The COVID-19 pandemic was a landmark event in the history of work. I think it's fair to say that in the last 100 years, one single factor has never had such a dramatic impact on the workforce in such a short period of time. Companies with traditional office cultures around the world were suddenly forced to adopt remote work models to stay productive.

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This sudden shift to remote work presented many challenges for companies. One of the most pressing was the need for a reliable interviewing platform that could help them recruit and hire new talent quickly, without any compromises on candidate quality - and HRM (human resource management) companies across the world scrambled to meet new market demands.

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Enter the interview platform. From interview intelligence software, zoom apps, integrations, video interviewing tools, AI-driven platforms, and more – the race was on to provide an ecosystem that delivered the top talent companies required.

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Due to stay-at-home orders, one of the fastest-growing categories in the space became video interview platforms. Solutions like Zoom and Teams enabled recruiters to quickly evaluate candidates in a way that was easy, cost-effective, efficient, and allowed the benefits of being face-to-face with candidates. But just video alone wasn't enough. The benefit of being face-to-face with a candidate is a hiring manager's ability to hear tonal changes in someone's voice, see micro-expressions in their face, and watch a person's mannerisms for queues to whether they're being forthright or dishonest.

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This led to the creation of interview intelligence platforms like Pillar. Pillar provides a comprehensive suite of tools that help employers conduct virtual interviews effortlessly. Powered by Ai (artificial intelligence), employers use our platform to automate interview scheduling, gather candidate insights, and access our library of more than 1000 interview questions specified by role. We also integrate with the top recruitment tools to create a seamless workflow from sourcing to onboarding.

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Video Interview Software

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There are currently 141 tools listed on G2 as video interview software. Each one is subdivided by customer satisfaction, ease of use, pricing, and market presence.

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Video interview software enables employers to interview candidates via in-person video calls, pre-recorded video interviews, or formats that combine the two. This type of virtual recruitment is increasingly popular as it allows companies to save time and money on travel, while also enabling them to reach a wider range of potential candidates.

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Many interview platforms provide a suite of features that include scheduling tools, interview question libraries, interview recording options, candidate scorecards, and analysis tools. Most also offer integrations with other recruitment programs such as applicant tracking systems (ATS), and background screening services.

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Choosing the best platform to record video interviews can be a challenge with so many options, and the best app for recording video interviews is potentially different for each company. If you're currently assessing your hiring process, here are a couple of things to consider.

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Features such as AI-powered candidate tracking and scoring, integrated personality assessments, skills assessments, automated interview scheduling, and integrations with other recruitment tools are all factors that should be taken seriously when selecting the best video interview software for your organization. 

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The cost of using video interview software is another important consideration. Platforms range from being completely free to expensive enterprise-level solutions, so it's a good idea to research the pricing models of different vendors and compare those costs with what it would take for you to hire similar recruitment personnel in-house. If you have time, demoing a handful of the tools with give you a better use idea of how much a solution for your team would cost to implement.

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Finally, convenience is king. Make sure the platform you select is user-friendly, has an intuitive onboarding process, and includes a customer support team to help you set up and troubleshoot any problems. It should be simple for the hiring manager and the candidate and have mobile capabilities so that both recruiters and candidates can access the platform from their phones. In a mobile-first world, this last point is a must.

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By researching all of these factors, you can be sure that you select the best video interview software to meet your organization's unique needs.

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Most Common Virtual Interview Platforms

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As we mentioned in the previous section, G2 lists over 140 video interview platforms for hiring managers. From Codility to Indeed, the best video interview platforms come in all shapes and sizes. Here are some of the most common virtual interview platforms used by employers today (in no particular order):

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- Zoom: With its user-friendly interface we've all grown familiar with over the past 3 years. Zoom is a great option for conducting virtual interviews as it allows real-time collaboration between remote teams. This means that 1-on-1 interviews and panel interviews and assessments can be performed anywhere with WIFI. Zoom also features screen-sharing capabilities, and chat functions for both parties, and allows for up to 1000 participants on the same call (not that you'd need that many in an interview).

