AESC ‘Art of the Virtual Interview’

The AESC, through its BlueSteps offering, recently published a useful and timely guideline for those who will be interviewed in a video setting. Like so much of what has happened during the COVID pandemic, video or virtual interviewing is a trend that has accelerated dramatically since spring 2020. In my role as Managing Partner at Boyden with work stretching across Asia Pacific, I (like others) had been using video technology to conduct both client and candidate interviews for a few years at least. This was used to keep the process as efficient as possible, reduce unessential travel costs, and augment initial phone interviews. Face-to-face interviews were still required for developing our shortlist, and, of course, for clients to make their final selection. COVID travel restrictions and the need for 14 to 21-day quarantines turned all this on its head. For a while, even interviews in the same city had to be view video links due to social distancing requirements. What began as a ‘nice to have’ has become a necessity. Once the video interview was a bit of a novelty, is now commonplace and often required. As a result, those partaking in video or virtual interviews need to treat the process with the same level of attention and seriousness as a face-to-face interview. This is why the AESC article is so useful.

A couple of quick takeaways and some reasons to take the time to access the article. On the one hand, we are reminded that an interview is an interview. So, the points about giving thoughtful answers, maintaining engagement with the interviewer(s), show enthusiasm, speaking clearly all still apply in this format. On the other hand, the article provides excellent guidance on how to perform best in this setting. The need for proper equipment, lighting, and an appropriate background is covered. Coming across as best as possible in a virtual interview format is one of the best take-aways. It is good for those being interviewed as well as for those of us usually conducting the interview.

Read the "Art of the Interview" from the AESC