Improving time to hire through measurement and process optimisation
Why your ‘time to hire’ could suddenly be your biggest weakness You can have a strong job advert and run effective campaigns, and still be too late. Not because the market isn’t interested, but because the process loses time along the way: waiting for feedback, too many rounds of interviews, unclear decision-making criteria or a schedule that keeps shifting. Time to hire […]
Testing safety awareness during recruitment for production roles
You usually only notice it when things go wrong: someone skipping a safety step “because it’s quicker”, a machine that isn’t quite properly guarded, or a colleague who doesn’t dare to say that something feels unsafe. In production, these aren’t minor details, but warning signs that you’d ideally spot as early as the recruitment stage.
Multiple interviewers: preventing groupthink in the selection process
You’ll recognise the moment: everyone nods in agreement. The candidate has left the room, someone makes a definitive statement (“this is the one’), and before you know it, the rest go along with it. Not because everyone has seen the same thing, but because the first interpretation colours the conversation. That’s groupthink: a group converges on a single judgement, whilst the underlying […]
Assessing cultural fit objectively without bias in the recruitment process
You often only realise it when things go wrong: a candidate scores highly in terms of skills and knowledge, but drops out during the probationary period or clashes with the way the team works together. That’s when the term “culture fit” comes up. The problem is that, in many organisations, “culture fit” has become a vague label for ‘it just didn’t feel right’, and as a result […]
Examples of reference check questions by competency
Why reference checks often remain too general Many reference checks result in vague confirmations: “yes, a good colleague” and “always on time”. This provides little guidance, particularly for hard-to-find candidates or roles where safety, quality or turnover are at stake. By asking targeted reference check questions for each competency, you’ll obtain concrete evidence that aligns with your scorecard and interview. […]
Comparing interview scores with performance after 90 days
You can set up a structured interview properly, award scores, and still find yourself thinking afterwards: “Why did that score of 4 for problem-solving skills turn out to be wrong?” The moment your selection process really improves is when you link interview data to performance in the workplace. The 90-day review is a practical starting point for this: close enough to keep memories fresh, […]
Weighted recruitment scorecard: how to choose 2–3 key criteria
Why weighting often goes wrong in a scorecard You can have a scorecard with clear criteria and still end up with discussions based on gut feeling. This usually happens when everything seems to be “equally important”, or when the weighting is adjusted retrospectively because a candidate is likeable. Weighting isn’t just a spreadsheet trick; it’s an agreement on what matters in this role […]
Pre-screening checklist: essential items for pre-screening
You’ll recognise the problem: one vacancy goes live and your inbox is flooded. Yet you end up with too many interviews that yield little of value. A short, consistent pre-screen with clear “must-haves” filters out the noise, speeds up your process and ensures you only interview candidates who are genuine contenders. What are ‘must-haves’ in a pre-screen? Must-haves are […]
Reducing bias in job interviews: here’s how
Two interviewers can conduct the same interview and yet come away with different assessments. Usually, this isn’t down to the candidate, but to the way our brains select, interpret and retain information. Anyone serious about reducing bias in job interviews must first learn to recognise where things go wrong and then structure the process in such a way that you […]
Speeding up the recruitment process without compromising on quality
You can often shorten the recruitment process by several days without it becoming “faster = sloppier”. The secret isn’t working harder, but designing smarter: reducing waiting times, minimising handover points and making decisions earlier based on evidence. Why the recruitment process often slows down Slowness is rarely caused by a single major bottleneck. Usually, it’s the sum of small […]