6 Common Interview Mistakes Employers Make

Hiring the wrong person wastes your organisation’s time and money and is bad for morale.  Probably the most challenging part of the hiring process, and the area most susceptible to error, is the interview itself.  Many interviewers really don't find out much about a candidate's capability, because they don't know how.  Here are some of the most common mistakes made by interviewers, and TPP’s suggested solutions.

1. Fail to prepare

Relying on stock standard questions is one of the most common interview mistakes, especially with so many list of typical questions and pre-prepared answers available to candidates online.  “Tell me about yourself” is not an exciting first question and will not elicit the right information from a candidate.  Take time before the interview to put together a list of in-depth questions that will determine whether a candidate has the key skills and experience for your role.

In most cases it is beneficial to have more than one person interviewing the candidate/s in order to gain an alternative perspective and to remain unbiased.  However, if other employees and teams are brought in, make sure they do not repeat the same questions already asked.  If possible, assign different areas of questioning to different people based on their expertise.

2. Don’t know which requirements are key

When putting the job description together for a vacancy, you will have come up with a ‘wishlist’ of skills, qualifications, experience, interests and personality traits for an ideal candidate.  In reality, candidates are unlikely to fully meet every requirement and in order to determine the best one for a role you will need to assign a weight to each requirement so that they can be ranked.

Competency-based questions can then be used to determine how well each candidate meets the key requirements, and gives them an opportunity to justify their claims with examples, ensuring you are always talking about skills in the context of your objectives.  Determining which requirements are absolutely key to a role will ensure you don’t settle on a candidate who may be the best at interview but doesn’t have the skills you need.

3. Rely only on the interview

According to the Chally Group, a Human Resources consulting firm, in, The Most Common Hiring Mistakes, research at the University of Michigan found that, "The typical interview increases the likelihood of choosing the best candidate by less than 2%. In other words, if you just 'flipped' a coin you would be correct 50% of the time. If you added an interview you would only be right 52% of the time."

As well as an interview, there are several additional ways to judge a candidate’s potential.  Some of the most common are personality testing, to judge how well a candidate will fit with an organisation’s culture, or asking them to perform a presentation or task.  The latter is especially useful if the successful person will be managing an important project or are supporter-facing.  Why not put them into a real on-the-job situation or problem that they might face in the first few months if they were to be hired?

4. Evaluate a candidate on the wrong factors

One of the most common mistakes interviewers make is to try and find a new recruit with the same traits as successful current employees, or even themselves.  A candidate with a complimentary, rather than identical, personality and skills may well be of greater benefit to the team.

It is also tempting, particularly in the not for profit sector, to favour candidates with winning personalities or an ethical stance similar to the interviewers.  Although it is important to bear cultural fit in mind when interviewing, most successful organisations have a wide range of employees with diverse personalities who excel in different ways.  Hiring a candidate because you enjoyed and liked them, as the main qualification, ignores your need for particular skills and experience.

Similarly, many inexperienced interviewers rely on their ‘gut’ feeling and first impressions.  While intuition can be a useful tool in interviewing, too much reliance on it can lead you to make false assumptions and to read too much into small observations.  For example, a strong or weak handshake is often said to influence interviewers, but actually has no bearing whatsoever on either a candidate’s personality or their ability to perform a role.

5. Fail to sell your organisation

A good candidate will already have researched your organisation, and certainly any candidate sent over by TPP will already be fully briefed and excited about joining.  However, an interview is a two way street and thus it is equally important for you to sell your organisation as it is for a candidate to sell themselves.

By concentrating too much on evaluation, some interviewers miss this opportunity to inspire and enthuse a candidate.  This is particularly important for hard-to-fill roles, where talented employees are in high demand.  Make sure you think through the key attractions of both the role and the organisation and communicate them clearly.

6. Fail to follow up

At the end of an interview, it’s important to do two things.  Firstly, if you feel that this candidate has the right experience and personal qualities, ask them if they are still interested in the role.  It is a simple, direct and above all honest question to ask, and allows you to clearly assess your shortlist going forward.  Secondly, make sure you outline the selection process going forward and let them know when to expect feedback.  This will help manage their expectations after the interview.

Having done that, it is extremely important to follow up on your promises and actually provide interview feedback to all candidates.  This is beneficial to candidates in helping them prepare for future interviews, but also protects and improves your reputation as an employer.  Not receiving constructive feedback is extremely frustrating for candidates and can lead them to have a negative opinion of your organisation which they might share.


