Since 2010, I have changed the way we hire. Previously, we screened potential candidates during the interview only, and we missed some skeletons which later haunted us.
For all new job posts, I add a simple writing assignment. What surprised me the most at first was that only 2% of applicants completed the assignment. I would have thought at least 50% of people wanting a job would read and follow instructions. However, this had an added benefit. It weeded out a lot of bad resumes and saved me a lot of time.
After reviewing the writing assignments, I choose the candidates to interview. One surprising thing was that almost every person I invited to interview would have been a good hire, and it's nice to have to pick between several awesome choices rather than having to settle.
Requiring an assignment for applicants can streamline your hiring process and provide you with the best potential candidates for employment.
Here is our last job post:
How to Apply:
Please submit a cover letter explaining:
- Why you want to work in customer support.
- Why you want to work at AccuConference and not somewhere else.
- A description of a great customer service/support experience you had recently, and what made it great.
Also, attach the following writing samples:
- Explain why would you encourage someone to use an 800 number for their conferences.
- Explain to a customer asking for a lower rate per minute that we are unable to lower their rate.
- A company wants a refund because their conference was smaller than they anticipated (we charge a minimum for large calls, even if the customer only has a few people on the call). Explain that this is not refundable.
Send everything above to [email protected].
