How to arrange interviews across time zones and hectic schedules

In their work to strengthen country systems, aid groups increasingly look to recruit locals. Local experts not only often provide the best solutions that work on the ground, but hiring them is generally more cost-effective than engaging expatriates. Recruiting locals come with many challenges, though. Differences in language, culture, employment laws and access to technology can greatly affect recruitment in the field. Then there is the issue of location. For many recruiters, one basic challenge is to not only organize interviews with applicants who are on the other side of the globe but also ensure the availability of hiring managers, who more often than not have busy schedules, to speak with candidates. Here are some strategies veteran recruiters shared with Devex on how to get that done. Be flexible Be ready to interview outside official hours. Asia, for instance, is half a day ahead of the United States. That might mean scheduling interviews with candidates from that region either during the early morning (before 9 a.m.) or very late evening U.S. time. Be organized Here are some ways to set up and keep track of interview schedules: - Consult sites like www.timeanddate.com to determine the exact time where applicants are located. - Suggest just enough time slots to ensure flexibility in schedule. Two would be ideal. - Place a question mark on the suggested time slot if the interview is not yet confirmed and take it out once the schedule becomes final. - In the first email to candidates, confirm in what manner they want to be interviewed, either via phone or Skype. - When scheduling interviews between candidates and hiring managers, confirm the time in both of their time zones to make sure one of them doesn’t miscalculate time differences. Decentralize recruitment Some organizations have spread out recruitment responsibilities across many global offices. This allows employers to have recruiters closer to the projects and field to better understand their staffing needs and makes it easier to recruit locally. With more and more candidates being hired locally, this helps to align time zones with those candidates and enables greater time zone coverage as a whole for the organization. Work closely with the hiring managers on their availability Members of the hiring team tend to have very busy schedules, and so it can be a challenge to find a common time that they will agree on for interviews. It does pay to work closely with their assistants to check their calendars and pin down the availability of their bosses. It also helps to set expectations for the hiring team very early in the recruitment process. Sit down with members of that team and emphasize the importance of their role and to have them be available to speak with applicants because it would ensure timely hiring of people they want. Interview tools If finding a common schedule proves to be difficult at first, some recruiters opt to give what is called a written prescreen. They send candidates a set of questions and ask them to email their answers back. This is one way to see if candidates can write, an essential skill for positions that do a lot of reporting such as chiefs of party. For the interview proper, recruiters who spoke with Devex say they prefer Skype over phones as the latter may prove unreliable during rainy season. Devex and several other organizations like the African Development Bank and Asian Development Bank use a video interviewing tool to address many of the challenges that come with interviewing across time zones and amid hectic schedules. Recruiters enter the questions they want asked and the candidates are sent a link where they can complete a video interview on their own time. They can share the recorded videos with hiring managers, and collaboration tools make it easy to quickly assess the candidate and come to a hiring decision. Learn more about the Devex Video Interviewing service.