“Game changer” is a term used and abused so frequently – and usually without cause – across the tech blogosphere that it’s lost some of its luster for the truly innovative products and services that, unquestionably, are game-changing creations that warrant such a description.
When it comes to industry leading companies that are profoundly and permanently impacting business as usual for the better, there’s no bigger game changer in the hiring and recruiting space today than HireVue.
If you’re not familiar with HireVue’s Digital Interview Platform, this cutting-edge resource for hiring managers expedites and improves upon the traditional interviewing process. Often described as the HR equivalent of Netflix, HireVue represents a new way to interview through on demand video.
Users can browse, watch, rate and share the candidate interviews they want, anytime, from any location – even from a smartphone.
Recently, MMW caught up with Ben Martinez, HR Director at HireVue, to discuss the tremendous growth and adoption the HireVue platform has experienced as the company’s far-sighted leaders bring yesterday’s tired, inefficient hiring practices into the age of modern technology.
According to Martinez, HireVue is dramatically improving the hiring process by empowering decision makers to make more accurate decisions and interview as many applicants as possible, while quickly weeding out all the undesirable candidates.
The company says its platform “removes unnecessary time, travel and hassle, making interviewing modern and amazing for everyone.”
But it seems the benefits are just as significant for job seekers.
“When you’re going for a job,” Martinez explains, “a big part of that is selling yourself. And if you’ve done a good job in creating what your story is and you can tell it in two minutes or less, this product is right up your ally.”
“You can give your two-minute elevator speech and tell people a lot about you,” he adds. “It brings your resume, LinkedIn profile – all of that – to life. And, in particular, it allows people who may not have a voice if they just handed in their resume to really rise to the top and be heard.”
As HireVue continues to develop technologies that help employers engage with the right talent faster, the company is drawing widespread accolades in response to the cost-effective efficiency that scores of businesses benefit from through use of the platform. Earlier this summer, for example, HireVue won “Most Innovative Recruiting Product” at the 2013 Recruiting Innovation Summit.
According to Martinez, however, HireVue may have only just scratched the surface of the impact that its solutions will eventually have on the talent acquisition process and clients’ overall business success.
“There’s so much more that you can do with this than recruiting,” Martinez tells MMW. “For example, we use what’s called an ‘introview.’ So when you’re hired into the company, we make it pretty interactive. We have an introduction from the CEO announcing the new hire to the company. And then we’ve got five questions that we ask the new hire about themselves, their family and work experiences. They answer the questions and that gets sent out to the whole company. And everybody can watch that… or just a specific team if you’re a larger company. So it replaces the standard boring announcements that go out in a big company that’s five paragraphs long. So this is more interactive.”
The interactive attributes of the HireVue platform continues to result in tangible benefits for the companies that embrace the service.
Just last month, The North West Company – one of North America’s oldest retailers – reported that it reduced operating cost per hire 22 percent, reduced candidate processing time by 50 percent, increased candidate volume, improved the candidate experience, and more.
Not surprisingly, this progress is only inspiring HireVue to ramp up the winning formula that’s already worked so well for so many.
“In terms of other innovations,” Martinez replies when asked about what the future holds, “we are playing around a lot with using this as a training tool. We’ve got an innovation team that’s really working on this. Instead of going to training and falling asleep in the process, you can use video to bring training to life in a different manner. You can even report back on what you’ve learned. It holds people more accountable and it’s just a different way of using this resource.”
All told, Martinez admits, “we just want to open up as many doors as possible for using video in a business perspective.”
But there’s ultimately more behind HireVue’s success than just the technology that makes it all happen. Martinez says the exceptionally polished and personable customer service team at HireVue has contributed immeasurably to the positive reputation his company enjoys among its vast array of clients.
“Our mantra and mission is to bring the human back into capital,” Martinez discloses, complimenting HireVue’s customer service team.
“One of the things that clients are enjoying most about HireVue is the customer service here,” he says. “Our customer service here is incredible. They’re 24/7. And this is a new technology, so it’s a game-changer for some people. So when candidates or hiring managers call in, it’s like Johnny-on-the-spot fixed. Having watched our customer service teams, they are so personable and they really sit down and help people through their issues. And that’s one of the things that distinguishes us from anybody else. Our customer service is incredible.”
“With some companies, their customer service teams are the lowest paid. They just put someone who has a heartbeat in there,” Martinez concludes. “But with our customer service team, they’re talking to senior level VPs many times. They’re walking them through issues.”
As it turns out, using the HireVue platform for its own talent recruitment is paying ample dividends in customer service.
“When we hire, we hire for people who believe in what we’re doing,” Martinez says. “We pay well, but that’s not why we hire people. And if we get a sense that someone is just here to make money, this may not be a place for them.”
To learn more about HireVue and what it may be able to do for your business, click here.
