Even as the world recovers from COVID-19, more workers indicate that they would prefer to continue working remotely. According to CNBC, searches for remote jobs on employment websites have increased 460% over the past two years. While some of that increase can be attributed to pandemic-imposed lockdowns, the fact that those numbers remain high indicate sustained worker interest.

 

Employers seem to be enjoying some benefits from this shift to remote work as well. Eighty-three percent of executives report that their transition to remote work during the pandemic was successful, with 87% of those executives making real estate changes based on this new model. These changes include smaller, more agile headquarters, as well as more satellite offices.

 

With this increase in remote work comes a simultaneous rise in remote interviews. Remote work allows employees to work almost anywhere, and that means you need to develop a remote interview process to reach those candidates where they are.

 

eSkill offers companies the ability to extend the remote job interview process into the application with video response questions. By adding video response questions to the skills tests you are already using in your application process, you can ensure that you are hiring the candidates with the best JobFit for your open positions.

How Video Response Questions Work

The eSkill Talent Assessment Platform lets you assess a candidate’s skills while easily integrating with your company’s ATS software. While hard and soft skills tests like Data Analytics and Attention to Detail provide valuable insight into an applicant’s abilities, eSkill rises above the competition with its customizable skills test construction.

 

You can combine any of eSkill’s over 800 subject- and job-based tests to create your own skills test, or you can pick and choose individual questions from their bank of more than 1,600 questions. That way, you can target your skills tests to accurately identify the best candidates for your open position.

 

Another option for building your skills tests is including video response questions. These questions allow candidates to record answers to your questions, whether you ask them to solve a problem or simply verify their identity by holding a photo ID up to the camera.

Making Video Response Questions Part of Your Remote Job Interview Process

Video response questions are an excellent tool for beginning the remote job interview process. Because you can view recordings of each candidate, you can get a good sense of their personality and some of their other skills, including verbal reasoning and communication. Unlike different question types, such as multiple choice or short answers, the candidate has to think more on their feet.

 

Another benefit is that your entire hiring team does not have to meet simultaneously to participate in the remote interview. Unlike live remote interviews, which need to be scheduled and require all members to be present via software like Zoom or Teams, eSkill’s video response questions can be viewed individually at the most convenient time for each team member.

 

Scoring responses is also more flexible. Each hiring team member can assign an individual score, using a simple 1-star to 10-star rating or a more in-depth rubric that you can design yourself. You can choose what aspects of the interview the team members should be looking at in more detail. A supervisor must accept each score, so every candidate’s score is normalized to avoid outlying reviews.

Best Practices for Conducting Remote Interviews Using Video Response Questions

While using video response questions as part of your remote interview process is different from conducting a live remote or in-person interview, there are still some best practices that you should do your best to follow. Some of the most important points include:

 

  • Make sure applicants know video response questions are part of the interview. While you would like each candidate to do their best no matter what, if they know their answer is part of the interview process, they are more likely to step up their game and give you an honest and authentic response.

 

  • Ask only a few highly relevant questions. If you ask too many video response questions, applicants can become fatigued — and they may quit before they are finished. Focus on only a few high-value questions to maximize everyone’s efforts.

 

  • Be attentive. While you can eliminate many applicants before viewing video responses based on their skills profiles, you should make sure to pay close attention to the ones you do view. Not only do they deserve your full attention, but you may find that some candidates present better in these answers than they do on their resumes.

Interested in Making Video Response Questions a Part of Your Remote Interview Process?

Learn how eSkill makes it easy to incorporate interview questions into your skills testing, letting you identify all of the best candidates. Request a demo today.