Avoid these Mistakes when Interviewing Applicants

This months tip comes courtesy of Ken Burgin.

Thursday nights episode (4 March) of My Restaurant Rules saw hundreds of applicants lining up to apply for a job with their local restaurant. Some of it looked like fun and there were also a lot of unhappy people who gave up before they had an interview. There are serious public relations issues at stake when you a handle large numbers of applicants, and its possible to keep them as friends and future customers, even if you dont offer them a job. But it needs a strategy.

If you run smart job ads (see the article Job Ads that work ) you can attact many high-quality applicants. Make sure you put filters in your ad so unsuitable people wont bother to ring e.g. must have at least 5 years experience, must be a permanent resident, must be a qualified chef. Now the responsibility is over to YOU to handle inquiries and manage the shortlist so no one feels wounded or rejected. There is also a major time-management issue here you can't tie up hours and days interviewing or even seeing people who would never be suitable.

Lets assume you've had a strong response, now you need to handle the selection quickly, efficiently and fairly:

1. Do a quick cull over the phone and look for clues as to suitability e.
2. Make an open time for selected applicants to visit e.
3. If you have interviewed and narrowed it down to a small number of preferred applicants, ask them to think about the job and call you back if they're interested (e.
4. If you have a large number of applicants (such as on TV tonight), run a group information session firs
5. When youve finished the session, let applicants know when one-on-one interviews will be held - this will be the opportunity for them to bring their CV alon
6. A letter to all those unsuccessful? Great idea, but it rarely happens in the busy world of restaurants (or most other businesses), and if you've used the method above you wont have anxious people waiting for a call that will never come