Should you post your interview questions online? Here are the pros and cons

In April, UK retailer the John Lewis Partnership announced it would publish interview questions for all roles on its website, allowing candidates to prepare their responses.

Interviews can feel daunting, and for some – particularly those who are neurodiverse – nerves can seriously impact performance. We’ve published our interview questions to allow candidates to prepare and confidently demonstrate what they can do, which gives us the best chance of finding the right person for the role. – Lorna Bullett , talent acquisition lead @ John Lewis Partnership

The HR community has widely praised the move, particularly for its positive impact on neurodiverse people.

Should you adopt the same approach? 

In this edition of Cut the BS, we’ll cover the pros and cons to help you decide if this is something you should do at your company. 🕵️

Pros 👍

Let’s cover the pros first!

1️⃣ - Attract more (suitable) applicants

Candidates really like this approach: According to a People Management poll on LinkedIn, 67% support this approach to interviews and agree that more employers should do the same. 

A move like this is GOLDEN for your employer brand, and will likely attract more candidates to your open roles.

To go one step further: It will likely attract more suitable candidates, too, since interview questions give job seekers further insights into a role and employer, including expectations, workplace culture, and growth opportunities. 🚀

2️⃣ - Interview performance ≠ job performance

Interviews can be an unpleasant ordeal for some, for reasons that have nothing to do with job performance. Speaking to RTE, career psychologist Sinéad Brady explains:

This is especially relevant to neurodiverse candidates. In one study that compared autistic, other neurodivergent, and neurotypical candidates’ hiring experiences, a key theme was that traditional hiring methods over-emphasized social skills rather than job-related skills. One autistic respondent said, “I feel that interviews are only a test of your acting and social skills.” 

By posting interview questions online, you reflect the reality of the workplace.

Employees have time to prepare before important calls and tend to know the content of meetings in advance. ✍️

3️⃣ - Helps tackle interview bias

By using publicly available questions, hiring teams can prepare structured interviews that ensure consistency and comparability without unconscious bias. 

Structured interviews involve a standardized set of questions for all candidates, while unstructured interviews are more flexible, reactive, and conversational – and are more open to bias.

What’s more, structured interviews are better predictors of job success than unstructured ones. ✅

Cons 👎

Time for the cons!

1️⃣ - Reduces authenticity

With early access to interview questions, applicants will be able to craft a “perfect” response rather than answer spontaneously.

They might turn to external sources, such as friends and family or even AI tools like ChatGPT, to help prepare their answers. 🤖

These prepared responses may not give the hiring manager or team genuine insights into a candidate’s suitability for a role.

2️⃣ - Bigger time investment for candidates

Providing candidates with questions before the interview could put an onus on candidates to spend more time preparing for an interview than they otherwise would.

This may increase anxiety leading up to an interview, affecting their performance.

The prospect of having to spend time preparing may discourage some candidates from applying. And some candidates who don't proceed with the recruitment process may feel resentful or frustrated toward the employer.

3️⃣ - Might reinforce inequalities

While providing interview questions in advance levels the playing field for neurodiverse applicants, this approach may disadvantage other candidates. 

For instance, some candidates – such as single parents or caretakers – may have less time to prepare for an interview, which can put them at a disadvantage.

Some candidates may also have greater access to resources to prepare their answers, including professional coaching or stronger support networks, while others have limited access or none at all.

So what do you think? 🤔

Do the pros outweigh the cons? What else would you add to the list?

Job seekers: Let us know what you think of this approach.

Employers: Let us know if you’re giving it a go!

This week's highlight on skills-based hiring 👀

One more thing….

This is totally unrelated to today’s topic but we just have to share our excitement with you: The wonderful Katrina Collier 🇦🇺🇬🇧 latest book, Reboot Hiring, is coming out TODAY! 🎉

To celebrate, she chatted with our very own Mirae Lee yesterday about all things TA.

Check out their conversation below! ⬇️