All of these mistakes are unfortunately common among interviewers, and can directly influence the probability of hiring a happy, successful employee to benefit your organisation.  However, with some help from TPP and some preparation they can usually be easily overcome.

If you are not 100% confident in your interviewing technique, or would value some impartial advice, our consultants are happy to give advice or help putting together questions designed to rank candidates effectively.
We also offer our clients added services such as attending interviews for candidates to provide a second opinion.  You can find out more on our website.

5 ideas for training on a budget

Not for profit organisations have been hard hit by the economic downturn over the last 12 to 18 months, and when savings have to be made, training, learning and development is usually one of the first things to go.  However, this can be a false economy, as slashing funds for training means your staff don’t develop at the same rate and your organisation becomes less efficient and productive.

However, with a bit of creative thinking, there are plenty of ways to provide your employees with training opportunities when funds are tight. Here are TPP’s top ideas for training on a budget:


1.  Use your existing staff
There are several ways to use your current employees to assist with learning and development.  Find out if your members of staff and in-house volunteers have any skills they can communicate to others, and appoint internal mentors to guide the development of more junior staff.  This is particularly useful for ‘soft skills’, such as communications and team management.

You could choose to make one member of staff a ‘champion’ for a particular topic.  Once they have received training, they should then be responsible for communicating their learnings to other employees.  This has the added advantages of cementing the knowledge in the employee champion and creating an in-house support service for queries regarding that topic.

Encouraging your employees to take part in internal secondments or shadowing also allows them the opportunity to learn from other members of staff and teams.


2.  Share resources
You can get more from your training budget by partnering with other organisations.  For example, banding together with sister organisations or other charities to offer joint courses will bring down your training cost per head.  Or do a skills swap with another organisation, where you share knowledge and experience between you.

The Small Charities Coalition facilitates the sharing of skills, experience and expertise between charities, and is completely free to join.  Even larger organisations can benefit through sharing their skills with others.

Investigate any private sector companies your organisation has contact with, such as corporate donors or service suppliers.  Do they run in-house training programmes your staff could piggyback on?  Of course, this training will not be charity-specific but could still be useful.

Encouraging your employees to volunteer or become a trustee in another not for profit organisation is another great way to bring new knowledge and skills into your charity.


3.  Look for freebies

If you know where to look, there can be many opportunities for free training for your staff.  The key is to make the best use of your network of suppliers, partners and membership organisations.

Private sector firms who work with the third sector often offer free training, eg TPP Not for Profit runs a series of professional development seminars, and solicitors’ firms often hold regular legal updates for their clients.  Simply googling “free <topic> training for charities” can usually bring up some interesting possibilities.

Membership organisations, such as the NCVO, IoF or CIPD, often run training sessions that are discounted or free for their member organisations.  Investigate what is included in your membership and make sure you are getting the most from the fees. 

Charity Days and the NFP Academy organise free training for not for profit organisations, and their websites are well worth a visit.  There are also opportunities to get funding for learning and development, such as the InterChange funding for leadership and management training.

Check out the blog comments below for some free training courses coming up soon.


4.  Investigate online training

The huge growth of the Internet has brought a wealth of resources for online learning and development, often specially aimed at not for profit organisations.

Knowhow NonProfit have a wealth of career development information, most of it completely free of charge, including videos, training courses, articles and discussion forums.

The Media Trust website has a wide range of articles on marketing and communications topics for not for profit organisations.

The Charity Learning Consortium offers a wide range of eLearning for their members.


5.  Get value for money

Sometimes, paying for training is unavoidable, so you need to make sure you get the best possible return on your investment.  Investigate running courses in-house using small training providers or consultants, as this can be less expensive than sending multiple staff members on external courses.  It also has the added advantage that the course content will be tailored for your organisation.

If you are investing with any new suppliers, eg of any new software, make sure that training is included for free or at a discount in the initial agreement.  In addition, when creating new PSLs, why not ask suppliers if they can offer any training as part of the deal?


Summary

As you can see, there are ways to continue to provide opportunities for learning and development to your staff while keeping training budgets tight.  However, your organisations will always need to invest some funds in training to make sure employees remain efficient and productive.

