The Disadvantages And Advantages Of Online Job Interviews

Brief history

The first job interview was conducted by Thomas Edison in 1921, Thomas Edison asked questions to the candidates to evaluate their knowledge. The world of work continues to grow with new technologies and innovations, in the past there were different types of interviews for example, telephone interviews which is still used today by some companies, candidate assessment tests were done in person and then turned into an online screening tool. These days interviews are conducted by video calling (remote hiring) this recent technology has it's advantages and disadvantages.

Disadvantages of remote hiring

• Internet connectivity: slow internet and interruptions will make the interview an nightmare, not being able to hear the candidate or the interviewer is stressful and can cause the interviewer to move onto another candidate, even though the candidate that had connectivity issues had suitable skills and knowledge for the job. 
• Poor video quality can diminish the candidate's chances of getting hired because the presentation is not as good as it should of been and this will demolish the candidates chances of getting hired. 
• Lack of IT knowledge will make it difficult for candidates to even set up a video calling interview especially if the candidate is applying for a job that doesn't require strong IT skills. Some candidates may not even know how to set up the camera, sound, or how to schedule the interview. 
• Various platforms: Many companies use different types of video calling platforms for example, most use Zoom meetings, Google meet, RingCentral video, Microsoft Teams and many more. This can be troubling because not every candidate has all the video calling platforms already downloaded into their computers, not being able to download these platforms or the platform may require details that the candidate is not able to provide. Companies should be versatile and use most of these platforms to help candidates have easy access to the interviews.
• Body language: It is difficult to read someone when video calling, most recruiters can tell if the candidate is suitable for role by seeing the candidate walk through the door. 55% of the recruiters look for body language when hiring an candidate. 

Advantages of remote hiring

•  Savings: The good news is that the candidate will save money on travelling expenses, food, beverages, and the employees don't need to reserve venues for the interviews. When the interview ends the employees and candidates productivity will not be affected. 
• Remote interviews saves time because the recruiter can interview more candidates and if the recruiter forgets a candidate that they interviewed then they can go back and watch the interview again. 
• Remote interviews will have less pressure on the candidates, the candidates are at home so this will allow them to be more relaxed and this will allow them to answer all questions at their own rate.
• Digital tools: The candidate can use the digital tools as a advantage, they can share graphs, reports, videos, images, presentations, and the recruiter can do the same. These tools will improve and develop the interview environment, Candidates will understand what type of candidate the company is looking for in a more detailed way. 
• Flexibility: The candidates will have more time because they are doing the interview at home for example, if the candidate has to go to school or works at another place it will difficult for the candidate to attend the interview, the flexibility is very convincing. 

What I think of remote hiring 

Online job interview is a very good idea and I think this is the future, companies will want to add a technology that will help candidates access interviews on the go for example, using the smartwatch camera. Hologram technology is still being developed and tested, once the hologram technology releases and becomes mainstream it will make it's way to the interview world, this will help the recruiter and the candidate feel that the interview is authentic. I still think online interviews are in early stages and still prefer face to face, because I believe when doing face to face interviews you can learn a lot more about the person that you are interviewing, the candidate can also meet more employees and see how the business works when being interviewed onsite, when video calling you cannot see how the business operates and you are unable to decide if you belong in this workplace.