Everything You Need to Know About Video Assessments

Using AI and automation to streamline the candidate screening process saves time for both recruiters and hiring managers, and leaves candidates with a great first impression.

The most efficient way to do this? Video assessments — an emerging tool that not only boosts recruiter efficiency but also shows today’s talent that your business is adaptable to new technology and trends.

Phenom’s Kevin Binko, Product Marketing Manager, shares how video assessment tools can help qualify candidates faster and with confidence, optimize hiring team collaboration, and lead to more consistent candidate evaluation.

Watch the episode here or get key takeaways below.

What is a video assessment tool, and how should it be leveraged?

Video assessments may seem too technological or time-consuming to implement in your hiring efforts — but using them doesn’t have to be complicated or intimidating.

When implemented through a holistic platform, recruiters simply send a link inviting candidates to submit a video response to screening questions. The candidate is then walked through the recording process right on their desktop or mobile.

This candidate screening process allows organizations to get an instant preview of the candidate without having to meet in person, and the candidate gets the opportunity to let their personality shine through in a virtual environment.

Video assessment tools are a great way to accelerate the screening process without scheduling and rescheduling video interviews — creating a more efficient hiring journey for candidates, hiring managers, and recruiters.

Video assessments are most impactful when used for screening calls and first-round interviews. By automating the video assessment prompts and allowing candidates to record answers during the times that work best for them, hiring teams to eliminate time-consuming roadblocks and keep job seekers moving through the funnel without requiring repetitive manual work.

Tell us about the evolution of Phenom Video Assessments

To help our customers continue to meet candidates where they are and leverage AI-powered technology to streamline hiring processes, we developed Phenom Video Assessments. This product specifically offers a simplified screening process, hiring decision alignment, convenient automation, and a personalized candidate experience.

“We’ve conducted over 150,000 video assessments at this point, so there’s a lot of lessons we’ve learned in terms of use cases and how it can help companies,” Binko said, sharing these new features:

Automated introductions to video questions recorded by hiring managers
Improved screening options, including written and multiple choice questions
Updated hiring SaaS integration with Phenom ATS
Reimagined mobile application with user-friendly features
Expanded language options for improved diversity and inclusion

According to a recent study of a selection of customers, video assessments are saving users thousands of hours per year, improving recruiter productivity, Binko said. The study included Phenom customers in the retail, technology and finance industries.

Bottom line? The tool is continually evolving to give hiring teams the ability to access and understand who a candidate is in a matter of seconds.

Discover how Phenom Video Assessments can accelerate your candidate screening here.

What end-benefits do video assessments offer various TA stakeholders?

1. Recruiters become more efficient and can evolve their role

With all that time gained back, recruiters can prioritize higher-level activities. Beyond time saved, video assessment tools give recruiters a clearer picture (literally) of job candidates, helping them select the best people for the role to put in front of hiring managers.

“You can focus on more strategic things – aligning with hiring managers and hiring teams on what kind of candidates they’re looking for, [ensuring] the candidates you’re sourcing so far are the right people, and digging into those top candidates more,” Binko said.

2. Candidates can showcase their individuality

A video assessment interview lets applicants convey their personalities and puts a face to the skills and experience traditionally only appearing “on paper.” With the option to re-record responses before submitting, candidates can feel confident they’re putting their best foot forward.

3. Hiring managers can make faster, more informed hiring decisions

“Hiring managers are the largest consumers of video assessments,” Binko said. “[They’re] the ones viewing them and using them to make decisions.” Seeing candidates on video not only gives hiring managers dynamic insight into personality and communication style, it also helps them formulate more pertinent interview questions.

They’re also able to leave instant feedback for recruiters, fostering collaboration and alignment on candidate choice.

Should video assessments replace written screenings?

No! Video assessment tools should be used to enhance your existing screening process — not replace the need for a written resume or cover letter. Resumes and cover letters are used to help qualify candidates early, assisting recruiters in determining which candidates should be asked to submit a video assessment interview.

However, as Binko observed, digital transformation is here. Being on video has become commonplace for many job roles (e.g., telemedicine in the healthcare industry; Zoom for almost every knowledge worker out there). Offering video assessment interviews may be a way to gently signal to job candidates that it’s time to get comfortable on camera.

Could video assessments help counteract AI-generated resumes?

Now that AI and language-generating tools are here, video assessments could prove a valuable tool to help recruiters discern candidate quality.

“Video, in comparison [to an AI-generated cover letter], would allow you to get an authentic impression of that person, to judge some skills like critical thinking and empathy nuances, which AI may not be as capable of replicating,” Binko pointed out.

What are other ways video can help TA teams?

In addition to video assessment tools, Phenom offers video capture, a tool for gathering employee-generated content to give job candidates a behind-the-scenes look from the employee's perspective. This makes job descriptions as transparent as possible, helping applicants better understand whether a role will be a good fit.

“I think video will just be increasingly used to generate brand equity, brand awareness, connection between hiring teams, companies and candidates,” Binko said. “Video is a really powerful tool for creating connection between people. We can look each other in the face, talk to each other, [and] understand each other a little better.”

What other recruiter efficiency advances are you most excited about for 2023?

Binko names Phenom’s AI Scheduling and High-Volume Hiring products as ones to watch out for. “A lot of products are coming together to drive solutions for our key customers in talent acquisition.”

Video capabilities also are woven into Phenom’s Talent Marketplace solution, giving internal employees the opportunity to apply with a video assessment interview.

“Continuing to see integration between our entire platform and how that’s going to drive results for people is what I’m most excited to see,” Binko said.

What key takeaways should TA professionals know about video assessment tools?

Video assessments can replace other forms of candidate screening, but they can’t replace face-to-face interviews
They help job candidates share their experience and qualifications in a more dynamic, personalized way
While knowledge workers may be the obvious candidate segment to try video assessments on, they also offer time- and cost-saving opportunities when used with frontline workers
Video assessments resonate well among young talent accustomed to posting on social media platforms like TikTok
They benefit a range of TA stakeholders — and Phenom customers have seen a lot of success from this tool

Join us for more TXL every Thursday at noon ET. Get notified for all upcoming TXL episodes here.

Ready to explore how Phenom Video Assessments can help you find best-fit candidates faster? Book a personalized demo here.

Kasey Lynch

Kasey is a content marketing writer, focused on highlighting the importance of positive experiences. She's passionate about SEO strategy, collaboration, and data analytics. In her free time, she enjoys camping, cooking, exercising, and spending time with her loved ones — including her dog, Rocky.