As the world is running forward, the quality of everything is getting better. The hiring process as well as the interview too is a part of the race. With the increase of competition between candidates, the hiring process has become a little hard for the recruiters. All candidates are just better than each other in many different aspects. So, just for the hiring process of a better candidate or better deserving candidate, peer interview has been brought up to the scene. The peer interview has made the selection as well as the screening process a bit easy for companies all over the world. If you don’t know what is peer interview is and how it works then don’t worry, we are going to explain everything so that you excel in every interview no matter if it’s a normal one or with a peer one. Let’s start with the basics of knowledge about What is a Peer Interview?
What is a Peer Interview?
As the name suggests, a Peer interview means an interview between you and your future peers or in simple language your future colleagues. In a peer interview, you don’t only get interviewed by the employer but also with the ones with who you are going to work within the future (if selected). The main goal of the peer interview is to see if the candidate is fit for not only the job position but also, he/is fit for the team and organization as well.
As peer interview was introduced not long ago, there are not many countries going for this option of interview. Mainly small companies go for the peer interview. However, as the popularity of this kind of interview is increasing, recently big companies like Google, Facebook, Microsoft, etc. have started taking this kind of interview.
What is the process of a peer interview?
Generally, the employer develops a standardized process for hiring through peer interviews. They very smartly select the participants who are going to take part in the interview based on their resumes. So, make sure to update your resume at every chance you get. The recruiters generally have an idea of on what basis they are going to select a candidate after the peer interview. They explain the same i.e., their requirement and evaluation criteria to the candidates so that they come prepared.
When it comes to questions asked, they generally go for ‘how you can benefit the team with your skills’ or How are your skills relevant for the position that you have applied for’. The other peers sitting in the interview are allowed to counter-question you based on the answer. The main recruiter has no part in this two-way conversation; however, he does sit in the interview and observe everything that is going on very keenly. If you are lucky, some companies even offer a mock practice session before the actual interview. They believe that peer interview is a new concept in the market, so they need to make sure that no candidates especially freshers get extra nervous about it.
The candidates are allowed to question back during the interview. If explained thoroughly, we can say that a Peer interview is kind of like a GD (group discussion) session with more professionalism in it. You can question back to the peer if you don’t agree with them or any of the reasons you feel is necessary to question back. This will only show the recruiter how confident you are.
The selection process is just like the normal interview. Stand out to the interviewer and grab the job. Although during the peer interview you have to be extra careful to not sound rude to your peers. Make sure your tone is calm and confident rather than disrespectful.
As it is a new concept introduced not long ago, peer interview has some pros and cons. For some candidates, this is a very helpful kind of interview but for the ones who have a bit of fear of getting all attention, peer interview is kind of hard. Let’s look closely what are the advantage and disadvantages of peer interviews.
Advantages of peer interview:
- Increase in candidates experience:
As per a candidate’s point of view, Geeting to talk with not only your recruiter but also your future boss and teammates looks good. If your interview goes well, you can catch them getting more friendly as time passes. As a candidate and future employee of the company, you cannot help but get a hint of curiosity in you about how you would love to hear more about your team and your part in it.
Getting interviewed with multiple members of the team gives you a better idea of the job that you have applied for. You will learn their workflow and about their culture even before you become a part of the organization. If you are a fresher. Imagine the benefits you will receive with just one peer interview. If somehow, you don’t get selected for the job, you still will be benefited from this process and there will be a high chance that you will excel in your next interview with much more confidence and experience.
- The employer will get multiple perspectives on a candidate:
Having multiple points of view on a single topic is always good. Imagine how much knowledge a candidate will be increasing with different points of view of his/her future jobs And if the interview is more like a normal conversation like just a few groups of people discussing the common interest of the job, imagine how cool the whole process will look.
Even for the employers themselves, this will be like another screening process where they can select a better candidate for their company. If a candidate cannot select one candidate out of many because all the candidates are better than each other in many different perspectives, then this peer interview is like a blessing to them.
This type of interview is also a safe spot for the recruiters as some of the candidates if not selected start blaming the organization for asking some absurd questions. With the peer interview in the scene, there will no space for mistakes on both sides. The interview process will be as smooth as it needs to be, benefiting both ends equally.
Disadvantages of the peer interview:
Well, everything has few disadvantages with them. Peer interviews too have some of it. So let us take a look at it:
- It is time consuming:
A normal interview with just two or maybe three people takes a minimum amount of time of 20-30 minutes approximately. Now Imagine an interview with a group of people numbering from 8-10 people, taking their own time to put their point of view on the table.
Not only the time taken for the interview, but when a candidate leaves a room after his/her interview, the recruiters take their time to evaluate the candidate. So the whole process is tiring and time taking.
A recruiter can improve this aspect by correctly organizing this kind of interview depending on how many qualified candidates there are to interview and how often, this can quickly add up.
- Biasness:
Well, this one is the worst of all disadvantage of a peer interview. In peer interviews, there are 2-3 candidates who are taken interview together. Adding an extra human element in the interview increases the risk of bias sneaking its way in. Having biasness in an interview could heavily cloud our judgments.
Especially if few untrained employees are taking an interview of a candidate can harm the assessment of the applicant.
- Increase of nervousness of a candidate:
Well, not everyone in this world is a bold and confident type. Some are a bit shy and conserved and have a tiny bit of fear of getting attention. This type of interview could harm the candidate. Like for example, If a candidate is a very skillful one with a good resume and achievements but is a bit afraid of having more than 10 people taking that person interview will feel like a public execution to him or her. This could also lead to problems like anxiety.
So, the company going for this kind of interview need to make sure to consider this factor while evaluating an applicant. They need to make sure that the arrangements made for the interview are comfortable for the candidates and the people who are going to take the interview should be friendly and properly trained as well.
Now that you know what is peer interview and its hiring process, make sure to train yourself based on these factors. Whatever type of interview you will be giving in the future, give it with confidence. Improve your speaking ability and keep upgrading your skills. Make sure to make your resume much stronger and highlight your achievements in it. This will help you to get an interview call much sooner than you imagine. All the best.