TPP Not for Profit is a big supporter of investing in learning and development, as it helps to keep staff motivated and reduce turnover, and makes your organisation more attractive to new recruits.  Don’t forget to check out our programme of free seminars.

We are also speaking at and sponsoring several upcoming events, such as the Third Sector Social Media Convention and the IoF Annual Convention.

The 3 stages of a successful exit interview

An exit interview is an interview conducted by an employer with a departing employee. They can be conducted via face-to-face or telephone interviews, or through paper or online surveys.

Exit interviews are a useful tool for:

• Enabling the transfer of knowledge and experience from the departing employee to a replacement or team
• Providing an early warning about sexual harassment, workplace violence and discrimination issues and measuring the success of diversity initiatives
• Finding out employees' perceptions on everything from your organistaion's culture to the office facilities and making improvements

It is important to put a positive spin on your findings from exit interviews and ensure they are used to generate suggestions for improvement, as this will help attract and retain talent in your organisation.

Exit interviews are particularly useful as they provide more objective feedback than attitude surveys among existing staff, as departing employees tend to feel free to be more forthcoming, constructive and impartial than staff still in their jobs.

Despite this usefulness, past research from TPP has established that although most employers say their organisations hold interviews with leavers, only 42% of employees have ever had an exit interview.



To ensure you get the maximum benefit from your exit interviews, there are three key stages to follow:

1.    Be prepared

The key to a successful exit interview lies in the preparation. Nothing is more frustrating than an interviewer who isn't ready, willing or able to conduct a productive exit session.

Draw up an assessment or a list of questions and areas for discussion on the basis of the individual's achievements and performance, eg:

• Was their performance consistent?
• Did they frequently demonstrate initiative?
• How was their relationship with other members of staff?

Common questions include reasons for leaving, job satisfaction, frustrations and feedback concerning company policies or procedures. Questions may relate to the work environment, supervisors, compensation, the work itself and the company culture.

• Preparation is just as important for the employee; both sides will gain a great deal from the exercise if the employee is pre-warned and has time to formulate their thoughts in advance.
• There is a chance that some employees will use the interview as an opportunity to rail against their managers, colleagues or the organisation. Providing a mechanism to focus their thoughts may help avoid this, such as following a set list of questions.
• Find a comfortable and quiet room and reduce the possibility of interruptions.

2.    Be Objective

It can sometimes be difficult to hear criticism of your employer, particularly for not for profit staff, who often have a strong emotional attachment to their organisation.  It is therefore vital to remember that the goal of an exit interview is to extract information that can be used for positive change and it is in your interest to be objective.  Exit interviews are only of use if you can look beyond your immediate emotional response and make practical and rational plans for the future.

Try to remain impartial, rather than emotional, and to ask open questions that encourage honest and considered responses, while avoiding leading and limiting questions.

Don’t just listen to what an employee has to say.  Like a normal interview, an employee’s body language can give you valuable insights into their true feelings, which can then be explored in more depth using specific work situations to put them into context.

Exit interview can be conducted by a relatively neutral party, such as a human resources staff member rather than a line manager, so that the employee will be more inclined to be candid, as opposed to worrying about burning bridges.  Some companies even opt to employ a third party to conduct the interviews and provide feedback.


3.    Be appreciative

Whatever the employee’s reasons for leaving and however critical they are in the exit interview, endeavour to ensure that they leave the interview in a positive frame of mind.  Don’t forget to thank the employee for their work for your organisation and their co-operation in the interview, and be positive about the feedback they provide.  If your organisation has benefited from the skills and dedication of the employee, the exit interview is the right time to express your appreciation for their contribution to your business.

If the person leaving is a loss to the company, it is likely you will want to leave the door open for them to return.  But even if they are not likely to return, a disgruntled ex-employee with contacts in your sector can undo months of positive brand-building.  The exit interview is a final chance to ensure they leave with a positive view of your organisation.


Summary

A successful exit interview will extract information that will assist the organisation in recruiting a replacement. It can also facilitate improvement to achieve greater employee job satisfaction and to become an employer of choice.

If you decide to use a recruitment consultancy such as TPP Not for Profit to find a successor for your ex-employee, don’t forget to feed back the knowledge gained from your exit interview, as this will assist us to find a successful and long-term replacement candidate.

Make your recruitment budget work harder with PSLs

What are PSLs?

