Peer interview process: how to create a great one

Peer interview questions remain one of the most valuable ways of getting to know a prospective candidate. 

In a peer interview, the candidate can ask existing employees questions about the company and job. The hiring manager can then observe whether the applicant will work well with the team and peer group they’re hiring into.

This recruitment tactic isn’t anything new but has been gaining more traction due to increased competition for talent and the current zeitgeist around hiring for cultural fit. Companies have to fight to land top candidates, and peer interviews are genuinely believed to improve a company’s ability to sell to in-demand candidates.

This post will explain peer interviewing, its pros and cons, setting up a peer interview, and what questions to ask.

What is a peer interview?

In a standard interview, the candidate will meet with a hiring manager and/or a recruiter. In a peer interview, the candidate will meet with a present employee or group of employees in the company. Usually, this future peer (or peers) has a direct connection with the role being hired for, either a team leader or someone who’s held the position before.

Peers will then report back to the hiring manager, feeding back their thoughts on the candidate.

This is a common assessment method for small companies and team-orientated businesses because peer interview questions can better indicate a candidate’s culture fit. However, that’s not to say large enterprises aren’t using this method. Amazon, IBM, and Google utilise peer interviews in their recruiting process [1].

When considering whether to include peer interviews in your hiring process, you want to be sure that it will enhance the recruiting process. Let’s review some of the method’s pros and cons.

What are the advantages?

Done correctly, peer interviewing will make it easier to see if the job is a good fit on both sides for the following reasons:

• Transfer of knowledge

Candidates will be able to learn more about the company from current employees. They are much more likely to tell it like it is and give an honest picture of working there.

• Authenticity

Applicants are far more likely to let their guard down with peers. The organisation will get a much better sense of the behaviour of a candidate and how it fits with the work environment. 

• Team engagement

Engaging current employees in the recruitment process is good for morale and productivity. Involving team members in selecting their future coworkers and allowing them to ask questions gives them a greater sense of belonging in the organisation. 

• Building relationships

Employees who are already invested in the candidate’s success after meeting them are more likely to engage with them actively at work. New hires can also start their first day after meeting their new colleagues.

What are the disadvantages?

The downside of peer-to-peer interviewing can be managed but should be carefully considered:

• Peers may portray the company in a bad light

The interview is a two-way street; the candidate also assesses the organisation’s quality. Unhappy employees might interview applicants, talk about the problems with the company, and end up discouraging the candidates from taking the job.

• Peers might feel threatened by qualified candidates

People are competitive. Some employees will feel their position is threatened by a candidate who might outperform them. Objectivity could go out the window. The employee could not recommend him/her out of their insecurities.

• An interview, not an interrogation

A six-person interview is not what the candidate will be expecting or appreciating. If a candidate doesn’t expect to talk to employees, it can feel overwhelming and scare some candidates away.

• Peers become less productive

Staff need to take time out of work to participate in a peer interview; this causes a dip in productivity. This is even more acute when a peer has to speak with multiple candidates.

How to create a peer interviewing process that works for your business

The peer interview process often fails because employees aren’t provided specific guidelines on what to look for in new hires or given appropriate training. If you want to create an efficient and productive peer interview process, then here are some tips:

1. Provide interview training

Employees should know the right and wrong peer interview questions to ask. They should also be aware of what interview questions are unprofessional and, in some cases, illegal. Before conducting interviews, put employees through a training process. Check in on employees regularly to see if they’re still up to speed.

2. Create an interview structure

While you want to give a certain level of conversational flexibility, you must establish a certain structure for the interview process. All candidates should be asked the same questions to minimise the risk of hiring bias. Setting a time limit for the interviews can be useful, but don’t pressure the employee, so it becomes robotic. 

3. Choose the right peer interviewers

Decide who will be in the peer interview. Although you will not be conducting it yourself, you should still have a great deal of authority over the process.

Select employees who are enthusiastic and knowledgeable about the position and the business. It’s also important to pick a diverse group of employees to ensure all applicants feel like this is a place for them and to help reduce the chances of hiring discrimination. 

4. Make candidate requirements clear

Each peer chosen for the interview needs to know what they’re looking for. The expectations and requirements of the role should be at the forefront of their minds. While their personal feelings and rapport are important, they’re not looking for their best friend to join the company. The candidate needs to be able to do the job.

Employees should read the ideal candidate profile before the interview and be aware of how unconscious bias can hurt the hiring process. 

5. Create a structured evaluation process

Exactly the same as desiring a structured interview process, employees should also have clear guidance on assessing and providing feedback following its conclusion.

Each peer’s evaluation process will provide consistency and allow accurate comparisons between candidates. Many use a rating scale of 1-5 for each required job characteristic.

6. Put peer interviews towards the end of the recruitment process

The candidates who go through your peer interview process should be those you see as near-definite potential hires. Instigating them too early in the process wastes time and resources.

7. Make it clear who has the final decision

While peer feedback is very important – it’s not the only basis for making a hiring decision. At the end of the process, you should calculate scores on several factors accumulated throughout the recruitment process.

Highlight who the final decision-maker is early on in the process so everyone has realistic expectations and avoid disappointing team members who may have strong candidate preferences. 

Closing

Peer interviews are a great way for you and your team to get a clear picture of what a candidate might be like to work alongside. It also indicates what working in the role might be like for the candidates. However, you must establish an appropriate structure and ensure that employees are well-versed in what peer interview questions are appropriate. 

Lastly, understand that it’s a moving process and is open to amendments. If you haven’t done so before, try utilising this type of assessment in your next hire. Reassess after completion and make appropriate changes.