How Reliable is Interview Performance in the Recruitment Process: Reliability is Determined By Many Factors

Honesty, integrity and discernment on the part of the recruit interviewed, in conjunction with that of the interviewer, increases interview performance reliability. Understanding interview performance in the hiring process is important for both employers and their recruiters.

What is interview performance?

“The performance appraisal interview is the first round in the performance appraisal process and this is the round in which the manager communicates his evaluation of the employee’s performance during the appraisal period or the time that the employee’s performance is being evaluated.”

With respect to the recruitment process, “In recent times, hiring for the entry level has taken on an entirely new dimension with the campus recruitment procedures that rely on getting the best talent available from the campuses for companies wishing to hire for entry level positions.” 

The word fitment implies hiring suitability, or “whether a particular person is suitable for the role that is being filled and how well he or she “fits” the job profile.”

Not every recruit interviewed fits a proposed job profile and thus, careful screening is important in order to rule out those who are not appropriate candidates for employment.

Recruitment requires an initial screening conducted by a potential employer, recruiter or other designated personnel. The screening skills of the interviewer play an important role with respect to interview performance. The higher the level of screening skills that the interviewer demonstrates, the more reliable the performance interview should prove to be.

Internal employees who are recruits for a new position, often have relatively reliable interview performance based upon their known academic backgrounds, experience and skills. The employer or designated interviewer may know the recruit personally, or have access to his or her previous employment records.  

Outsiders or new recruits generally need to provide academic records, resumes and references to increase their interview performance credibility.

How the recruit responds to the person who is interviewing him or her, is an important aspect of interview performance. Professionalism or the lack thereof becomes immediately evident.  

Immediate and ongoing interaction between employers or recruiters provides appropriate and valuable feedback, which leads to the evaluation of recruits in terms of their reliability performance. Not every new recruit responds well when being interviewed and at times, a second or third interview may prove to be more reliable than the initial one. The recruit may need to provide proof of his or her claims with respect to fitness for a profile, or other recruiters might be asked to conduct another interview.

How reliable is interview performance in the recruitment process? A multiplicity of factors including positive and constructive motivation and the degree of proactive participation in the interview by the potential recruit enhance his or her interview performance reliability.