The Pros and Cons of Peer Interviewing
The HR industry has developed significantly with the adoption of newer tools and techniques. Newer interview techniques have taken the place of conventional ones making it easy screen and filter out the candidates. One such technique that is gaining popularity across industries is ‘Peer Interviewing.’ The interview technique involves peer-to-peer interaction with existing employees for a better analysis of job responsibilities. Let us now dive deeper into the concept and evaluate its pros and cons.
What is Peer Interviewing?
Peer interviewing or peer-to-peer interviewing is basically a new and fledgling interview technique where an existing employee is a part of the interview to assess if the employee is a good match for the company. The technique is gaining traction amongst companies as it offers them with a better analysis of the candidate’s overall fit. Moreover, it also allows the candidate to have a better idea about the job responsibility and work culture of the company.
Many recruiters are beginning to identify the impactful benefits of peer interviewing in finding the right talent. Peer interviewers have the required knowledge and experience to assess the candidate based on the job requirements.
While this technique can be highly effective, it’s not without its pitfalls. Therefore, it becomes crucial to analyze the pros and cons of the technique to make yourself fully aware.
Benefits of Peer Interviewing
Better candidate evaluation – Every company wants to attract top talent without putting many efforts and workforce. Peer interviewing proves to be a tremendous solution to evaluate candidates in a better way. This becomes possible due to the involvement of an existing employee working for a similar job post.
A newer perspective – Every individual in the organization holds a unique perspective towards a job applicant. It allows the organization to asses the candidate through different dimensions making it easier to find the perfect match for open posts.
The substantial idea to the candidate – One of the best things about conducting a peer interview is that candidates get a better idea of what it’s like to work for your organization. Your employees can bring about a more accurate representation of your company’s work culture.
Strengthen employee’s morale – The fact that your existing employee is going to choose his or her future coworkers boost the morale of employees. It also helps in building a better environment in the organization where peoples’ opinions do matter.
Downsides of Peer Interviewing
A double-edged sword – It is worth noting that the employee taking interviews might end up discouraging the candidate from taking the job. So, it is better to be sure that your employees must be positive, happy, and optimistic about the company.
Bias can creep in – Face-to-face interviews are prone to bias. Some employees might reject the applicant out of personal vengeance or bias despite his potential. It is always a good idea to ensure that the employee evaluates candidates based on their skills and competencies but not on their personal experiences.
Loss of productivity – Although peer interviewing boosts the morale of employees, it brings down the productivity to a certain extent. Employees involved in the hiring process have to spend several hours in the interviews which costs them the amount of work and deadlines.
May go haywire – Thoughts from different directions seems to be a good idea. However, the involvement of more people might lead to confusion and distractions. Moreover, a long and more populated interview is not what the applicant might expect or appreciate.
Conclusion
It is clear from the above comparison that the pros of peer interviewing have more weight than its cons. There is more to learn and understand peer interviews. Our continuous learning and exploration of the HR industry will bring growth and development. To stay tuned with our posts, subscribe to our blog and be the first one to get updates.
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