Insights into the forces shaping our industry.

I have had many discussions this month with clients who are trying to find a new employee.  Here is one of the issues we have had: Client:  “I need to see a few more candidates before I move forward with this candidate”   As a recruiter I have to explain to Joe, the perfect candidate, you nailed the interview, but they want to put the brakes on and keep looking.   This is where recruiting is very similar to dating.   When you are dating someone and you are going to get serious about the relationship, do you tell your special someone, you are the one for me, but I would like to keep dating others because there is a chance I will find someone better, so it goes in recruiting.    Here is the process of hiring that hiring should follow so you know you have the right candidate.  

The Hiring Process: It takes 3-5 Interviews to know this is the one

The modern job market has become increasingly competitive, with companies putting a premium on finding the perfect match for their teams. As a result, the hiring process often involves multiple rounds of interviews—typically ranging from three to five—before a candidate receives an offer.  This process needs to continue in a timely manner to keep candidates interested and hopefully they don’t get snagged up by your competitors.

1. Assessing Cultural Fit

One of the primary reasons for conducting multiple interviews is to assess how well a candidate fits within the company culture. While technical skills and qualifications are essential, employers know that a bad cultural fit can lead to high turnover and lower team morale. In the first few interviews, hiring managers typically gauge whether the candidate aligns with the company’s core values and work environment. Follow-up interviews with different team members or leaders ensure that others within the organization agree with the assessment. Cultural fit is often a make-or-break factor for long-term employee success.

2. Validating Skills and Competencies

Initial interviews often focus on surface-level qualifications and soft skills. However, as a candidate moves forward, the hiring team digs deeper into technical competencies, problem-solving abilities, and job-specific skills. This may involve practical tasks or case studies designed to test how the candidate performs in real-world scenarios. Multiple interviews help hiring managers ensure that the skills a candidate claims to have been genuinely robust and applicable to the position at hand. The more critical or senior the role, the more thorough this evaluation becomes.

3. Building Relationships and Trust

The interview process is not just about screening candidates—it’s also about building rapport. The more opportunities hiring managers and team members have to interact with a candidate, the better they can gauge personality traits, communication styles, and the candidate’s genuine interest in the role. Trust is built over time, and multiple interactions allow for a clearer picture of whether the candidate is someone the company feels confident about hiring. From the candidate’s side, this process also allows them to become more comfortable with the team, ask in-depth questions, and assess whether the company is the right fit for their career goals.

4. Ensuring the team will work well together

In many organizations, hiring decisions involve input from multiple stakeholders, especially for roles that will work cross-functionally or at a leadership level. This means that different team members, department heads, and sometimes even executive leadership may need to meet the candidate before an offer is extended. Each stakeholder has a unique perspective on the role and its requirements, and their collective agreement increases the likelihood of a successful hire. Multiple interviews ensure that everyone involved feels confident about the decision, helping to avoid hiring mismatches that could cause internal friction later on.

5. Reducing Hiring Risks

Hiring the wrong person is costly. Beyond the financial expense of re-posting job listings, onboarding, and training, there’s also the cost of productivity loss and team disruption. To mitigate this, companies invest in multi-stage interviews as part of a thorough vetting process. By meeting with a candidate over several rounds, hiring teams can pick up on red flags they might have missed in an initial conversation and verify the candidate’s consistency in responses and behavior. While no hiring process is foolproof, conducting multiple interviews reduces the risk of making a costly mistake. 

6. Refining the Offer Package

Once the interviews are coming to a close, the company often takes the time to tailor the final offer based on the information gathered during the process. The interview stages provide valuable insights into what motivates the candidate, their salary expectations which should be verified multiple times.  As a candidate explores the job’s requirements, his salary expectations could go up due to the responsibilities they now fully understand after the interviewing process.  

Another example, a candidate might express a preference for remote work or highlight career development as a key factor. This feedback helps the company present a more compelling offer that aligns with both the company’s standards and the candidate’s desires.

Conclusion:

Though it may feel tedious to undergo three to five interviews, it’s important to remember that the extended process benefits both candidates and employers. Candidates get a comprehensive view of the role, team dynamics, and organizational culture, while employers gain the confidence that they’ve thoroughly vetted their choice. Ultimately, the goal is not to just fill a vacancy but to ensure a long-term, mutually beneficial working relationship.

Keeping the process moving forward increases the likelihood of landing the right employee.  If this is the right one, go ahead and get serious and make a commitment!