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Virtual recruitment is a timesaving and modern approach to finding, interviewing and onboarding candidates for remote, hybrid and on-site roles.
While virtual recruitment processes have been around for a while, the Covid-19 pandemic forced most organisations to find digital or remote alternatives to their normal activities – including recruiting new employees. This shift made organisations realise that virtual recruitment can be much easier and quicker, for both recruiters and candidates.
Although the days of social distancing are now over and many organisations have resumed some in-office presence, just as many saw the benefits of working from home and recruiting remotely and decided to stick with it. With most charities working from home at least some of the workweek, it’s clear that remote recruitment is here to stay.
As with any recruitment process, there are benefits and challenges to consider to make recruiting virtually a successful practice for your charity’s recruitment strategy. Discover our eight handy tips for remote recruiting.
What is remote recruitment?
Remote recruitment, or virtual recruitment, involves conducting job interviews, assessments, and hiring for your vacancies through digital methods – rather than meeting candidates in person.
Initial contact with candidates will usually be via email, and a brief phone screening can help narrow down a shortlist. Interviews typically happen over video calls, using software such as Zoom, Google Meet, or Microsoft Teams – all of which have become commonplace tools for homeworking. Candidate assessment software can be used to help test technical skills required for a role, and even for psychometric testing to see whether a candidate is suited to your organisation.
The benefits of virtual recruitment
1. Schedule interviews more easily
Conducting interviews in person requires time and effort from all involved, from finding a time slot that suits everyone, to travelling to the interview location. Remote interviews offer more flexibility, and can be scheduled with less notice for both interviewers and candidates, without taking significant time out from your days. This also means you can interview more applicants in less time, which is great if you’ve got a large number of fantastic candidates to assess.
2. Recruit top talent from anywhere
Recruiting remote workers opens up the geographical boundaries of your pool of potential applicants. You can attract the best talent from anywhere, without candidates being deterred by potentially having to travel hundreds of miles for an interview. When remote candidates experience a smooth virtual recruitment process, it reassures them that they’ll be able to work from home with confidence through the wonders of technology.
3. Improve diversity in the workplace
Many highly-qualified and passionate candidates face barriers to work, some of which are removed through virtual recruitment and remote working. Several groups, such as people with disabilities, those looking to re-join the workforce after a career break, and older people, face extra challenges.
These people have to work much harder to stand out in a competitive employment market – with in-person interviews adding unnecessary strain to their job hunt. Remote recruitment contributes to a more inclusive recruitment process and a diverse workforce, allowing you to discover brilliant people from all backgrounds.
4. Candidates can relax in their own environment
Most of us have experienced job interview nerves before. A lot of the worry stems from travelling somewhere new to meet people you don’t know and demonstrate what makes you a qualified candidate.
With casual phone calls and virtual interviews, candidates can speak to you from the comfort of their home. When people are in their own territory, this can help them feel more relaxed and improve their performance. They also don’t have to worry about travel costs, running late, or taking too much time out from their current job or responsibilities.
5. Quicker to hire
The recruitment market is often very fast-moving, making it all the more important to fill roles quickly with the right people. The more efficient your recruitment process is, the more likely you are to hire someone great in less time. Virtual recruitment is a great solution when you’re looking to make efficiencies and save time, as you can interview people quickly, reduce the time between rounds of interviews, and create a smoother onboarding experience.
Virtual recruitment challenges
Although recruiting remotely has plenty of benefits, there are a couple of challenging factors to bear in mind. You may need to consider if you need to put measures in place to prevent them from becoming problems.
Technology issues
Outdated tech, video lag and connection dropouts are the three arch-rivals of virtual recruiting. Candidates and interviewers need clear video and audio to communicate smoothly throughout a video call. If there are constant video delays, requests to repeat yourself and difficulties sharing screens, this is likely to create a frustrating and awkward experience for everyone in attendance.
Technology tip: make sure your internet connection is reliable, and have a backup ready in case it drops, such as a phone hotspot or simply agreeing to call the candidate if the connection fails.
Onboarding can feel isolating
Traditional onboarding often involves spending time with existing employees to get to know ways of working and share skills. The first few months in a new job are crucial to making an employee feel welcomed and part of the team. If an employee works from home all the time and goes through the complete onboarding process virtually, they might not get that exposure to key parts of the organisation.
Onboarding tip: consider a ‘buddy system’ where new colleagues are paired with people outside of their immediate team to create company-wide connections while they settle in, or set up ‘coffee dates’ with each member of the team so people can get to know each other, ask questions and find ways to work together.
