During the corona epidemic, many processes in the field of human resources management moved to the Internet. Many will probably stay there. One of the processes is virtual or pre-recorded job interviews, and these are increasingly done using artificial intelligence. These interviews, typically, shorten the hiring process, and make it cheaper for companies to find the right candidates.
This change greatly affects those looking for work – but not necessarily for the better. Today, juniors, on their way to their first job, are likely to encounter a bot in their first interview instead of a human. In the most extreme cases of automated video interviews, the bot asks a few predefined questions, gives the candidate a short window of time to answer them, and makes a decision about him. We define such interviews as AI interviews.
Job seekers have many questions about AI interviews. What is the difference in making a good impression in an interview conducted by artificial intelligence versus by a human, and how do you even do it? This guide provides the answers.
What are automated video interviews?
There are many types of interviews that incorporate the use of artificial intelligence. However, it is also important to note that not all video interviews use AI technology. There are interviews that are simply a video recording and the people who will watch them later are the personnel managers. Others will involve using AI to process different types of data collected during the interview recording.
To know if your interview will involve the use of AI, look for the following terms in the invitation you will receive by email beforehand: “machine learning”, “predictive analysis”, “decision-making algorithms”, “recommendation engines” or even “data-driven decisions” .
If you recognize these concepts, you are expected to be tested from three different angles: visual (facial expressions, eye movements, hand movements), verbal (vocabulary, key words) and aural (tone of voice, pronunciation).
An AI interview is not necessarily a good candidate selection tool
AI interviews have one thing in common: in all of them you will find yourself staring at a screen and answering automated questions with little time to think. You will no longer experience real-time human interactions as you might expect.
On the one hand, the innovation in technology and the “elite” quality that is sometimes attributed to AI may make candidates feel as if they are experiencing a futuristic experience that transcends human biases. On the other hand, the lack of human connection during the interview and the pressure of the moment are a difficult combination that may produce or increase anxiety. In our research we found that this experience is often confusing and unsettling.
We found that candidates’ tendency to glorify technology makes them believe it can make decisions better than humans. It makes them feel like they are being “judged” by a higher being. However, artificial intelligence has quite a few shortcomings – for example, it has difficulty identifying personality traits from verbal and non-verbal behaviors observed in videos. The implication: technology is often not a good enough tool for measuring and examining candidates.
For this reason, we advise taking a pragmatic approach that any judgment made through technology is simply inaccurate, and possibly biased. In other words, don’t let AI lower your confidence before or in the interview.
Making a good impression means staying “human”
Many times, AI interview platforms encourage you to simply “be yourself”. However, in our research we noticed that this is exactly what candidates find difficult to do. In the research we conducted, we discovered that in an online video interview the candidates tended to behave unnaturally. They explained to us how they shaped their behavior according to what they thought would help them pass the interview better, for example by making sure to sit up straight, have a frozen gaze and use their hands as little as possible. In trying to make a good impression on the algorithm, many applicants told us they felt like they were “turning into robots themselves.”
Understanding not only what technology is involved, but also what pressures you might feel in AI interviews. The trick is to stay as natural as possible – despite the unnaturalness you may feel. We suggest that candidates practice the interviews in the presence of people online and in person. Get used to talking to the screen. Ask friends to do a Zoom or WhatsApp video call and ask them to ask you questions from a list.
At first, practice opening the camera so your friends can ask you questions when you see them on the screen. The presence of another person will be reassuring and will improve your confidence to answer, as you would in a normal interview. Record yourself, play the recording and analyze what you did right and what you didn’t.
Later, repeat the same exercise with your friends asking questions, but this time with the camera off. It will be weirder talking in front of a black screen, but this way you will get closer to the feeling you will have in an automated video interview. Again, record yourself, analyze the recording, that’s what you did correctly and note to yourself if there were any changes this round.
Finally, prepare a number of questions in the document and conduct the interview alone, without help from another party. Talk to your computer screen and record yourself. how did you do What did you do differently? Following these steps from an analytical approach will help you to be aware of how you perform in different conditions, and when you practice, you will be able to improve your presence in an automated video interview.