If you’ve phrased your job description right you will find plenty of CV’s coming through the door. The question is, how do you decide who is worth interviewing from just two sides of A4? Hopefully the points below will help aid the process.

When looking through CV’s, create three piles; 

• one for those that exactly meet your requirements,
• one for those that do not meet requirements at all and
• one for those with some of the required qualities

The ‘yes’ candidates should meet all of your stated criteria, so if you have required that a candidate has knowledge of SAGE, then anyone without this should not be in this pile. The ‘maybe’ candidates consist of those applicants that have some of the required experience. Those with limited or no relevant experience should be dismissed at this point. It is courteous to send written communication to inform the candidate that their application will not progress and to thank them for their time.

If you have a sizeable ‘yes’ pile you will need to narrow down your selection. By identifying the key requirements of your vacant position, you can create a checklist of ideal qualifications, previous experience and other necessary skills. As well as examining the candidate’s qualifications, experience and knowledge, it is also essential to consider their personal statement, this is the part of the CV where a candidate tells you about their interests, objectives and personal traits. If a CV does not include information about a person’s attributes, then it is perhaps worth putting to one side in favour of those that do. However, it is important to ensure that you avoid making a decision based on what a person is, such as age, gender, sexuality or religion.

There is no set limit for how many interviews you should conduct. However, it is impractical to have a lot of interviews as you will not only confuse yourself, but you will also find this very time-consuming. As a guide, interviewing between three and five quality candidates will enable you to get a good insight into each candidate and their suitability for the role.

Good luck with your search for the perfect employee, and don’t forget Bournemouth Employment Ladder can help to connect you with hundreds of jobseekers across Dorset!

Bournemouth Employment Ladder  Ltd
Studio 308
2 Lansdowne Crescent
Bournemouth
BH1 1SA

01202 283012

07796 981999

www.bournemouthemploymentladder.co.uk