To optimize your hiring process and get the most out of each candidate interview, gather your hiring team together for a post-game rap session. If you add this move to your interview strategy and do so efficiently and smoothly, you can take some of the guess-work and subjectivity out of the candidate selection process and lower you overall level of risk.

Here are a few considerations to bear in mind as you move forward with your post-interview reviews:

1. The post-game review only adds significant value if multiple team members participated in the interview process. And remember: Each person who weighs in on a candidate should have had a chance to evaluate him or her in the interview setting. There’s no need to solicit opinions from those who weren’t in the room.
2. Make sure junior employees voice their opinions and thoughts about each applicant before senior employees weight in. That way, junior members are less likely to be swayed and more likely to express their feelings honestly.
3. Give everyone a chance to discuss their impressions of the candidate. Have each member of your team share 1) the feature of the candidate that impressed them the most, 2) any additional questions that came to mind as the interview progressed, and 3) any concerns or red flags raised by a candidate’s answers. Encourage honesty, and make sure the first and last candidates in the sequence don’t receive a disproportionate degree of attention and scrutiny, as sometimes happens.
4. Have your team score each candidate numerically across a short range of metrics, like 1) personability, 2) trainability, 3) experience with the position at hand, 4) passion for the field, etc. Keep the list short and limited to talking points; Too many metrics can create clutter and reduce the value of the process.
5. Have each participant choose their top three candidates and rank them in order. That way, participants will be forced to compare their options and make a clear decision.
6. Keep the post-review meeting cost-effective by staying on task and in motion. Remember that if you gather five people in a room for a two hour meeting, that’s ten work hours expended on the process. Make sure the value you gain from the meeting matches the investment you put in.
7. After you’ve narrowed down a short list of candidates that you intend to call in for second round interviews, keep the entire team in the loop. Let them know how the results unfold, even if they won’t be asked to participate in any further interviews.

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