The Candidate Experience of Video Interviewing: Research findings from the Candidates’ perspective

.comIt’s About Time

Research findings from the Candidates’ perspective

Sonru.com White Paper Volume 3

The Candidate Experience of Video Interviewing


The Candidate Experience of Video Interviewing © 2012

Table of Contents 2

Research Methodology Over 1,300 respondents volunteered to complete the survey which was made available to all candidates completing automated video interviews for Sonru clients during the time period October 2011 and April 2012.

Sample roles included Graduate Recruitment, Multilingual Customer/Client Services, Software Development/Testing, QA, Engineering, HR, Education, Marketing, Public Relations, Student Placements, Sales and Business Development.

No part of this document may be re-used or re-printed without reference to the

source and due credit given.

“These white paper findings prove definitively that the Sonru environment enables job seekers to genuinely enjoy the video interview experience. More than that, candidates end up feeling happier after the process than they did initially!

Sonru’s interface makes it easy for anyone to capture their interview and the convenience of being able to complete an interview in their own time emerges as the number one benefit for job seekers. Video assessment is a no-brainer for the hiring company, it saves time, money and leaves the job seeker with a more positive impression of the process. For those of you have struggled to find a place for video in the recruitment mix, here it is, kicking the butt of any alternative.”

Jonathan Campbell, CEO, Social Talent

1.0 Demographic Profile of Respondents

2.0 Awareness & Attitudes

2.1 First Impressions

2.2 Feelings Towards the Hiring Company

3.0 The Candidate Experience

3.1 Pre-Interview Findings

3.2 Post-Interview Findings

4.0 Candidate Conclusions

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1.0 Demographic Profile of Respondents 3


Gender by Age

Roles interviewed

Country of Residence


2.0 Awareness & Attitudes 4


2.1 First Impressions Figure 1 illustrates the key themes that emerged when respondents were prompted to outline their first impressions when invited to complete the automated video interview. Almost two thirds (65%) recorded positive first impressions such as being ‘Impressed’, ‘Excited’ or ‘Happy to progress’. Although 35% appeared Apprehensive / Unsure of what to expect, many fears were allayed through appropriate communications and use of the system.

“The instructions put my mind at ease and were very clear.” “Video tour = perfect CLEAR.”

“Slightly Terrified, but I got over it and am happy with the result.”

“I was very impressed that the company was using this technology and welcomed the idea to have this interview process. It made me more comfortable to have a serious interview in the surroundings that I am familiar with.”

Sonru clients are pioneers – early adopters of automated video interviewing technology. Just under a quarter (24.7%) of respondents were aware of automated video interviews prior to receiving the invitation to their interview. Only 4.4% of respondents had completed an automated video interview before their Sonru interview.

2.2 Feelings Towards the Hiring CompanyThe majority of respondents (74%)recorded positive feelings as illustrated in Figure 2.

Figure 1Dominant First Impressions

Impressed

ExcitedtoGainNewExperience

Happytoprogresstonextstage

Surprised/Unsure

Apprehensive

Figure 2“Which best describes your feelings toward the hiring company when you received the invitation to complete the automated video interview?”

VeryPositive

Positive

Neutral

Negative

ive key themes



3.0 The Candidate Experience 5

3.2 Post-Interview Findings Very high levels of satisfaction (almost two thirds) were recorded in terms of the overall candidate experience as illustrated in Figure 5. A further 24% of respondents were neither satisfied nor dissatisfied.

3.1 Pre-Interview Findings The majority of respondents (92%) felt sufficiently informed about what was required prior to starting the interview. Over three quarters of respondents logged into the video interview account prior to completing the actual interview with over 70% completing two or more practice interviews.

It is hardly surprising that such high levels of confidence (84%) were recorded given the positive findings in relation to respondents feeling sufficiently informed and the amount of pre-interview preparation.

This section presents the findings in relation to the candidates’ actual experience of completing the video interview from the information they received, the practice interview and their opinions and levels of satisfaction when the interview had been completed.

Figure 4“How confident did you feel about how the automated video interview tool worked before proceeding to the actual interview?”

VeryConfident

Confident

NotConfident

Figure 5“Now that you’ve completed an automated video interview, how satisfied were you in terms of the overall candidate experience?”

