Interview committee

An interview committee (usually two people) is created each time we are hiring for a position. They are tasked with posting the job descriptions, thinning the applications, and interviewing promising candidates for a position, and making recommendations to staff. Members of the interview committee are nominated by the HR group and approved by staff.

The report and recommendation of the interview committee will be presented at a staff meeting, and they should be prepared to present reasoning and pros and cons of each top candidate. A top three is a common practice.

Tasks of the interview committee:

• Post job description, see Where to post jobs
• Compose questions that will elicit information about the candidate's experience and personality. Post them to the staff list, and make sure there's a copy in the hiring folder of the fgstaff directory on Free Geek's internal application server. (If it's a position we have hired for before, there may already be questions you can use in that directory.)
• Thin applications down to number you want to interview.
• Block out time for interviews.
• Schedule interviews.
• Add interviews to room use calendar.
• Keep notes. You may want to debrief after each day of interviews to further fix what you've learned in your memory.
• Make a well-supported recommendation to the staff. (Remember, the interview committee isn't choosing the candidate, they're making recommendations. Try to give the staff the clearest, most balanced image of the candidates' qualities you can.)
• Contact the staff's first choice with a job offer. If they are no longer interested, contact the second choice.
• Contact those who were not chosen and let them know it isn't personal (unless it is)
• Disband. Have a beer.