Using One-Way Audio Interviews

With One-Way Audio Interviews, you can ask applicants a few questions and have them respond with recorded audio responses. It's a great way to get a more personal first impression of your applicants without having to schedule a call or spend extra time upfront.

In this article:

• What are the benefits of using One-Way Audio Interviews?
• How do I add One-Way Audio Interviews to my jobs?
• How do I invite an applicant to complete a One-Way Audio Interview?
• How do applicants complete One-Way Audio Interviews?
• How do I review an applicant's recorded audio responses?
• Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

What are the benefits of using One-Way Audio Interviews?

• A more flexible experience for applicants — and hiring managers
  • Applicants record answers to your custom questions on their own time, and hiring managers have the same flexibility when reviewing responses.

• Collect early insights to screen out applicants who aren't a good fit
  • Get a read on an applicant's communication skills, thought process, and professionalism — all before investing time in the full interview process.

• Increase consistency in your hiring and applicant evaluation
  • Get every applicant to answer the same questions so you can easily compare their responses.

How do I add One-Way Audio Interviews to my jobs?

There are two steps to enable One-Way Audio Interviews for a job in CareerPlug:

• Add the One-Way Audio Interview step to a new hiring process
• Add an audio interview-enabled hiring process and questions to a job

Add the One-Way Audio Interview step to a new hiring process

You can add One-Way Audio Interviews to any new or existing hiring processes.

1. Navigate to Settings (gear icon) > Hiring Tools > Hiring Process to view your existing hiring process(es).

2. To create a new hiring process, click the plus (+) icon in the top-left corner of the page, and select Create Blank Hiring Process or Clone from Hiring Process from the drop-down menu.

3. Enter a Hiring Process Title for your new hiring process.

4. Click the One Way Audio Interview tile on the right side of the page to add it to your hiring process.

5. Click the Save Changes button.

6. Click the up-and-down arrows on the left edge of the One Way Audio Interview hiring step and drag it up so it's the second step in your hiring process (after Review).

7. Click the Save and Exit button to update your hiring process.

Add an audio interview-enabled hiring process and questions to a new job

1. Navigate to your Jobs page.

2. Click the + New Job button in the top-right corner of the page.

3. Choose whether to use a Job from Template or create a Job from Scratch from the drop-down menu.

4. Configure your job posting as you would for any new job.

5. When you reach the Hiring Settings tab, select your One-Way Audio Interview-enabled hiring process using the drop-down menu.

6. Continue configuring your job posting.

7. When you reach the One-Way Audio Interview section on the Applicant Evaluation page, click the Add Question button.

8. In the Create One-Way Audio Question drawer, enter a question in the open field. To add more questions, click the Add Another Question button. You can add up to 10 questions, but we recommend 3 or fewer for the best results.

9. When you're done adding questions, click the Save and Add button at the bottom of the drawer.

10. Click the Next Section button and finish posting your job.

Applicants for this job (whom you review and advance in the hiring process) will receive your list of questions and a link to record their audio answers.

Add an audio interview-enabled hiring process and questions to an existing job

1. Navigate to your Jobs page.

2. Click the Edit (pencil) icon to the right of the job to which you want to add an auto interview-enabled hiring process.

3. Navigate to the Applicant Evaluation tab.

4. Scroll down to the One-Way Audio Interview section and click the Add Question button.

5. In the Create One-Way Audio Question drawer, enter a question in the open field. To add more questions, click the Add Another Question button. You can add up to 10 questions, but we recommend 3 or fewer for the best results. When you're done adding questions, click the Save and Add button at the bottom of the drawer.

6. Click the Update Job Post button to save your changes.

How do I invite an applicant to complete a One-Way Audio Interview?

You can invite an applicant to complete a One-Way Audio Interview after you've reviewed and advanced them forward in your hiring process. 

1. When you have new applicants to review, you'll notice a green banner at the top of your Applicants page. Click the Start Review button.

2. Once you've reviewed the applicant, click the green thumbs-up icon.

3. In the Invite drawer, ensure the right audio interview text message Template is selected and make any changes to the message content you'd like.

4. Ensure the right audio interview email Template is selected and the details for your email message (From, To, Subject) are correct. 

5. Make any changes to the Email Content you'd like.

6. Click the Send button at the bottom of the drawer.

This applicant will receive your list of questions and a link to record their audio answers.

What if I've already reviewed an applicant?

If you've already reviewed an applicant but didn't send them an invite to complete a One-Way Audio Interview, you can do so from the applicant's profile.

1. Navigate to your Applicants page.

2. Click the applicant's name or the Open Profile button to the right of the applicant. Either option will redirect you to the applicant's profile. 

3. In the applicant's profile, click the Invite button in the top-right corner to open the Invite drawer, where you can edit and send your audio interview invitation message.

How do applicants complete One-Way Audio Interviews?

Applicants will receive an email with a link to complete the audio interview. 

When they click the link, they'll reach a page with clear instructions to help them complete the interview. This page outlines expectations, time limits, and best practices for completing audio interviews.

Once they start the interview, applicants can record answers on their own time — one question at a time, up to 5 minutes each.

The link to access the interview will remain valid until the applicant submits their last response. They can stop and resume the recording process at any point.

 

Once they're done recording their responses, applicants will click the Submit button.

Once they've submitted their answers, you (or the Admin user who sent the audio interview invitation) will receive an email notification with a link to review their responses.

How do I review an applicant's recorded audio responses?

When an applicant finishes recording their audio responses, you (or the Admin user who sent the audio interview invitation) will receive an email notification with a link to view them.

Click the provided link to open your CareerPlug account and (once signed in) get redirected to the Applicant Evaluation tab of the applicant's profile.

If you're already signed in to your CareerPlug account:

1. Navigate to your Applicants page.

2. Click the Review Response button to the right of the applicant's name.

3. Scroll to the bottom of the Applicant Evaluation tab in the applicant's profile.

4. Click the play icon to hear a recorded audio response.

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

Q: Can I use the same questions for multiple jobs?

A: Yes. When adding questions to a job, your Previously Asked Questions will appear at the top of the Create One-Way Audio Question drawer, acting like an account-wide question library.

Q: Who gets notified when an applicant completes an audio interview?

A: CareerPlug will email a notification to the user who sent the audio interview invitation once an applicant submits all of their responses.

Q: How many questions should I ask?

A: You can add up to 10 questions, but we recommend 3 or fewer for the best results. Including more questions can lead to a bad applicant experience and low completion rates.

Q: Is there a time limit for applicants' responses?

A: Yes. Applicants have a maximum of 5 minutes to record each answer.

Q: Do applicants have to complete their audio interview in one sitting?

A: No. Once an applicant begins the recording process, the link will remain valid until they submit their last response. They can stop and resume the recording process at any point.

Q: Can applicants re-record an answer?

A: Yes. Applicants can listen to their recording and choose to Record Again before moving on to the next question or submitting. However, once they submit their responses, they can't edit them again.

Q: Can I speed up the playback?

A: Yes. When you're reviewing an applicant's audio responses, click the gear icon to the right of the audio track, click the pop-up (which likely says "Speed Normal"), and select a different playback speed from the drop-down menu.

Q: Why isn't the Invite button available for one of my applicants?

A: Make sure you've added your audio interview-enabled hiring process and questions to the related job posting. If you've added your One Way Audio Interview hiring step to a job, but you haven't added questions, you'll only see options to Advance or Deactivate.