long-term success and job satisfaction for both the candidate and the organization. Evaluating fit helps mitigate the risk of hiring mismatches, promoting retention and productivity. Additionally, it fosters a cohesive and harmonious work environment, contributing to overall team effectiveness. Overall, assessing fit enables novice recruiters to make well-informed hiring decisions that benefit the candidate and the company alike.

"Instincts", "gut feelings", "culture fit", "likeability", and other subjective words & phrases far too often mask conscious and unconscious bias. We've all heard statements like, "I just don't feel they'd be a culture fit." But do you then respond with, "What question(s) did you ask and what were the person's reply to these questions that led you to your conclusion?" If they then replied with, "Well, I didn't exactly ask specific questions - it was just my gut speaking to me", what did you do next? Did you challenge them – or did you acquiesce? Expanded intake discovery & strategy sessions, role rubrics, knowing specific initiatives, having talent intelligence - these cannot be faked. The pathway away from being a novice is knowledge.

After conducting many interviews, the recruiter begins to have his or her own professional intuition that should be listened to. Conclude his/her own opinion in the candidate's review.

Don't be shy to lean on the hiring manager! They're experts in the skills that make sense for the role, comparable job titles, etc. Reject out the ones that are clearly not a fit, and ask the hiring manager to either review live with you (take notes!!), or even just pick from a selected short list, and add some feedback about what works and what doesnt. Alignment to hiring manager is so important to successful hiring, this is an investment on both sides to improve results!

Little things can all add up to big things, pretty immediate. Did they answer your call on time, were they prepared, did they text or email you right back, did they call after the interview like they said they would, did they talk to their spouse about it, did they lean on you for support when you offered, do they have a chip on their shoulder, are they respectful to you or treat you as just another recruiter? If you've been doing this any amount of time, your gut will likely tell you. I think women listen to this more often than men do. My gut is right 99% of the time. I've been recruiting for 11 years.

When assessing candidates, remember to trust your instincts. Sure, data and evaluations matter, but your gut feeling can often spot red flags that data might miss. If something feels off about a candidate or they seem too good to be true, take a moment to reflect. Just make sure your instincts aren't clouded by biases. Always double-check with objective data. Trust that intuition!

Trusting instincts is crucial for novice recruiters to supplement data-driven evaluations. Gut feelings often signal intangible qualities like cultural fit or personality nuances that metrics may overlook. This holistic approach enhances the hiring process, fostering better candidate matches and team cohesion.

Trust your intuition. I worked in an executive placement agency. The first thing I was told was, if I had a gut feeling about a candidate, to trust my gut and express my misgivings to our team. In their experience when they went against someone’s intuition it became an issue for the client 95% of the time. I have followed this advice and found success in many business situations. Learn to listen to your 6th sense and trust yourself.

Am Anfang fühlt sich das vielleicht wie Raten an, aber mit der Zeit lernt man, auf diese innere Stimme zu hören. Sie ist eine Mischung aus Erfahrung, Menschenkenntnis und oft auch ein wenig Bauchgefühl. Natürlich darf man dabei Daten und Fakten nicht außer Acht lassen. Mein Rat? Hört auf Euren Instinkt, aber hinterfragt ihn auch. Warum zieht es mich zu diesem Kandidaten? Passt er/sie wirklich zum Team? Mit jeder Entscheidung wächst Euer Vertrauen in diese innere Stimme.

I do believe that reference checks are a good tool to use but sometimes you are hamstrung based on their corporate policy. They may only be able to tell you that they did work there from "A" to "B". Also, if they give you a name / number to call you would hope it is someone they asked to provide them with a reference. I have seen quite a few that have gone the wrong way because the candidate was "confident" they would get a good reference and after speaking with the reference find out they were just "mediocre". If you like the candidate and feel they would be a good fit, maybe ask the to reach out to the reference and let them know an offer is dependent on how well the reference goes.

La prise de référence est un élément important dans le process de recrutement mais cette dernière doit rester dans le cadre défini par la lois. Il faut être vigilant au recueil d'information réalisé.

Siempre llama a 2 o 3 referencias pasadas, no su jefatura presente para no comprometerlo. En caso de candidatos sin experiencia, llama a su profesor guia o a la persona encargada/o de su práctica o pasantia.

References can be misleading. Unfortunately, employees have to hire temp help and test them for 6 months before hiring. You won't go wrong with me since I've been a Mechanical Engineer for 30 years working mostly piping systems within ASME B31.9 Building Services. Some experience in process piping. What you won't go wrong with in me is my work ethic. Can't get that in the younger generations.

