Virtual video interviews have been a part of working life well before the COVID-19 pandemic, and they will continue to be as society slowly emerges from a post-pandemic world. As such, the need for a video interview platform during the hiring process has not changed. The most common virtual interview platforms that have appeared during COVID-19 have been Zoom, Skype, and Google Hangouts. However, those choices are rarely the best fit for a virtual hiring process.

Many companies continue to utilize a hiring process that relies on manual resume review, phone outreach, and notes passed from one interviewer to the next. However, the introduction of interview intelligence tools and software, as well as video interviewing platforms and applicant tracking systems continues to move the industry forward.

Video interview platforms allow us to conduct interviews that transcend space and expose the hiring committee to the most qualified candidates, regardless of their physical location. Nevertheless, the interview process continues to be bogged down by our own implicit biases and selective memories. These prompt us to make hiring decisions based on instinct rather than on what might be the most objective and impartial course of action. This may, on the surface, seem innocuous, but hiring is one of the most important decisions that a business makes. Hiring is essential for a company to have the most robust hiring process so that the right candidates make the cut and contribute to the success of the company’s mission.

To end this cycle of bias, many businesses have turned to interview intelligence. These programs use the recordings of interviews to track vital data that hiring committees can refer back to rather than rely solely on their own memory or notes. On-demand interview recordings can be reviewed by managers and hiring committees so there are no gaps whatsoever in information. 

Going beyond recordings on video, interview intelligence uses artificial intelligence to highlight important aspects of the interview, such as how balanced the conversation was or whether it was more one-sided. It can also track keywords and important topics mentioned by the interviewee and chart them in a quantitative manner. By laying out a candidate’s data in this manner, hiring managers can review interviews, break apart the data, and compare data between interview candidates more effectively and impartially, thus abandoning a gut response towards a candidate that may not necessarily be rooted in fact or the actual experience during the interview itself.

Video Interviewing

There are both advantages and disadvantages to conducting video interviews rather than traditional in-person interviews. On the one hand, utilizing video interviewing tools lowers costs. Flying candidates out to the business’s headquarters, even if they are only several finalists near the end of the hiring process. Nevertheless, this can be a notable expense, depending on the length of the hiring process and how senior the advertised position is. As mentioned above, interviews with a video interviewing software allow organizations to meet with a wide selection of candidates who may be receptive to either working remotely or relocating to where the organization resides. Also, video interviews can help to assess a candidate's communication skills, both verbal and nonverbal, and see how they present themselves.

On the other hand, by the innate nature of being virtual, both parties are left to the mercy of technology, which can sometimes be fickle. This can include issues of internet connection, and poor video or audio quality. When hiring, it is also important to consider that not everyone is starting at the same level of tech-savviness, thus not everyone may know how to work the video interviewing platform. OR, candidates may be able to easily work with several types of video interviewing software, but not the one that this particular business has adopted for their hiring process. 
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When conducting an interview virtually, here are a few video interviewing tips to keep in mind.
Be sure to do a “tech check” beforehand
Prepare for and conduct the interviewShow up 10-15 minutes prior to the interview
Be sure to answer all the candidate’s questions
Provide immediate, skills-focused feedback

Here are also some interviewing tips from some of the best interviewers in the world.

Oprah says, “Listen 3X more than you talk. Maintain eye contact, smile, nod...that’s really all it takes to show other people they’re important.”
Barbara Walters says, “Can the candidate actually do the job? Does the candidate actually want the job?”
David Letterman says, “[do not ask] overly long questions. Asking direct, specific questions means you’ll get direct, specific answers.

Video Interview Platforms

Many types of open-source video interview software exist for users to use for free. While video interview platforms have been in use for quite some time, a growing trend is organizations' use of one-way video interview platforms. A one-way video interview is a type of interview where job candidates, usually in the early stages of the hiring process, record themselves answering various questions provided by the hiring organization. This allows businesses to gain their first impressions of the candidates, how they communicate, how they present themselves, and how they bring themselves to a professional setting. One-way interviews can sometimes replace or work in conjunction with a phone screening interview to weed out candidates before they begin with their more thorough interviews with the whole hiring committee. Interview intelligence can also be used for one-way interviews by analyzing the verbal data that the candidate shared in their solidary recording of the questions.

Hiring committees should bear in mind that even though one-way interviews can save time and resources at the beginning of the interviewing process, candidates undoubtedly answer the questions multiple times and only submit what they consider the best recordings. In that way, companies lose the ability to see how the candidates initially respond to the question, how they would collect themselves and answer it, all things that hiring managers could pick up on if the interview was two-way. Depending on the industry and the nature of the position, one-way interviews might make sense, but an organization would benefit from weighing the pros and cons.