Preferred Supplier Lists (PSLs) are an increasingly common tool for non-profit organisations of all sizes to save themselves time and money.

A PSL, also referred to as a Preferred Supplier Agreement (PSA), is simply lists of approved suppliers who have committed to an agreed rate and level of service.  You would then advise your employees to either use these agencies exclusively or to consider them first for any new vacancies.

Usually to achieve preferred supplier status, recruitment companies have to meet a range of rigorous requirements on quality, price and service capability.  TPP is a preferred supplier for many leading charitable organisations, as well as a supplier of Buying Solutions, the national procurement partner for UK public services.

Why use a PSL?

The main benefits of using PSLs are:

• Save money – recruitment consultancies included in a PSL usually offer a discount on their standard terms
• Save time – vacancies can be filled more quickly by having existing relationships with recruiters.  It also allows your employees to save time searching for agencies and easily field calls from other suppliers.
• Better quality of service – recruiters you regularly work with will understand your organisation’s values and culture well and find candidates likely to fit in
• Guaranteed level of service – the expectations of both parties are agreed in advance
• Less administration – budgeting is easier with an agreed rate and there are fewer invoices to process
• Ensures a greater level of confidentiality and security of sensitive company information
• Ensures consistency, eg that all suppliers comply with your organisation’s ethical approach

According to research, over three quarters of business owners and HR professionals don't feel that recruitment agencies provide value for money. This feeling stems from using agencies which advertise and then flood their clients with huge numbers of unqualified CVs, without adding any additional value to the service.  But by carefully selecting the companies to be on your PSL, you can ensure a good level of service and value for money.

How to start setting up a PSL

Before you start putting together a list of recruiters, it is a good idea to go through the list of benefits above and decide which are most important to you.

Depending on the size of your organisation, you could choose to set up different PSLs for each department, playing to the strengths of different agencies.  If you opt for a single all-inclusive PSL, it is important to adopt a portfolio approach and include a variety of types of recruiters, from large generalist agencies to smaller specialist consultancies.  This will give you a range of options for different types of role .

TPP has a strong network of clients and candidates in the sector, which give us access to a large pool of skilled professionals who may not be actively searching for new roles.  Larger generalist agencies may not have the sector knowledge required to develop this network.

Other things to consider are:

• How long a list do you want?
• How many suppliers will you invite to apply to be on the list?
• How will you know when you have a list you are happy with?
• How often will you review your PSL?
• Are you going to use the same PSL for temporary and permanent staffing?

Evaluating recruitment agencies

Obviously, the discounted rate an agency can offer you is a key consideration when putting together your PSL, but don’t stop there.  There are other important criteria to consider that can affect the overall effectiveness of your recruitment.  Define which criteria are important to you, rank them in order of importance and apply a scoring system to the agencies tendering.

Key considerations are:

• Does the agency understand your organisation’s mission, values and culture, and the exact nature of your roles?  An agency that works in many sectors may have a large pool of potential candidates but not the expert knowledge of your sector required to successfully fill a vacancy.

• Is the agency’s proposal suitable to your needs?  Agencies often offer added-value services such as help interviewing candidates, or running psychometric or competency based tests that can save you time in shortlisting candidates, but you only should agree to pay for services you are likely to need.

• Can the agency reach passive jobseekers?  Or will they just post your vacancies on job boards?  You need to be sure they have a network of contacts in your sector to call on.

• Does the agency meet all candidates in person before sending CVs over?  This initial screening process is essential to ensure you only see quality candidates, but can be skipped by some agencies in favour of a high turnover.

• Review the track record of that agency in filling previous roles.  How many of their candidates were selected for final interviews?  If they filled the vacancy, how long did the candidate stay with your organisation?

Maintaining your PSL

It’s important to keep reviewing your preferred supplier list on a regular basis, both to ensure that you are getting the best possible value from existing suppliers, evaluate new ones and to guard against complacency.

Finally, keep an open mind – don’t simply reject CVs from agencies not on your PSL out of hand – they may have an exceptional candidate worth meeting.

How TPP can help

TPP also has expertise in assisting our client to set up a PSL. With our expert knowledge of the local recruitment market place, we are able to advise on rates, terms and conditions and the best recruitment companies to fulfil your niche skill-set requirements.

So whether you currently have a PSL or wish to establish one, TPP have the expertise and experience to assist with your needs.