Tips on Selecting the Right Applicant for the Job

On the other side of the table the applicant for a job is nervous and excited all at once, but on the opposite side are the human resource personnel who are screening the applicants. Now there are so much that has been written for the applicants but not on the side of the screening team.

So how should a human resource personnel select the right applicant for the job and what are the tools he or she can use for such critical task? Here are some of the simple yet effective tips in applicant screening and processing.

Interviews

The first thing that you can do is of course the interviews. Through interviews you can set a different set of questions for them to answer or for some companies a different set of tasks that the applicant can do. The interview stage is in order for the panel to see face value if the applicant is fit for the job.

This can be seen through how they carry themselves and how they answer the questions, sometimes it does not really matter what they answer but how they answer the questions and queries that leads to them being chosen. The panel must also know how to look beyond faking so that they can really know which one is fit for the job.

Tests

After the interview process you can also let the applicants take some sort of tests. Aptitude assessment test is one of the most common tests that you can place an applicant into, the reason for such is that it is easy to administer and also easy to check, and it does not really consume that much time for the applicant.

It is given that the applicant is able to give their time for the scheduled interview but it won’t be that just if the panellists would take too much of the applicant’s time in the process of screening, unless of course the position being applied for is a very important position to fill. But then again, the tests could only give you a hint of the aspect of their personality, but with that you will have a hint on how they operate as an employee.

Let them ask Questions

One trick that you can do, and this is a part of the interview process is to reverse the roles and have the applicant ask the questions. Let them ask questions to the panellist because through this reversal of roles one is able to see their motivation in applying for that position. This will also give a hint if the applicant has previously done their research before going into the screening process, this adds more positive points for the applicant if such is the case.

Now the important factor for any human resource personnel is to maintain objectivity and also an open mind in terms of selecting any applicant. One’s mind as a human resource personnel must not be clouded by any prejudice but it must be towards the goal of selecting the best applicant for the benefit of the company, nothing more.