Updated at 01/07/2022 - 02:02 pm
In our years of working in finance and accounting, we have time and again seen the same mistakes made in the hiring process of financial management professionals. Often mistakes come from two important points: the hiring manager doesn't know exactly what he or she is looking for in a finance manager position or is unsure of how to evaluate candidates during the interview process. apply for job.
Below, we present simple steps that can determine what your business really needs and is looking for in candidates, along with helpful tips for measuring this criteria to help recruiters choose. filter The most suitable financial management professional.
Understand the importance of the interview #
An interview is usually the first time a candidate meets a company representative. A good interview will help the candidate understand more about the culture and people in the company in a positive way. Many job description posts are generic, providing only minor details of a job position. During the interview, the interviewer can tell the candidate more about what the financial manager position entails, as well as the salary and benefits associated with career development opportunities.
With a CV, candidates can only provide a small amount of information about them. Therefore, the interview is an opportunity for the interviewer to get more information about the candidate. This information can range from a candidate's educational background to their work history, skills highlights, and experience. However, it is only during the interview that you can confirm whether the candidate has the unique skills as stated in their application.
During the interview, you not only need to evaluate the hard work or expertise of each candidate, but you also need to evaluate them in all aspects such as soft skills, cultural fit, career goals.
Assess financial management professional skills in an interview #
What are the professional requirements for the finance manager position you are looking for? Be it leadership, analysis, math or technology skills, etc. Hard skills are factors that can be measured from experience, day-to-day responsibilities with work, and training. So, carefully review the job description and consult with your line manager and financial management expertise to determine the hard skills needed to succeed in this position. .
The question is how can you test a candidate's hard skills during the interview process?
- Prepare well-prepared competency interview questions first to encourage candidates to give examples of times they have demonstrated financial management skills in the past. Because competency-based interview questions will help you learn and evaluate job-related skills and knowledge in the best way.
- Design a competency test for candidates to complete before or during the interview. Such assessments should most closely reflect the skills required to succeed in the position.
- Design assessment scenarios to determine exactly how candidates respond to specific situations related to the job you are interviewing for.
Assess the soft skills needed to recruit financial management professionals #
In addition to professional competence, soft skills are also essential to evaluate a candidate for a financial manager position. Soft skills contain no expertise, are intangible, and are difficult to measure and define. So how to determine the right candidate for the position of financial manager needs to possess which soft skills?
Go back to the job description and think about what soft skills would benefit someone in this position. For example, a financial management professional needs to have a high sense of responsibility, a positive attitude and mindset at work, a dynamic, flexible problem-solving ability, the ability to communicate, a team spirit, the ability to analyze - learn - adapt highly, withstand pressure, manage time to work with a plan...
When candidates are in front of you, how can their soft skills be assessed in an interview?
- Again, you can build competency-based interview questions to learn more about the candidate's soft skills. Example: Can you describe the process of building relationships with colleagues? How do you manage your day to work? Tell me about a time you made a mistake and how to fix it? Can you describe a creative option you suggested and how it worked for your previous work.
- You also need to be able to observe, listen to psychological analysis to see how each candidate demonstrates soft skills, such as the way they talk to you, analyze whether they are a confident person who can build good relationships with key decision makers or not. Listening to the candidate's questions will also help you understand how they diagnose problems and process data.
Soft skills are an important factor in financial management talent interviews and they are the key to distinguishing between a good professional on paper and a good one in practice.
Determining cultural fit in an interview #
In addition to professional knowledge and soft skills, the candidate's suitability with the group, organization, and company culture is also something that businesses need to pay great attention to when recruiting.
Many employers often focus too much on skills and forget that the right fit is also a decisive factor to develop a strong team and business.
- To avoid this mistake and select the most suitable financial management professional for your company, before your interview, take the time to analyze the description of the team, organization and culture of the business. mine. From there, make reasonable questions and specific assessment situations.
For example, your business is a place where everyone is very friendly and there is a team spirit, where cooperation and mindset value accompanies problem solving with customers. Give specific situations to identify this characteristic in the candidate during the interview.
- You can also refer candidates for financial management positions to other members of the business. Let these people know exactly what you're evaluating candidates for, so they can chat, ask questions, and provide feedback on each candidate to help you see your cultural fit.
Identify career goals in the interview #
Finally, think about your career development goals, training and development opportunities available for a financial manager position. Then, during your interviews, ask questions to determine each candidate's career goals and analyze whether they are capable of taking advantage of these available opportunities. If a candidate is unable to provide detailed and relevant answers that show they have the potential to be a long-term employee, this may not be the right job or opportunity for them.
You should also find out their expectations for training and career development. If internal advancement and development are a core part of your employee retention strategy, you'll want to hire a candidate with the right career goals and expectations.
In summary, it is important to select the best financial management professional with the skills you need. In addition to professional knowledge, it is necessary to evaluate each person's soft skills, working style and ambition. candidate. While these factors are difficult to pinpoint, taking the time to research and evaluate them increases your chances of finding, hiring, and retaining the best candidates for the job.
