Collecting Hiring Team Feedback for Better Decision Making

Collecting feedback from your hiring team is critical to making a good selection. However, it can be challenging to compile and collect feedback from each decision maker. Below are best practices for collecting feedback and making the most of it.

What is a Hiring Team or Hiring Committee?

The hiring team includes everyone responsible for any part of the hiring process. In a small organization, it may be just the hiring manager and business owner. In larger companies, it may include ten or more people, such as the hiring manager, the director to whom the hiring manager reports, and members of the new hire’s team.

The hiring manager leads the hiring team and is the person who requests to fill the position (a process called a job requisition). Creating a formal job requisition process is helpful.

Why is Having a Hiring Team or Hiring Committee Beneficial?

Involving more than one decision maker leads to better hiring outcomes. Each decision maker brings a unique perspective, making the evaluation multi-dimensional. When people in various roles participate in evaluating candidates, the process is more comprehensive.

A group decision is especially important for determining whether the applicant will work well with your team. For example, if the new hire will work closely with other team members but have less frequent contact with the manager, those who will work directly with the new hire should evaluate the candidate.

Be cautious when evaluating cultural fit. Avoid using age, gender, or ethnicity in decisions to build a diverse team and reduce the risk of discrimination. Evaluations should focus on non-discriminatory characteristics.

When assembling a hiring team, consider including people with a proven track record of selecting successful hires.

The Challenges of Collecting Hiring Team Feedback

Without a standardized process, collecting feedback can be ineffective and inefficient. Common pitfalls of an unstructured process include:

• ​Conversations dispersed among various channels (face-to-face, emails, texts, phone calls, apps like Slack)
• ​Lack of documentation for hiring team collaboration
• ​No formal scoring system, leading to inconsistent evaluations
• ​Team members duplicating processes due to unclear task assignments
• ​Losing track of applications without a centralized database
• ​Poor hiring outcomes due to not leveraging each evaluator’s expertise

What is a Structured Feedback Process?

A structured process covers both administration and evaluation.

Hiring Workflows

A structured administrative process, or hiring workflow, involves the talent acquisition or HR manager designing a process for the hiring committee. Tasks are identified and assigned to appropriate team members (e.g., HR manager contacts references, hiring manager maintains the interview calendar). Communication is formalized, such as requiring all communication through a group email.

Frequent in-person or video meetings help keep the process on track, allowing the hiring manager to update the team and remind members of overdue tasks.

Hiring Stages

Identifying hiring stages helps track each applicant’s status, speeding up the process and preventing bottlenecks. Create folders (electronic or paper-based) for stages like Schedule Phone Screen, Schedule First Round of Interviews, Do Not Pursue, Check References, Waiting for Background Check, etc.

Reducing time to fill improves talent quality, as top candidates are less likely to be hired by competitors with faster processes.

Structured Evaluation

Use interview scorecards to rate candidates. A scorecard addresses each required hard and soft skill, with evaluators assigning points based on how well the candidate meets each requirement. Nice-to-have skills can be included with lower point values.

Decision makers should complete the scorecard during or shortly after the interview, allowing for objective comparison of candidates by score.

The Benefits of a Structured Feedback Process

Combining a great team with a structured process increases the odds of finding top talent. Benefits include:

• ​Ensures each evaluator considers all relevant skills and characteristics
• ​Speeds up the process with a checklist approach
• ​Helps prevent bias by using scorecards based on job requirements
• ​Standardized communication keeps everyone informed
• ​Differentiates applicants with similar qualifications

ApplicantStack Automates Collecting Hiring Team Feedback

ApplicantStack is an applicant tracking system for small to mid-size businesses that automates the feedback collection process. The hiring manager can create scorecards and send them to each hiring committee member, with links to the candidate’s resume and screening questionnaire.

ApplicantStack Calculates an Average Rating for Fast and Easy Comparison

Each team member completes the form during or after the interview. ApplicantStack then combines the forms and calculates an average rating, making it easy to compare candidates and reducing the influence of unconscious bias.

Auto Reminders Reduce Hiring Delays

If a team member forgets to submit their evaluation, ApplicantStack sends a reminder email, reducing delays and relieving the hiring manager from follow-up.

Centralized Applicant Management

Evaluation forms and candidate ratings are stored and managed in ApplicantStack, eliminating the need for printed forms or manual spreadsheets.

Benefits of using ApplicantStack to collect hiring team feedback:

• ​Electronic evaluation forms are stored and managed in the system
• ​Custom scoring criteria can be created for each job posting
• ​Team members rate candidates using the same criteria
• ​Evaluation forms link to the applicant’s resume and questionnaire
• ​ApplicantStack calculates an average rating from collective scores
• ​Candidates can be easily compared using formalized scoring criteria

This article is part of a hiring guide for small businesses, covering topics such as creating job descriptions, defining selection criteria, posting jobs, candidate screening, scheduling interviews, conducting interviews, collecting team feedback, and making your selection.