3 tips for hiring managers to conduct successful interviews

A robust interview process, where candidates are treated fairly and with respect at every step provides an opportunity to establish your organisation as an inclusive employer of choice, experts from Tripartite Alliance for Fair & Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP) affirm.

For most employees, their first significant interaction with your organisation takes place during the job interview. Therefore, it is critical that hiring managers conduct good interviews as this will provide candidates with a positive experience of your organisation and also help them to identify the best person for the role.

Here are three practices that hiring managers can apply:

1. Focus on the candidate’s merit

A fair job interview should focus on drawing out job-related skills and experience, to objectively assess the candidates’ suitability and likelihood of success in the organisation and in the role.

All hiring managers should be trained in and familiar with the principles of the Tripartite Guidelines on Fair Employment Practices to ensure that the recruitment and selection process is conducted fairly.

This includes being clear about the job requirements and using effective interviewing techniques for candidate selection. If pre-placement tests are used for selection purposes, they should be calibrated fairly and not discriminate against any groups of candidates.

2. Communicate clearly and exercise sensitivity

A robust interview process, where candidates are treated fairly and with respect at every step provides an opportunity to establish your organisation as an inclusive employer of choice.

Train your hiring managers to exercise care and sensitivity when communicating with individuals from diverse backgrounds and demographics such as age, marital status or family responsibilities. This is particularly important when it comes to policies and/or practices which may involve race or religion.

Each interview question should be formulated with thought and care to avoid the use of words or phrases that could potentially be viewed as discriminatory.

For example,

• If the job is physically demanding or requires frequent overseas travel, clearly communicate these requirements to all candidates, and avoid making assumptions about age or gender.
• If there are dress code or uniform requirements which candidates should adhere to, help job candidates understand the rationale for having such requirements, such as operational, safety and business considerations. You should also explain why any variations may or may not be accommodated, and handle all questions sensitively.
• If you are unable to accommodate religious practices due to operational constraints, bring up these concerns in a respectful and sensitive manner.

Candidates should be treated with dignity and respect at all times and be provided with clear and effective communication about your organisation’s policies to prevent potential misunderstanding.

3. Understand unconscious bias and its impact on decision making

Unconscious bias training enables hiring managers to be aware of their own implicit assumptions and pre-judgments.

Such training aims to minimise bias in recruitment and selection by equipping them with relevant skills for objective hiring practices and enhancing their ability to identify and address both their own and others’ biases.

Training your hiring managers to be aware of such potential biases is the first step towards overcoming unconscious bias. 

Consider diversifying the interview panel, such as including individuals from various departments, age groups and genders, to ensure the inclusion of diverse viewpoints that will bring unique perspectives to the discussion.

Additionally, having a structured interview, where each candidate for the role is asked the same set of questions helps to standardise the interview process. This also helps to minimise bias by allowing the hiring manager to focus on factors that have a direct impact on job performance and ability to perform the role. 

A fair and inclusive organisation proactively cultivates a culture of mutual respect and sensitivity to the needs of employees from different backgrounds. This culture extends beyond recruitment to all other policies and programmes, such as training and development, and career progression. Training hiring managers to conduct successful interviews is an important step in helping your organisation to communicate these policies to job candidates and employees.

TAFEP provides information and resources to help employers and HR professionals keep abreast of HR best practices. Visit tafep.sg to find out more.