Is video recruitment right for your team?

Last updated:
December 15, 2020
December 17, 2021
min read
Brendan McConnell
Table of contents

Between posting job ads, screening piles of resumes, and keeping up with the company’s strategic direction, recruitment teams juggle a lot in their day-to-day lives. Couple that with harsh talent competition and you can see why recruiters are constantly on the lookout for tools to make their jobs easier. Video recruitment is one such tool, thanks to impressive improvements in conferencing platforms and its seamless integration into the most popular ATS platforms.

Video recruitment refers to the process of using video interviews and answers at any point during the hiring process. It’s typically used to screen applicants, and the video answers can be either delivered live or on-demand. Recruiters will typically develop structured interview questions their candidates early in the screening phase, and then review the video answers in their own time.

Video answers provide a level of convenience and flexibility not possible with live, in-person chats. Recruiters also have a wide range of modern tools available to analyze things like speech pattern, word choice, and body language to help with their judgment of candidates.

But, video recruitment isn’t necessarily for everyone. It takes a certain kind of all-star recruitment team to pull it off. Is that you?

Let’s find out.

8 qualities your team should have for video recruitment

If you’re considering video recruitment for your team, here are some of the qualities you should have to be successful.

  1. A global mentality. Video answers allow you to interview any candidate, anywhere in the world. That means your team needs to think beyond only hiring people who live in a certain city. Think globally, and video recruitment will enable you to hire the best talent from anywhere in the world.
  2. Tech savvy-ness. Video recruitment requires a fair amount of setup and ongoing technical support to be successful. Your recruitment team should be a tech-savvy group of people who is comfortable working with video answer-supporting ATS platforms.
  3. Highly collaborative. Video answers can be watched, reviewed, and commented on by everyone in your team. As such, video recruitment is a collaborative process that requires constant communication and sharing of insights and opinions into candidates. Having a team that is naturally collaborative helps make this even more effective.
  4. Creative thinkers. The best video answers start with the right questions. To help candidates put their best foot forward, it’s important to ask questions that will answer everything you need to know, while also allowing their personalities to shine through.
  5. Flexibility. Video answers can be recorded, delivered, and viewed at any time in the screening process. That’s their biggest advantage. Your recruitment team should have the flexibility to deal with this non-linear workflow.
  6. Holistic vision. While a great tool for screening, video answers are still only one piece of a bigger picture. Your recruitment team should be able to draw connections and conclusions from all stages of the screening process and be able to determine how the video answers fit into that larger puzzle.
  7. Attention to detail. Because you’ll often be asking all candidates to answer the same questions via video, it’s important to do your homework into what questions will be most effective. That means knowing the target candidate, the job description and requirements, and taking the time to write the best possible questions.
  8. Time management and planning skills. The flexibility offered by video answers means that your team will need to manage their time and plan their screening processes accordingly. Solid time management and planning skills will help with meeting deadlines and ensuring a smooth candidate experience.

Does this sound like your recruitment team? Then video recruitment might be a great option for you.

If video recruitment does sound like a viable option for your team, then you might be wondering how you can get started.

Steps to getting started with video recruitment

If you’re thinking about adopting video recruitment into your hiring strategy, then you’ll want to follow a structured process for integrating these techniques into your team’s workflow.

Here’s a quick summary of the steps that you can expect to go through when adopting video recruitment:

Step 1: Introducing the idea to your team

Like any new idea, it’s important to check in with your team and hiring managers to determine if video recruitment is a viable option for your company. Call a meeting with your immediate team members, and invite any important stakeholders to join.

Once together, walk the team through the basics of video interviewing, and explain what the benefits might be for the team. Gather feedback and suggestions. If your team is keen, then you can move on to the next step.

Step 2: Research video recruitment options

There are many different video interviewing options on the market today, each with their own strengths, weaknesses and suitability for different business needs. It’s important to get a handle on exactly what your company needs are. This will help you focus on only the platforms that match your requirements.

For example, if you’re a small company that’s just looking to cut down on in-person interviews, then a simple video conferencing software might be suitable. If you’re a larger company, with many job openings and hundreds of candidates per month, then a platform that can handle that volume should be your priority.

Step 3: Present your findings to the team, and get buy in

Once you’ve researched platforms, you should have a pretty clear shortlist of video recruitment platforms to present to your team. Regather your focus group, and present your recommendations. Again, gather their feedback and decide on next steps from there.

At this stage, you should have a pretty good idea as to whether your team is truly onboard with the idea of video interviews. If you’re able to get buy in from the team to move forward with a specific platform, then you should schedule demos with your chosen vendors and make a decision from there.

Step 4: Onboard your vendor, and measure results

If you’ve made it to this stage, then it’s time to start implementing video recruitment into your hiring strategy. Work with your chosen vendor to onboard the platform, and transition your team to this style of screening candidates.

Be sure to always track and measure the results of your transition to video recruitment. Tracking results will help you to determine if video recruitment is a truly viable and beneficial process for your team.

As you can see, deciding if video recruitment is right for your team comes down to a combination of your team dynamic, appetite for change, and willingness to go through the process of onboarding a new workflow. The process starts with honestly looking at your team dynamics and strengths, and then opening a dialogue about whether video recruitment is suitable for your needs.

Get the
MidWeekRead

Get the exclusive tips, resources and updates to help you hire better!

Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on Linked In
Go to the top

Hire better, faster, together!

Bring your hiring teams together, boost your sourcing, automate your hiring, and evaluate candidates effectively.