VerySatisfied

Satisfied

Neutral

Dissatisfied



Video Interviews are the preferred interview formatWhen questioned on their preference for future screening interviews, the following key point emerged:

Morerespondentswouldpreferanautomatedvideointerviewtoatelephonescreeninginterview.

When asked to select from five key themes regarding the biggest benefit in completing an automated video interview, the responses are illustrated here in Figure 6.

Whenever you wantThe flexibility offered to candidates to choose the time and date of the interview emerged as the key benefit. Not having to take time off work and overall convenience were also considered advantageous.

Wherever you want Eliminating the need to travel to the screening interview emerged as the second most popular benefit with the majority of these respondents electing to take the interview from home.

Who you areFinally, some respondents liked the interview format as it enabled them to reflect and ponder their responses and also showcase their personality and communications skills.

ChoosingTimethatsuits

OverallConvenience

Nothavingtotaketimeoff

Completingfromhome/

Nothavingtotravel

Gainingtheexperience

“Being able to do it in my own time really helped me to relax and prepare mentally for it.”

“Choosing the time that suited me.”

“The position I was interviewed for is abroad, so not needing to travel is a big help.”

“I was in the most comfortable and relaxed environment possible, it also saved time as I did not have to travel.”

“Having time to consider the question without feeling an awkward silence.”

“Easier to show your personality than a telephone interview.”

4.0 Candidate Conclusions 6



About the Authors

“Asynchronous video screening by Sonru - it’s excellent! It has become an essential and integral part of our recruitment process. Speak to any hiring manager at CERN and they will recommend it to you.”

James Purvis, Head of Recruitment,

CERN

“We’ve been tracking about a 70% conversion rate of offer from face-to-face interview. If we hadn’t been using Sonru, we wouldn’t have been able to get to that level.” Sarah Powell, Recruiter,

BioWare (a part of EA Games)

Sonru, a multi-award winning automated online video interview solution for screening candidates, replaces first round phone and on-site interviews.

Sonru is a global leader in the field of video interviews and video screening. As recognised leaders in this field we have established the effectiveness and validity of using video in the recruitment process. Companies like Volvo, Johnson & Johnson, PaddyPower, BioWare (a Division of EA Games), Allianz Worldwide Care and CERN have innovated in their talent acquisition processes by using Sonru’s video interview solution.

Daniel Richard, Manager Director, Sonru UKPrior to joining Sonru, Daniel spent 10 years at Taleo helping build the company from a small regional start-up to a true industry leader. Daniel held a variety of sales and consulting positions on various continents, including the US and Europe. His last responsibilities included managing direct and indirect sales for EMEA from his base in Amsterdam.

Previously he held a position in HR with Bombardier, a global aerospace and rail transportation manufacturer. Daniel has a Master’s degree in Organizational/Occupational Psychology from Queen’s University in the UK.

Jonathan Campbell, CEO, Social Talent Jonathan Campbell is a career recruiter, trainer, keynote speaker and blogger who uses his skills to help clients find great talent. Having worked as a Recruiter in Ireland and the Caribbean for 13 years, he now runs Social Talent, a leading provider of Recruitment 3.0 services; providing internet recruitment training, social recruitment outsourcing, video production and technology driven consulting services. His company, Social Talent is helping to re-invent how recruiters think about digital marketing and social media, one tweet at a time, whilst running one of the most popular recruitment blogs in Europe. Jonathan graduated from University College Dublin in 1998 with a Bachelors degree in Commerce. Social Talent’s Black Belt in Internet Recruitment qualification is the most popular of its kind in Europe with over 1,000 recruiters having completed the course in the last 10 months alone.

Joy Redmond, Head of Research, Sonru Knowledge HubJoy’s research career began in 1996 as Research Fellow in DIT where she conducted extensive research on the International Expansion of Indigenous Irish Software Companies. For 4 years she was a lecturer in Research Methodology and E-business in DIT and was Course Director of the Masters in Business & Entrepreneurship. As Senior Researcher with Catalyst-MC, she led both qualitative and quantitative projects for clients including eircom, NTL, JC Decaux, McKinsey, Barnardos and Bord Glas. Joy, who has been published widely in both academic and trade publications, joined Sonru in 2010.

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The Candidate Experience of Video Interviewing: Research findings from the Candidates’ perspective