If you are searching for the right Virtual Assistant there are a few key questions you can ask when interviewing a candidate.
It’s important to gain an accurate impression of a candidate you don’t want to miss out on the ideal Virtual Assistant or end up with the regret of hiring the wrong VA.
It’s important to frame questions so that the person being interviewed answers them honestly. If you build repour with your candidate and make them feel relaxed you are more likely to get honest answers.
If you make your candidate feel nervous or put pressure on them in the interview then all you end up doing is finding out if they will crack under pressure or think on their feet. Initially this may seem like a good idea however you will probably miss out on finding out what type of person they really are and how they will handle different situations.
Life Resolutions’s van de Berg takes a similar approach to the start of an interview.
“I really like simply asking somebody what their plan is,” he says. “If the interviewer can learn to manage the silence that follows asking that question, they’ll get quite a lot of useful information about the candidate.”
Given that a person’s skill set can effectively be determined from their CV and references, a face-to-face (Skype) interview should be treated as an opportunity to find out about the candidate’s personality and motivation.
Simply asking the candidate about why they want the job can reveal an enormous amount about their motivation, and how they’re likely to approach the role.
“The point is that you’re not trying to lead the person, you’re just trying to get them to answer that question from their own perspective,” he continues. “If you went and asked ‘do you plan to stay in this industry’, if they want the job they’re probably going to say yes. But if you asked them what their plan is, you’ll get the answer without having lead them there.”
To read more tips about interview questions see referenced article A beginner’s guide to conducting interviews Posted on April 6, 2011 www.nett.com.au by Luke Telford Read.
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