Reference checks provide valuable insights into candidates' past performance, reliability, and compatibility. For novice recruiters, they validate information provided and offer perspectives from previous supervisors or colleagues. This aids in verifying qualifications, assessing character, and predicting potential success in the role. Such comprehensive evaluations reduce hiring risks and ensure better-informed decisions.

Seid gründlich und fragt nach konkreten Beispielen, aber vergesst nicht, auch die menschliche Seite zu beleuchten. Es geht mir nicht nur darum, zu hören, was jemand kann, sondern wer jemand ist. Wie integriert er/sie sich ins Team? Wie geht er/sie mit Rückschlägen um? Antworten auf solche Fragen geben mir ein viel vollständigeres Bild eines Menschen.

To a certain extent I believe that "content could be taught but not the intent". Hence, it becomes very crucial to look at the behavioral aspects and cultural fitment in a candidate. Of course, functional/tech skills are necessary too. While making the hiring decision, do not only look if the candidate meets all your checkboxes. Remember that he'd evaluating the company too! So, ask this question to yourself - what's in it for him? What would this person learn here? How would he grow? If you think the candidate has displayed enough character and attitude to learn, navigate challenges, take decisions, leadership and other qualities, he'd pick things up quickly and stick around for a while.

When I first joined the executive search industry more than 15 years ago, my manager who was a Senior Partner told me that in this industry, we learn through “apprenticeship” on the job, which is very true. We can pick up some knowledge through our own research and self-learning but nothing beats getting your feet wet in actually executing a search. Some steps which may be useful: - Shadow a senior/mentor to see how they execute a search - Be humble and ask more questions if you are not sure of things - Keep applying what you learn into actual search assignments. Ability to evaluate CVs quickly comes with experience. - Don’t be afraid of making mistakes. Keep going. You need resilience to see through a search.

I think honesty and integrity to remain in job for a sizeable period of time also counts. Sometimes hiring people with no commitments jeopardize the project.

Always learn from mistakes made. Don't be afraid to go back to a client and ask further questions when needed, again better to go back and ask rather than assume. The more questions you ask, the more people you speak to, the quicker you'll learn.

As a novice recruiter, I would start by carefully reviewing each candidate's resume and cover letter to assess their qualifications and experience. Next, I would conduct structured interviews to gauge their skills, cultural fit, and motivation for the role. Additionally, I would seek input from more experienced colleagues and utilize assessment tools or tests to further evaluate candidates' abilities. It's important to ask thoughtful, open-ended questions and actively listen to their responses. Lastly, I would prioritize learning and seek mentorship to continuously improve my recruiting skills and decision-making process.

Any new recruiter needs to be a sponge, listen to all calls and take copious notes. Ask all the questions, and literally just regurgitate whatever they said/asked to both clients and candidates. You'll get better by repetition, fumbling through terrible calls, and getting comfortable in the (initially) uncomfortable. When I first started recruiting, I wanted to have an answer to every possible rebuttal or question anyone may ask. And guess what, you're not going to be able to prepare for everything. Was I ready to answer my client when they said, "he brought fake pee to his drug test" NO I WASN'T. Accepting that you're learning is ok, no one starts a career knowing everything and if you're a perfectionist like me, calm down crazypants.

In my experience it can be a huge benefit to involve other members of the team that the candidate will be working with in the assessment process… this could be for a short meeting on site or virtually (teams etc…) as an informal conversation. This helps the candidates feel at ease and they may ask different questions to someone who is carrying out the role they’re pursuing. Also, it’s a good opportunity for another member of the business/team to consider if they think the person will fit in with the team.

As a novice recruiter, it's essential to start by thoroughly understanding the job requirements and the company culture. Familiarize yourself with the skills, experiences, and traits necessary for success in the role. When evaluating candidates, ask targeted questions related to their past experiences, skills, and how they approach challenges relevant to the position. Additionally, pay attention to soft skills like communication, teamwork, and adaptability, as these are often indicators of cultural fit. Collaborate with more experienced colleagues or seek mentorship to refine your evaluation techniques and decision-making process.

Más allá de realizar un buen proceso de selección, recuerda que los reclutadores somos facilitadores, el que decide es la linea (dueño de la vacante), presentale los mejores 3 o 5 candidatos que postularon, y genera un buen proceso de Onboarding para fidelizar al nuevo talento, contratar a un buen talento es una cosa, fidelizarlo y que se acople bien al equipo es otra.