Hiring in the tech industry has only recently started to slowly rebound after coming to a screeching halt in April. For companies that paused hiring because of the pandemic, resuming recruiting will likely come with a steep learning curve. Gone are the days when phone screens were the only remote aspect of the interview process. Remote recruiting events have moved online, and video interviews have gone from optional to mandatory at many companies.
All this requires learning new technologies and adjusting processes, but companies that have done it during the pandemic told Built In that going fully remote actually has the potential to streamline the hiring process. Talent acquisition and HR leaders at Cadence Design Systems, LivePerson and Broadridge said that rather than making things harder, going completely remote has made their hiring processes more efficient.
Annamarie Dunn, VP of Culture and Talent at Cadence Design Systems
How has going remote impacted your hiring process? Has Cadence Design Systems adopted any new technologies or made tweaks to its recruiting or interviewing processes?
Our new recruiting and onboarding processes are 100 percent virtual. The virtual processes have improved our overall efficiency and reduced the average time it takes to fill an open position.
For sourcing candidates, we’ve continued using the same online tools, but we’ve adapted the ways in which we engage with them. Our career fairs have switched from in-person events to virtual events, which allows candidates to schedule a time to talk with us rather than dropping by a booth. While traffic is lower, the virtual events have been much more efficient and impactful because we get the candidates who are most genuinely interested in a job with us.
Video conferencing has streamlined the interview process, and we’ve seen more engagement with candidates using this service. Rather than spending time traveling and scheduling a full-day onsite interview, candidates can schedule interviews sooner and when it’s most convenient. Quicker scheduling has shortened the total duration of the interview process, allowing newly hired employees to start working sooner while saving company resources on travel.
What tips, best practices or advice do you have for companies that are currently trying to figure out remote recruiting and hiring?
Fully embrace virtual hiring and onboarding solutions in the short-term because they will help expand and supplement your long-term recruiting strategy. Prepare your hiring managers, and communicate often with your candidates. Inform candidates about the remote recruiting experience so they know what to expect and provide the proper training resources, such as technology guides and communication best practices.
Also, communicate closely with your internal business partners — HR, interview coordinators, IT, finance and facilities — to make sure you’re all on the same page with respect to processes. Engage with your human resource information system team to create reports with data that indicates how the changes are affecting the candidate experience and the time it takes to fill positions. Review your open positions and ensure that all are viable. Candidates tend to be apprehensive in uncertain times, and reassuring them that you have your workforce plan in order will alleviate their concerns.
Meenu Vin, Global Head of Talent Acquisition at LivePerson
Going remote made us really think through new ways to connect. One of the things we are most excited about is our new paired programming tool — replacing traditional whiteboards — to evaluate how candidates solve coding and system design problems.
We are also building our own conversational recruiting tool to source, screen, assess and interview candidates through the kinds of messaging experiences we create to help companies engage with their consumers.
In general, we’ve been building a robust hiring and interviewing process over the last year, from unconscious bias training to pre-brief notes letting each interviewer know what skill sets to focus on for each candidate. It definitely helped to have these processes in place when we went fully remote. Remote hiring has actually reduced time to hire because it’s easier to get in touch with candidates, nobody has to travel and we can be more flexible with scheduling.
What tips, best practices or advice do you have for companies that are currently trying to figure out remote recruiting and hiring?
Communication is everything. In order to minimize unconscious bias and make the best hires, be sure to communicate to hiring managers and interviewers which data points they should focus on during video interviews. It’s also critical to communicate the end-to-end hiring process to both the candidate and the hiring manager so that both sides know what to expect.
Reducing friction will make for a better remote experience for everyone. Ensure that interviewers and candidates have the right info to connect to video and coding tools. Prep both sides on how to participate in remote interviews, and make sure they test their internet connections 30 minutes prior to make sure everything goes as smoothly as possible.
Julie Taylor, Chief Human Resources Officer at Broadridge
How has going remote impacted your hiring process? Has Broadridge adopted any new technologies or made tweaks to its recruiting or interviewing processes?
In many cases, it has made the process more efficient, simplifying logistical issues in setting up discussions, coordinating calendars and follow-ups. Not only have we screened a higher volume of people for open roles, our candidate pool is drawn from even more geographies, potentially increasing our diversity. We use Microsoft Teams, Cisco Webex and Facetime for video interviews, and the video format is a great indicator of how well candidates communicate and present on screen as well as how they will assimilate in a virtual environment.
What tips, best practices or advice do you have for companies that are currently trying to figure out remote recruiting and hiring?
Jump in, but be prepared. Not everyone is familiar or comfortable with being on camera. Remember, it’s still a change and you should treat it as you would any other change management activity. Help managers by providing tips for video interviewing and equipment setup, and encourage them to test ahead of time. Help candidates by providing instructions for setting up the video platform, encourage them to test ahead of time and provide tips for a successful interview —whether that’s for attire, lighting or sound.
All responses have been edited for length and clarity.
