6 Ways You Can Judge a Job Candidate's Personality

References, experience, and education are all important elements to consider when interviewing a job candidate, but a major factor that should be incorporated into the hiring process is a candidate’s personality. Personality is important, as it can determine how well a candidate can perform in the job position, how well they work with others, and how well they can fit into your company’s environment.

Measuring a candidate’s personality can be accomplished by asking questions, but it can also be done in a few other ways. If you’re an employer or recruiter, here are six ways you can judge a job candidate’s personality.

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1. Start By Asking the Right Questions: One of the key ways you can determine a job candidate’s personality is through the interview process. Asking the right interview questions can reveal traits and characteristics of a candidate’s personality, and as you interview a prospective candidate, you should prioritize asking questions that revolve around their hard and soft skills, their working style, and what motivates them as they work, among others. Some great questions to ask include:

How do you describe your working style? Are you a team player or an independent worker? Determining what kind of working style your potential employee has is important, as it dictates the functionality of your company and office environment. If the tasks and goals within your workspace need to be completed by multiple people, then a team player is necessary to fill the role. If individual projects take up the bulk of operations then someone more independent would work just fine.

What motivates you to work and accomplish tasks? While the question itself is simple, this allows the interviewee to give a thoughtful answer regarding what their motives are. Money, contributing to a greater good, working in a field they are passionate about, etc. are all common motives for people to work, and depending on the position and what kind of candidate you are looking for, a question like this can give you better insight on their ability to perform on the job.

2. Pay Attention to Their Body Language and Eye Contact: Most job interviews are conducted with a candidate sitting across from an employer or recruiter like yourself with a desk or table separating the two of you. Body language is an important factor to look for when interviewing a candidate and determining their personality, and eye contact should be considered in addition to body language like crossed arms, hunched shoulders, etc. Eye contact is one of the simplest but important ways people can connect with one another. It shows respect and attention, and if your candidate can barely hold eye contact with you or frequently looks at the floor, their lap, or at the wall, it can show that they are either uncomfortable or are trying to hide aspects of themselves from you, which could pose a problem down the line.

3. Determine How They Perform Under Pressure: When reviewing a job candidate, you most likely will come across something like “works well under pressure” on their resume. This quality is great to look for in any candidate, as it can determine how well the potential candidate can cope with and perform in unexpected, high-pressure situations. It can be difficult to gauge this without actually observing them in an actual work environment, but you can ask questions and pose examples to get an idea of their abilities. Christina Pavlou of Workable recommends, “Use a combination of behavioral and situational interview questions. You’ll have the chance to find out how candidates handled stress in past positions, but also how they’ll manage stressful situations in their new role if hired.” Questions to ask can include:

What’s the most stressful situation you’ve faced at work so far? How did you handle it?

Describe a time you had to make a tough decision. How did you make sure you were objective?

What advice would you give to a colleague who was stressed out?

4. Evaluate Their Longtime Potential: A candidate may stumble with answers in a job interview, but this doesn’t mean that they don’t have long-term potential. A lot of recruiters and employers often focus on extensive resumes, technical skills, and work experience when narrowing down choices for candidates. While these factors are important to consider during the hiring process, soft skills are equally important to weigh. A blog post by Recruiting Daily notes, “Soft skills — such as communication, problem-solving and collaboration — are critical for workplace success and should be measured alongside hard skills required for job roles.” You can test soft skills by asking hypothetical questions that can highlight their ability to problem solve and communicate in a variety of workplace situations.

5. Check Their Social Media Profiles/Online Presence: As an employer and recruiter, it is important to check the social media profiles and online presence of your candidates, as this can help determine if they are a worthy person to hire. But doing so can also give you insight into their personality, interests and hobbies, social life, and more, which can help you make a judgment about what they prioritize, what they enjoy, etc.

6. Talk to the Candidate’s References: When in doubt, talking to a candidate’s references is a simple and easy way to judge a candidate’s personality. A prior employer, coworker, etc. will attest to the candidate’s work ethic, attitude, skills, and personality, which you can use to form an overall opinion of them.

Personality should be weighed just as much as work experience, education, and job references during the interview process, and the above tips should help you find the best candidate to fill your company’s position.