Not to misguide you, we’ll immediately add a reference to this headline: Skype isn’t only tool, enjoy.ing is using for online interviews (we’re actually pretty flexible), but it might be considered as the most frequent one.
How everything started?
In March we turned on work-from-home mode and online interviews started automatically with it. Although few of our colleagues are now back to offices, interviews stayed online. Not because we prefer it, but because enjoy.ing current moto is Safety first.
Recruitment team is sharing with you its online interviewing experience. Few tips for our future candidates might pull through.
Face-to-face vs. camera-to-camera
An exact protocol is mostly the same. We have two interviews – candidates talk to our HR team and developers and later to our client. Interview is one hour/ one and a half hour long. Candidates are always excited about enjoy.ing not working in an open space. And informal dress code is okay.
What shifted?
First thing: interview organization is easier. Candidates reply amazingly fast, they are more spontaneous, headhunting works better and people are somehow more cheerful – they don’t need much time to go from one place to another and are more relaxed. We’re guessing that is an influence of known environment (homes, yards, home desks, armchairs, etc.).
Office vibe is missing: current interviews start with a chit-chat, but candidates cannot see our office in Belgrade, Niš or Kragujevac. On the other hand, we don’t have an opportunity to see their body language nor to feel their energy. Verbal communication and facial expressions are everything that count.
Behaviour at home and office: online interviews sometimes include questions such as Should I turn my camera on? We always say yes. After all, we want to see, who is on the other side and want them to meet us.
Also, enjoy.ing recruitment team experienced few funny situations. Some candidates have spirited cats. Other were lying or not sitting in an ‟officialˮ way. Few candidates picked noisy coffee shop as a place for their interview and there were some candidates whose children wanted to participate.
But, the most interesting situation wasn’t from an interview, it was from our internal meeting: we heard a performance by our colleague’s songbird.
We have one message for these situations: it is okay to be informal. When it comes to enjoy.ing one thing is important: task must be done in the best possible way, but will you do it strict or casual – your choice.
Home-office fashion: While hairdressers weren’t working, we saw some pretty legendary hairstyles (not only at interviews). T-shirt are usual clothing choice and we were stunned when someone wears a fancy shirt and this isn’t negative impression, we’re just sharing new normal interview protocols and help you saving some time.
When it comes to HR fashion: we have one rule. Our t-shirts or blouses must be nice and in office style, but our bottoms don’t need to. They can stay in home-office manner such as pyjamas, sweat suit or shorts.
Online onboarding
enjoy.ing had successful recruitment process regardless of work-from-home mode. In the Q2 2020 we even hired more people than during Q1. It might be because we have interesting technologies and projects.
Therefore, our team leaders and IT sector have big job, too.
New colleagues are taking equipment and signing contract at an office. Team leaders are there to help them accommodate, but adaptation goes online. You meet enjoy.ing online.
Every contact is online, you cannot ask if you need some support and it might look like you’re basically alone with your computer. But, you actually aren’t. All your colleagues are there for you. Just instead of asking them, you’ll probably use chat to gather information.
Hats off to our people who handle this process in a superb manner.
Face-to-face interviews are like riding a bicycle
We’re missing regular interviews. Our candidates miss it, too. After all, we spend to much time online and seeing someone in person is somehow refreshment.
The first and maybe the second online interviews were strange, but now everything looks normal.
How will we get used to regular interviews? And even onboarding processes?
Well, it is like riding a bicycle…
Author: enjoy.ing recruiting team
