Work Together Anywhere

HIRING CHEAT SHEETWhat to Look For When Interviewing Remote Workers

PLUS SAMPLE QUESTIONS FOR ASSESSING CANDIDATES

TECH-SAVVYNESS

You’ll want candidates to have:

• a great internet connection with no dropping out;
• a high-quality microphone—you can hear them well;
• good speakers—they can hear you well;
• an appropriate space for video calls; and
• facility with the equipment and protocols concerning online apps, video conferencing, and instant messaging.

EXCELLENT COMMUNICATION SKILLS

• Look for admirable responses to all application-relevant communication, both verbal (phone and video) and written (cover letter, emails, texts, IM)—as well as to any assignments, as appropriate.

GOOD WORK HABITS

You’ll want to assess their:

• ORGANIZATIONAL SKILLS—for which you could prompt: “Describe your workspace.” “How do you normally start your workday? What determines your first task or activity?”
• TASK-MANAGEMENT SKILLS—for which you could ask: “What task- or project-management tools have you used? Which do you prefer and why?”
• PRIORITIZING/TIME-MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES. For this you might present a jumbled list of daily or weekly tasks and ask in what order the candidate would tackle them and why.

PROBLEM-SOLVING/TROUBLESHOOTING SKILLS

• I personally like describing a tricky scenario and asking candidates how they’d go about solving it. Or I might assign a quandary to solve after the interview, requesting they get back to me describing their process. Similarly, the Entrepreneur on ...