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- Microsoft Teams: Teams is one of the most popular video interview platforms on the market, primarily due to its integration with Office 365. It's easy to use and lets you hold interviews, have group discussions or conduct a panel interview all in one place. Teams offer many of the same useful features as Zoom such as screen-sharing and shared document editing capabilities.

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For Microsoft 365 users, Teams is often a better virtual interview platform than Zoom because it syncs with all of the other apps in your cloud.

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-VidRecruiter: This product is designed specifically for recruitment teams. VidRecruiter allows for automated video interviewing - meaning that you can have your interviewees answer questions with pre-recorded video responses, which will be reviewed by recruiters afterward. It also has AI-powered candidate tracking, auto-scheduling, email notifications, and more.

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-Pillar: This video interview platform focuses on equity, efficiency, and accessibility. It has Zoom and Teams integrations, a mobile-friendly app, and Ai insights that make it easy to conduct live interviews with candidates no matter where they are. In addition to this, Pillar is on a mission to help companies reach their DEI Impact goals, hire better, and save time and money for hiring managers and companies alike.

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-Indeed Hiring Platform: Indeed offers both a free and a paid virtual hiring platform. The free version allows you to post jobs, source candidates, and schedule interviews. The paid version has more features such as automated question responses, tailored interview guide creation, video conferencing integrations with Zoom/Teams, and team collaboration tools. It's a great option for recruiters at large organizations.

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-HackerRank: HackerRank is a great platform for technical interviews. It has an automated video interviewing feature that allows you to ask coding questions and get answers right away. The software can also be used to test the skills of candidates by posing various programming challenges at different levels of difficulty.

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-Codility: Codility is another great platform for technical interviews. It allows hiring managers to assess skills by posing custom coding challenges. The software offers automated test authoring, a customized assessment library, and detailed reporting that makes it ideal for tech recruiters.

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As you can see, there are many platforms that could be a great fit for your individual and company needs. No matter which virtual interview platform you choose, it's important that you do your research to ensure that the platform you use is meeting your needs while also providing a great candidate experience.

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Best Interview Platforms

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To reiterate, demand for the best video interviewing platforms has grown exponentially since the pandemic began. There are now so many software solutions available that deciding is harder than ever. We believe that the best video interviewing software should take 10 primary things into account:

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1. Equity -  video interviewing software should ensure a fair, transparent hiring process for all candidates regardless of their background.
2. Efficiency - video interviewing platforms should provide recruiters with tools to streamline the hiring process and save time when it comes to scheduling interviews.
3. Accessibility - the best video interview platforms should work on any device, allowing both recruits and recruiters to participate in virtual interviews from anywhere.
4. Candidate experience -  the best platforms should ensure that candidates have an enjoyable virtual interview experience.
5. Ease of use -  the best platforms should be intuitive and user-friendly, making it easy for recruiters and candidates to use the software.
6. Integrations - the best interview platforms should integrate with other applications in your cloud, such as BambooHR, Zoom/Teams, Slack, G Suite, and more.
7. Time to hire -  the best platforms should streamline the hiring process and reduce time-to-hire.
8. Budget -  they should be affordable and provide great value for your money.
9. Support -  the best video interview platforms should have a dedicated team of customer service representatives available to answer questions and help troubleshoot any issues.
10. Artificial Intelligence - human insights are no longer enough, the ai interview software should incorporate Ai/ML insights to make it easier for recruiters to assess candidates for open roles.

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These are some of the most important features that you should consider when deciding on the right virtual interviewing platform for your organization. We hope this list of software solutions helps you make an informed decision when choosing the best platform for your organization. No matter which solution you choose, make sure it is meeting all of your needs while also providing a great candidate experience.

If you're currently assessing the effectiveness of your interview process and would like a guide, schedule a demo with someone from our team, we'd love to show you how we've helped Pillar customers lower employee turnover rates by more than 50% in the last 12 months.