What are some tips for remote hiring success? For both vetting and courting candidates...

I'm not sure it's significantly different than it was previously for me. In fact, for some of my other jobs, there's always been some remote element to the hiring process (video call, phone screen, etc.) that hasn't changed.

It's obviously tougher to get some of the body language components that you used to be able to get in person, but at the end of the day, you still have to determine remotely if you think the person will fit your organization (and vice versa). The way that the candidate acts over Zoom will likely be mirrored in their day-to-day lives if you actually hire them, so run through some likely scenarios/interviews/panels that might mimic that experience.

Try to keep it as relaxed as possible.

Don’t ask yes/no questions.

Ask questions that are open-ended and engaging.

By turning it into a dialogue, rather than 2 monologues, you get to see the real person.

I've had many geographically disparate and remote workers or teams whether leading a corporate ITO or in an advisory capacity. If I need to hire internally or for a client, I use the specific team's dynamic as my touchstone.

I look for what makes them cohesive, what made them excel and what a common thread might be: a shared common experience (e.g. all have young children/babies), jocularity and sense of humor, past times (e.g., gamers,  makers or DIYer's), common languages .. whatever I can ascertain.  Because

technical skills can be always be learned, even some soft skills, but chalk and cheese personalities is a recipe for disaster. 

The hiring process may take a little longer but avg. length of employment as a KPI has always increased significantly.  I also use that fact to court/entice new employees and make it known to contractors.

The entire employee experience is important, starting with the pre-hire brand experience into recruiting… and don’t let your alumni experience go right now. I have really good relationships with key Recruiters and HR Business Partners for my portfolio areas, and I could not do it without them.

Beyond that, instead of peppering with questions, getting to a conversation is critical. They are evaluating what the company will be like as much as you are seeing what they would be like.

I also hire across programs, so I really can pivot folx into where they really want to work. Don’t shoehorn people in when it doesn’t make sense, there are always more to interview.

I believe we need diverse interview panels & a diverse slates of candidates. This is important all the time, but the added differences of what people need to be successful working from anywhere has taught me so much to hire & share expectations better.

We’re also doubling down on virtual community groups internally, and these are great to understand what is needed to fit the culture & add to it… and know what we need to be better at for finding, vetting, and getting the best candidates.

Whenever possible we try to have internal references. Or at least 2 degrees of Kevin Bacon. When you have 130k employees and probably 40k contractors it works and those employees usually turn out to fit better than placement service finds

And for many roles we offer a referral bonus paying after 6 months of the new employees working out ok