ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on a rapidly growing approach to e-selection that allows communication with applicants by using webcam technology, independently of time and place. Applicants use a webcam and a microphone to broadcast a video with the answers to programmed interview questions over the internet, while recruiters or other HR specialists can watch this video at any time and location. Several claims have been made to justify business cases to implement such a pre-selection tool. The main ones are that the use of such a pre-selection tool results in a reduction in the number of face-to-face interviews, cost and time savings, and a better qualified candidate pool. We explored the consequences of using pre-recorded video interviews in the selection process of job candidates by means of 18 semi-structured interviews with recruiters and HR experts followed by an experiment with recruiters to explain the interview results through observation of the pre-selection process. Results show that in most situations where video interviews were implemented, we observed an increase in the quality of applications. Further, recruiters seem to be able to make better decisions on whom to invite for face-to-face interviews based on the recorded video. As a result, in our sample, fewer face-to-face interviews had to be conducted to fill a vacancy.
