Hiring a UX Designer? Questions to Ask (for recruiters)
The recruitment process always starts with a short call with the recruiter. As someone looking to hire a UX Designer, you should already know that hiring for UX doesn’t have too much in common with general tech staffing. If you are just starting to work with Design roles recruitment screens might be confusing.
Let’s discuss how an ideal recruitment screen for UX looks like, and what questions you should ask your next design candidate.
Where to start?
The purpose of the initial recruitment screen is to roughly understand if the candidate meets the job requirements, and give the candidate as much insight into the role as you can.
Before you start interviewing your Design candidates for an open role you should map out a list of the right questions to ask and how you will structure the interview.
Get ready for the interview
It’s crucial for you to be fully prepared for the interview. Make sure you’ve talked to the hiring manager before you meet with candidates, and you understand the role, requirements, and responsibilities. You should also be familiar with the CV and portfolio before the interview starts so that you can focus on your questions, not the candidate’s background that is clearly stated in their resume.
Create an interview script
I suggest crafting an interview script and sticking to it. Define questions that need to be asked and how you phrase them. This may sound boring, but you will improve your interview skills and keep the quality of information you get from the candidate. By consistently using the same script for a given role, you’ll become stronger at evaluating the skill set and learn to see differences in how candidates answer your questions.
Still, the best advantage of having an interview script is that you can set up the right timeline expectations for the candidate and keep a quick pace.
The UX of Hiring for UX roles
Here’s how you can create a positive recruitment experience for your Design candidates:
Make your candidate feel comfortable. All in all, that’s a basic human need to feel safe! Show them that you care about their time and personal space while choosing the time for the call and while answering their pre-interview questions.
Set the right expectations. Let them know the timeline for the call and how your conversation will look like. Start each conversation by sharing the purpose of the call.
Introduce yourself and the company. It’s as important for the candidate to know who and why they are talking to just as it is for you! Be concise, but tell them a few words about your current role and the company.
Show your genuine interest in the candidate’s portfolio or experience. Let them know that you’ve looked through their portfolio and background and decided that they could be a great fit for your opening because of X, Y, Z.
Be clear about the role you are hunting for. Share insight into the job, mentioning information candidates are usually most interested in: the type of product, their future responsibilities, and how the team looks like.
Create a plan. Be clear about the next interview stages, timeline and what is required from the candidate.
Never forget about the feedback. Keep the promises you gave them during the call. If you planned to give the hiring manager’s feedback in 2 days but still have not heard from them, let the candidate know you are working on that!
Questions to Ask During Your Recruitment Screen:
Tell me about yourself. You may say that’s the most boring question in the world — and you’ll be right! But the most general and “boring” questions will let you know the candidate’s sheer focus and priorities. Let them tell you their story, highlighting their strengths and accomplishments.
Why did you choose UX as a career? They will tell you how excited and passionate they are about their work and what they do. Knowing the answer you’ll be able to offer them a role they are going to be truly excited about.
What parts of the UX process do you enjoy doing the most? What motivates them? This tells you what recruiting assets to highlight, and is the key to closing them later. You’ll now know their passions: Visual or Interaction, complex heavy-weight enterprise products, or dynamic mobile apps…
What’s the most challenging project you’ve ever worked on? (or a project they are really proud of). The answer will show the level of project complexity they dealt with and what they actually consider to be “challenging”. It will give you a clue on what types of projects they could be a good fit for.
Do you work cross-functionally? Helps you understand if they had exposure to wider projects, teams, and roles in the company. They will tell you about how they collaborated with engineering teams or UX research, and from there you’ll know if they can succeed in the team you are hiring them for.
What are your compensation expectations? If the candidate is too vague in their answer, it’s best to share your compensation philosophy first to keep the conversation going.
Are you ready to start the recruiting process? Some candidates hop on a call with you just to learn more about your company and see if you can connect in the future. Asking a question about their readiness to start interviewing is crucial to create a personalized hiring plan for this candidate and to allocate your recruitment efforts.
By Kristina Holysheva, Founder of a Global Design Recruitment Agency Hirey.io
