Why are long interview processes so common?
VP, Chief Security & Compliance Officer in Software, 1,001 - 5,000 employees
In some cases a long interview process can be about status. I remember when I was going through rounds of interviews at a company in the healthcare sector. I did 13 rounds and it was almost like a badge of honor that I’d made it through. But if you have the right people at the table at the same time, asking the right kinds of clarifying questions around experience, culture and style, then you can achieve the same thing without so many interviews. Because then it gets to the point where you're just wasting people's time.Advisor | Investor | Former CIO in Services (non-Government), Self-employed
Years ago I read about how Google hires, and one of the key takeaways was that companies make a huge mistake by conducting an excessive amount of interviews. The data shows that there’s no point to do any more than five interviews because you should be able to determine whether or not you have the right individual by having the right set of people speak to them.
Assistant Director IT Auditor in Education, 10,001+ employees
I have seen this in my career, my view is to say it takes time to hire the right person and also the perception of doing due diligence in the hiring process. I also believed some ego is involved, and to say there were extensive search and vetting process to get the best candidate.Senior Director of DevSecOps in Hardware, 1,001 - 5,000 employees
Any interview process that is more than 3 separate interviews is broken. Companies have to improve and align with the times as candidates are no longer interested in jumping through multiple hoops for opportunities. The reason I say 3 should be the number to make a decision is because I break it down as follows:Initial Introduction Interview - High level overview of candidate resume and how it aligns with the current needs of the open position. Opportunity for candidate to ask questions specific to the company, team they would be joining, etc.
Technical Interview - Deep dive of candidate resume to understand technical competency and how quickly they can jump in and be productive. If not a technical position, deep dive on skills of the candidate and how they align with the open position.
Cultural Fit Interview - Decision should have already been made that the candidate is one to hire at this point. This final interview is to intro to other leaders, team members, etc to ensure there is alignment with the personalities that will work together day by day.
For leadership positions, perhaps some of these interviews need to be longer than an hour but I still feel it should be kept as close to 3 separate interviews as possible or you run the risk of the candidate choosing another opportunity over that of your own due to waiting for the perfect candidate which does not exist.
Senior Director of Engineering in Software, 1,001 - 5,000 employees
There are multiple aspects that are considered and evaluated in a long interview process1. Remove an element of unconscious bias that interviewers might have.
2. How consistent is the candidate with the answers. In a debrief if it is found that the candidate is using only a few examples might give additional data points to the interviewers.
3. The purpose of multiple rounds is to evaluate different competences; in case of software engineering it will be problem solving, coding, systems design, cultural fit and attitude. One cannot cover all the competences in one single interview.
4. Long interview processes also helps a candidate ride over a bad day (allowing the candidate to bounce back.
I have tried to cover just a few points that have come to my mind.
Manager in Services (non-Government), 2 - 10 employees
One reason for long interview processes is because employers want to be sure they are making the best possible hiring decision. A lengthy process allows employers to get to know a candidate better and to see how the candidate interacts with other members of the team. Additionally, a long interview process gives employers more time to verify a candidate's qualifications and to check references.VP of IT in Real Estate, 201 - 500 employees
Sometimes it seems this is more bureaucratic than functional and much of it is unnecessary. In my view, organizations should identify what information (skills, culture fit, etc.) they are looking for way in advance and then try to efficiently decide/design the interview process and interviewers to gather this information more effectively. Otherwise, there is an increasing chance that applicants will pull out of the process anyway.Senior Information Security Manager in Software, 501 - 1,000 employees
A bit of a broad question.If you mean long that even for a junior position, it takes a while to make an offer, then that is indeed a problem.
But if you mean long for a position like a CTO, CISO, CIO, etc., then you need to put a lot of time and effort into finding the right candidate, as poor selection for this role can completely derail an organization. A CxO candidate needs to meet several people and spend significant time with them, showing they truly understand the role and are fully qualified.
Anyone can look good in a 30-minute 1:1 interview. But a 2-hour grilling in a room with 4 or so people can be a great proving ground.
Director in Construction, 1,001 - 5,000 employees
It is also important to think about it not just from the candidate point of view, but also from the hiring organization point of view. You are not the only person they are interviewing, and scheduling can be difficult. I agree 3-5 interviews should be the maximum - but they may be considering 3-5 people for the position. One individual they want to talk to isn't available for an interview for 2 or 3 weeks out - that will be a "delay" from your perspective in them making a decision for 2-3 weeks.I think it also depends on the level being hired as to the ability for the right people to have enough free time to interview. I find the new world of virtual interviews really helps speed things along.
Director of IT in Software, 201 - 500 employees
In general hiring, the wrong candidate is more costly than taking extra time and resources i.e multiple interviews to get the right person. Sometimes this can backfire and the candidate can accept another offer so it's really important to decide as soon as you can if you'd like the candidate and make a move when you discover a pearl. Content you might like
CTO in Software, 201 - 500 employees
Without a doubt - Technical Debt! It's a ball and chain that creates an ever increasing drag on any organization, stifles innovation, and prevents transformation.Community User in Software, 11 - 50 employees
organized a virtual escape room via https://www.puzzlebreak.us/ - even though his team lost it was a fun subtitue for just a "virtual happy hour"
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As a hiring manager, you know who you think would be a great fit. I'm always looking at how a particular individual fits into the rest of my team. And while I often find that there might be a few folks whose opinion I'd like to get on the candidate, there are also many cases in which that person just needs to check the box. Especially in large companies, you have to get certain people to interview them and get their feedback, but it’s probably not going to shift your decision one way or the other. It's just one more cog in the process that slows everything down. And by that point you've lost those individuals you were trying to bring on. It's almost like you're going back to the well to try again. It's so inefficient.