How to ensure you make the most of the interview process

When hiring for any role, assessing a candidate’s soft skills remains to be one of the biggest challenges that many employers face. Looking through a CV rarely gives enough insight into a professional’s personality, nor does it demonstrate an individual’s ability to communicate, influence, or build relationships with stakeholders. In procurement and supply chain, communication and relationship building are key skills that enable professionals to succeed. They need to be adaptable as the sector requires professionals to deal with different types of conversations and people on a regular basis.

Interviewing a procurement and supply chain professional

The interview is key in determining an individual’s suitability for a role. This is why it is crucial to know exactly which skills and experiences you need to assess. 
1) What are they responsible for?
Job titles can often be misleading. Titles within procurement and supply often comprise different responsibilities, depending on the company size or industry. The most common mistake that people make when interviewing these professionals is not utilising all the information available. Look to see whether you can get a sense of their roles – the breadth of responsibility, number of markets/SKUs/suppliers/customers, team size as well. Which categories have they bought? How much were they involved in the negotiation process? It is also key to understand their tangible achievements – OTIF, forecast accuracy, inventory reductions, cost savings etc.
2) Who are their key stakeholders?
Every business is different when it comes to hierarchy and the way in which the procurement and supply chain functions interact with stakeholders. Find out who they have interacted with and the way in which they communicated. How often were they in touch with these stakeholders? Was it face to face or mainly via email or the phone?
3) What are their motivations to find a new role?
Professionals rarely leave a role just for more money. It is important to uncover why a candidate is interviewing for the role. Finding the right people is not just about matching the requirements of a role with a professional’s abilities, but fully understanding what motivates them and why they feel your business is the right next step in their career. 
4) Explore their long-term aspirations
It is also about understanding their career aspirations. Where do they see their career in the next few years or even further down the line in 10 years’ time? Where do they want to go, and what do they hope to achieve in the role? If a professional wants to progress their career to director level and ultimately this isn’t realistic in your business structure, then longer term you are likely to lose this individual. 
5) Don’t make assumptions
Don’t jump to conclusions around the length of time someone worked in a particular position. If someone has moved on quickly, ask why with an open mind – there are many good reasons. In addition to this, be sure that you avoid the “culture fit trap.” Making assumptions about someone’s personality/fit based on where they have worked before can be a big mistake. Everyone is unique. 
6) Use the right Interview techniques 
It is essential to use the right tools when assessing candidates. If their ability to influence stakeholders is key, then panel interviews are great, especially if other areas of the business are involved. It will allow you to see how they interact with other stakeholders from outside of their team. If they need to possess strong analytical skills, excel tests are very common. Presentations can also be a useful tool to assess how they interact with an audience, just ensure that you ask competency-based questions to highlight key achievements for various projects or roles.
Above all else, it’s important to keep processes concise. The strongest candidates often have multiple offers on the table and ultimately, one client is going to miss out.
We are in an extremely candidate-short market and it has never been more important to stand out from your competitors when hiring, which means premium advertising, a strong diversity and inclusion policy, and a clear employee value proposition.  
At Michael Page, our consultants are specialists in both the sector and regional areas that they recruit within. With over 40 years of recruitment experience and a team of over 1,000 frontline staff, we are uniquely positioned to offer in-depth market insight and local salary benchmarking. We take the time to understand the needs of our clients to ensure that we can source professionals that will be a great fit for their team and overall business needs. Combining this with the power of our dedicated candidate sourcing team identifying the most passive candidates, we place diversity and inclusion at the hearts of our search strategy. By adopting the latest technology, we can streamline hiring processes and connect talented professionals with our clients via Hinterview. This platform allows shortlisted candidates to connect with employers via video so clients can fully understand the fit of potential candidates.
To find out how we can help source and secure the best people for your business, get in touch with your local Michael Page office today. 
Jordan Collins
Michael Page
Manager, Procurement & Supply Chain 
T: +44 207 269 2445