8 tips for recruiting remotely
1. Decide how to interview candidates
Video calls are usually the default way of recruiting remotely. However, there might be cases where video interviews aren’t suitable or necessary – perhaps because of the nature of the job or the candidates you want to attract. Some candidates may not be able to access video technology, or they may just not feel comfortable talking on screen. Depending on the job, a phone interview could be a more effective way of speaking to candidates.
To ensure you’re being fair to all candidates, take the time to consider these points before you book interviews, so you’re able to choose the right option and conduct them without a hitch.
2. Check and prepare the tech in good time
Make sure you’ve set the tech up and tested your computer, audio, video and broadband before the time of the call or interview. It’s still possible you may lose your internet connection or be let down by tech in some other way – don’t let that throw you if it happens. Always have the candidate’s phone number to hand as a backup plan.
3. Be fair and patient with your candidates
Make sure you’ve allowed the candidate to prepare. Send them clear instructions in advance on how to use your chosen video software. Different people use different apps regularly, so don’t assume they’ll immediately be familiar with yours.
If you’re asking the candidate to complete any tasks, tests or work samples remotely, don’t forget to email these in good time and allow them the opportunity to ask questions if anything is unclear.
4. Choose a suitable place to conduct video interviews
We’re all now pretty comfortable with seeing our colleagues’ spare bedroom wallpaper, but for a job interview, try to find a quiet place to set up with a decent background. You could always apply a virtual background to hide a messy office or protect your privacy at home if preferred. Avoid unexpected interruptions by turning off notifications on your phone and computer.
Also, you may not need to be dressed as you would for a day in the office, but it’s generally best practice and respectful to make an effort to look reasonably smart.
5. Prepare for interviews
Take just as much time to prepare as you would for a face-to-face interview. If there’s anyone else interviewing with you, make sure they’ve read the candidate’s application and CV in advance. Our Applicant Tracking Software can help with interview prep, as applications and notes can be shared with all members of the interview panel, so you can easily collaborate even when everyone is remote. Plus, it’s free to use when you post a job with us using CharityJob Apply.
Think about how you’ll take notes in the interview. You don’t want to spend all your time looking down and typing, as this can be very off-putting, so work out how you can make notes in a way that’s discreet and secure. If you can’t avoid looking away occasionally, briefly mention to the applicant that you’re just taking notes to reassure them that you’re paying attention.
6. Give the candidate time to speak
When conducting video interviews, it’s not as easy to gauge pauses as it is in person. When a candidate is answering a question, pause a little longer than you would in person to ensure they have finished. This also helps to account for time lags or lack of usual social cues. It’s good practice to wait a few extra seconds before cutting in or moving onto the next question, just in case.
7. Respond to candidates when you say you will
One of the key benefits of video interviews is that they can be easily slotted in regardless of location, instead of scheduling all interviews on one day when the interview panel members are free to travel. However, for candidates that can mean waiting longer to hear the outcome, and/or a lack of clarity on when that will be.
Even in a fast-moving recruitment market, it’s important to keep applicants well-informed at each stage of the interview process. Make every effort to respond to candidates when you said you would so they know they can trust your word, and be upfront and honest about any delays.
8. Put the candidate at ease and thank them for their time
No matter what the market looks like, the candidate experience is really important. If your first-choice applicant has been offered two roles, you want their positive experience with your charity to mean they choose yours. It could come down to being extra vigilant about treating people courteously.
Taking the time to properly prepare for remote recruitment contributes to a good candidate experience. Without being able to welcome and wrap up an interview as you would in person, you can unintentionally come across as a bit of an automaton on screen, which can make candidates feel unwelcome. Emulate warmth virtually instead, by taking the time to ask them how they are before you start, putting them at ease, and then ending the interview by genuinely thanking them for their time and effort.
Make virtual recruitment your superpower
Looking to make the perfect hire through remote recruitment? Post a job with CharityJob and effortlessly connect with a wide pool of qualified candidates. Find the right talent and fill your not-for-profit vacancies faster.
We offer four job ad packages to suit your needs and budget. Choosing the right package is important, as it dictates the pool size, type and quality of the candidates your ad will reach.
If you’re not sure which is right for your organisation, contact us for personalised advice. Give us a call on 020 8939 8430, or email us on [email protected].
This post was originally published in 2020 and has been fully updated to ensure relevance and to reflect the current job seeker experience.
Tags: charity recruitment, remote recruitment, working from home
