69 Types and Structures of Employment Interviews
Stéphane Brutus; Nora Baronian; and Verna Johnson
Structuring the Interview
In addition to training, another way to improve the interview process is to use a structured format. A structured interview is based on a pre-determined set of questions that relate directly to the job. Interviewers score each answer using a consistent method, which creates a fairer process and makes it easier to compare candidates.
Structured interviews have been shown to predict job performance up to twice as well as unstructured ones (Wiesner & Cronshaw, 1988). They are especially useful when combined with other selection tools such as skills tests or reference checks.
It is also important to choose the right interview type for each job. Some positions may only require one interview, while others may involve multiple stages, such as phone screenings and in-person or video interviews.
Types of Interviews
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Traditional interview: A one-on-one conversation between the interviewer and candidate. This usually happens in an office setting.
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Telephone/Video interview: These are often used to screen candidates before inviting them to an in-person interview. For example, if you receive 200 résumés and narrow them down to 25, it’s common to do phone interviews to select 8–10 finalists.
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Panel interview: Multiple interviewers meet with a single candidate. This saves time and helps ensure a more balanced evaluation.
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Group interview: Several candidates are interviewed at the same time. This can be useful for roles that require teamwork or collaboration.
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Meal, tour, or cocktail interview: Some companies take candidates out for a meal or tour the office as part of the interview. This setting can reveal more about the candidate’s social skills and professionalism. While casual in appearance, these interviews are often still structured using detailed evaluation sheets.
Most organizations use more than one type of interview in their hiring process, depending on the nature of the job.
Attribution
This section was adapted from Chapter 20 “Employment Interview” in Human Resources Management – Canadian Edition and is used under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International license.
References
References are at the end of this chapter.
