When your people are partially focused on asking questions, they are less focused on hearing answers. If you also factor in the inconsistencies of scheduled calls that don’t always go to schedule, then phone screening becomes quite inefficient.
More concerning, trying to compare a range of candidate phone screens over time, combined with incorrect recollection of the subtleties of responses, and you can unintentionally create a biased way of filtering candidates. Recorded video is a much more scientific approach. All candidates have the same access, the exact same questions and the same opportunity to present themselves in the best possible light. The same is true of the review process. By viewing candidate interviews in a block, as well as having the chance to revisit responses and involve other assessors, the reviewing process is more likely to remain unbiased and not become influenced by ‘human’ factors.
Here are a few additional verifiable comparisons between phone screening and recorded video interview.
Recruiters take a maximum of 8 minutes to assess a video interview
Recorded video interviews provide experienced interviewers with the opportunity to focus entirely on responses and the more subtle aspects of body language and make impartial judgments based on what they see before them. Recorded video interview systems, such as Vieple also allow recruiters to go back and review any question or part of
a question and rank responses of individual candidates where scores can be reviewed by others or compared against other candidates. Phone screening does not provide this level of impartiality.
Average number of questions per video interview is 5
Because recorded video interview systems such as Vieple allow recruiters to send out an unlimited amount of interview requests, recruiters can spend more time focusing on the development of questions. Our research indicates that this results in less and more considered questions, which give greater candidate insights. Even if you manage to reduce the number of questions on phone screening, time demands on the candidate and interviewer often result in truncated questions and responses.
Experienced recruiters will assess an average of 7 interviews per hour
It is almost impossible to string together a significant number of candidate phone screenings, due to candidates’ availability. Even if you could, most recruiters start out strong and lose momentum as they go along or refine the way they communicate the questions. In both instances the process is time consuming and inconsistent. Recorded phone screening solutions like Vieple allow recruiters to review candidates in batches or bulk, at a time when they can give interviews their undivided attention. The payoff being more interview assessment in less time, with a greater degree of impartiality. No tea leaves required.