Here are some things to think about when designing your processes.

Communication

Be clear with your communication about how coronavirus affects the hiring process.

This means be upfront about changes to the process and how long things take.

Give as much information as possible.

Be patient and clear with your expectations.

Diversity and inclusion

We want the Victorian public sector to reflect the community we serve.

This means you must run your processes in an inclusive manner.

Embrace diversity in capabilities and backgrounds. Respect the uniqueness of each candidate.

As everyone has different abilities with technology, make sure you’re mindful of this when you ask candidates to do something. This means you have alternative methods ready if they need them.

Think of and understand there may be cultural or socio-economic reasons for why candidates may prefer a phone interview over an online interview.

If a candidate wants a phone interview and other candidates are happy with a video interview, this is fine if you’ve also offered a phone option to everyone.

Be open minded to have your lived experience challenged.

Cultural fit

You must hire based on merit and a candidate’s ability to do the inherent requirements of the role.

But you may want to get to know the candidate better.

It’s hard to assess candidates for cultural fit with online interviews or some assessment options.

Try and place a greater focus on probing a candidate’s background when you do reference checks.

You could even ask candidates to submit a short video of themselves, showing their personality, interests or hobbies.

Values

You need to assess all candidates against the Victorian public sector values.

To do this, structure some of your assessment options so candidates can show how they live the public sector values.