Face-to-face or online interviews: What’s more beneficial?

According to a career expert, both in-person and online processes are vital for effective recruitment; however, HR leaders must be strategic with timing.

In this cost-of-living crisis, 50 per cent of respondents in an Indeed survey last year reported wanting to be paid to attend interviews. Despite the commuting costs involved for candidates, Indeed career expert Sally McKibbin (pictured) told HR Leader that there are still many benefits to this age-old method.

McKibbin advised a company that returned to face-to-face interviews after a candidate used AI during an online interview to answer questions.

“Now they’re moving to face-to-face because they’re nervous about the fact that they’re making some bad hires, which cost more to the business,” she said.

Although AI could be used to cheat in an interview, McKibbin urged that it is a useful tool for efficiency for recruiters. “As application volumes grow exponentially, AI is helping employers screen candidates and streamline the early stages of recruitment, making the process faster and more manageable,” she said.

McKibbin said that in “the moments that really influence a jobseeker’s decision”, such as interviews, candidates still value human interaction.

According to Indeed data, nearly seven in 10 (69 per cent) candidates and employers reported favouring interviews that were face-to-face. Seventy per cent of these respondents believed that it allowed a stronger impression to be made, with 60 per cent valuing the natural, spontaneous interactions that in-person interviews allow, and 58 per cent reporting that it helps build stronger connections, while reducing the risk of miscommunication.

“I was quite surprised by some of these numbers because it [shows that] a much stronger impression [and] ... a different kind of rapport [can be built] ... in-person,” McKibbin said.

Forty-nine per cent of respondents to Indeed’s survey said that in-person interviews allowed candidates to experience the workplace and commute firsthand, and 52 per cent said it provided them with insights into company culture.

“They … are really interested in experiencing the workplace [and] the commute … They also get to see a little bit inside the company culture – from the person that greets you when you arrive to the person you might meet in the hall or [as] you go get a coffee in the kitchen – and [they] can get a better feel of what the organisation is like,” she added.

However, McKibbin said that having flexibility in the recruitment process is crucial, particularly to cater for the many candidates who are time-poor. She added that there is certainly a place for virtual interviews in the pre-screening process, which allows recruiters to efficiently create a short list of candidates, with face-to-face interviews proving valuable for the later stages.

“[Make] sure that the interview feels very worth it for the jobseeker, and if you are going to ask them to have multiple interviews, [have] maybe one face-to-face and others can be done more conveniently online,” she said.