Hannah GoldenbergOlive Communications, a leading Cloud Telephony and Unified Communications provider based in the UK, were looking for an easy and efficient way to make better talent acquisitions. What they weren’t expecting—and found—was a tool that would strengthen stakeholder engagement and become an asset to preliminary candidate screenings. Here’s how they have been able to leverage video interviewing to function as much more than a time-saver.
Goals for Video Interviewing
Before implementing Spark Hire’s software, Olive’s hiring process was highly structured and relatively standard. CVs would be received for an open position, the People team would comb through candidates, select a pool to participate in initial phone interviews, and select candidates from the phone screenings to come in for a face-to-face interview, followed by final stage interviews with key stakeholders.
But the team quickly found they were getting bogged down by the volume of phone interviews, resulting in too much time and energy spent on the wrong candidates. The head of People realized they needed an innovative way to screen candidates more efficiently and looked to Spark Hire’s video interviewing platform for a solution.
The First Steps
Initially, Olive assumed video interviews would help with the front end of the screening process, and it did. They cut out phone interviews from the process entirely and drastically reduced the number of face-to-face interviews, saving valuable time and resources. Spark Hire’s one-way video interviews were a great way to pre-screen candidates more interactively and engagingly, and the more personal insight made it easier to hand-select candidates to move on to the next round of interviews.
The team soon realized that just having a candidate accept or decline to participate in a one-way video interview was a valuable selection tool in itself. As a Managed Cloud Communications Provider, remote working is at the core of Olive Communications’ business model. Video calls were part and parcel to their culture and employee experience pre-COVID, so the team were able to reasonably judge that any candidate who declined to attend a video interview wouldn’t make a good cultural fit within the organization.
The Added Benefits of Video Interviewing
However, it was pleasantly surprising to discover the additional benefits of video interviewing beyond the screening phase. It was quickly discovered that there was more stakeholder engagement with the new hiring process, making it easier to share feedback, make decisions, and avoid hiring stall outs. And by being able to create a more branded, personalized experience using Spark Hire’s software, Olive saw more candidate engagement, resulting in more long-lasting hires
The Results
Video interviewing is now an invaluable part of Olive Communications’ hiring process. By eliminating phone screenings and replacing them with one-way video interviews, the people team has been able to streamline Olive’s talent acquisition and feel more confident and engaged with their new hires. Beyond the screening process, Spark Hire’s software has provided a more interactive experience for key stakeholders, allowing for better communication and faster decision making. Olive sees video interviewing remaining a staple of their hiring process long after COVID, as it’s improved nearly every stage of their recruitment process.
Josh Tolan
