Hiring health workers: Criteria for the job interview

There are several safeguards in place during the selection process, namely background checks and verification of employment and education. The law now requires extensive verification of licenses etc. RNs now need to be fingerprinted in California.

The selection process for almost all positions is the same whether online or completed in a more traditional manner. Screening telephone interviews are common and, in my opinion, a great timesaver. Sometimes they are done by HR. I prefer to do mine myself. The purpose of a screening interview is to clarify any ambiguous areas and only bring in candidates for personal interviews that meet all the qualifications. It is also the time when HR or the hiring manager usually outline the hiring process for the candidate, including the need for a background and reference check. Applications are taken in good faith until a job offer is made.

However, a skilled interviewer can cut quickly though a facade and is impervious to the tricks of some candidates. Interviewing is a subjective game. One of my favorite books on interviewing tells us "It is evident that such game playing is more common in interviews today than it was ten or fifteen years ago. A major reason for this trend is that interviewees are growing more skillful, whereas interviewers are performing at a relatively constant level" (Goodale, p. 4).

A healthcare manager is constantly in hiring mode it seems. Having made some bad hires earlier in my career I learned what questions and styles worked best for given situations. Our readings this week speak to interviewing.

What makes for a good interview? How should it be approached? How would you prepare if you had never done an interview before?