I don't know either this is good for employers/customers but one thing for sure: this makes me feel even more terrified of failure, of becoming a "candidate" again. This company is making the world even more hostile for people who need jobs for reasons stated here by others.
Let me explain: my wife is looking for a job now. She's not an engineer so the progress has been slow: hundreds of resumes emailed, no response, constant thoughts like "something's wrong with my resume??". Now you're telling me that she needs to sit down and film herself hundreds of times and then stare at the empty inbox and think "something's wrong with the way I look/talk?" That's just disgusting.
In-person interviews have an even worse problem: if your wife is rejected after one of those, she has to worry not merely that she looks lame in a video, but seems lame in person. But you don't find the concept of interviews disgusting, presumably because it is already a familiar one. Which suggests that your real problem with this technology is its novelty.
Interesting way of looking at it. Although this problem is more of a self-concious/insecurity issue. Rejection is simply a numbers game; there's tons of applicants applying for single job openings.
On the other hand, if your wife has a sparking personality and an average resume, video response might actually help her stand out of the crowd.
Our goal is exactly the opposite: We want to make the hiring process more human.
The current job market is definitely a slog for non-engineers (somehow the market for engineers has remained strong). We'd like HireHive to be a way for people like your wife to be able to stand out from the crowd.
I'm in contact with a good number of companies that are hiring. I'd be happy to pass her info along if there's a good fit. Email me at nick [at] hirehive.com.
Not necessarily hundreds of times. My understanding of HireHive's model is that you could film yourself answering a set of questions once and include it in multiple similar job applications (at least some day).
I look at video as a substitute for phone screenings rather than a substitute for a resume. I hate phone screenings.
Maybe I'm just paranoid and have low expectations for humanity, but I think the main demand for video interviews would be to do racial/ethnic/attractiveness discrimination on candidates. Early in the process, it would be a lot easier to discard all people of [unfavored group] without any allegations of unfairness.
Discrimination is a serious problem with all hiring -- people discriminate when they read names on resumes, speak with people on the phone, and when people come in for interviews. Like most tools, HireHive could be misused. We hope though that it will overall help people shine through who don't look super impressive on paper but are in fact awesome.
My initial response is definitely skeptical. If I'm asked to record a video for an interview question, I'm going to write down my answer first, and then read it in a casual way.
You're going to be judging my skill at speaking into a little square at the top of a computer. I hope this isn't treated as a tool to judge interpersonal skills.
What value is added, beyond making it easier to dismiss people based on appearance and personal preferences? I guess judging based on a perceived personality is kosher, but let's be realistic about the purpose here.
I think a live video-call is totally fair-game, but something about this definitely rubs me the wrong way.
Agreed. I'm pretty good in interviews because I can interact with the interviewer, making a personal connection that calms me down and then I'm just myself.
This sounds of little value beyond evaluation of acting skills. Might be of some use for a sales position.
I appreciate your skepticism :) We think there's actually a lot you can learn about someone by watching and listening to them speak, particularly when they're talking about what they're passionate about or why they want to work at your company.
Another advantage is that, for some people at least, it's a lot easier to just record yourself speaking for 60 seconds than to write a cover letter (which have become engineered to point of being pretty bland, IMHO).
Does anyone else find the prospect of video résumé a bit frightening? Some people (myself included) are simply not that comfortable in front of a camera.
i agree the prospect of filming yourself is somewhat uncomfortable but i've been stunned during the YC application review process by just how much a video adds to the application. it's actually, for me, the most important part of the application while reviewing it.
i believe employers will realize this too and once they do, they'll insist on having video as standard in applications. once that happens, uploading videos of yourself will become more commonplace and eventually feel less alien.
One of our goals is to help people feel more comfortable recording short videos. We don't see HireHive has a "video resume" (i.e. something you agonize over carefully crafting long answers to) so much as a lightweight way to answer questions off-the-cuff.
One of the challenges we face is to figure out how to set the tone so people can relax and be themselves. Is there anything that you think would help you feel more comfortable?
I think it all comes down to the lingering issue of how much of ourselves are we willing to record for all to see. Another issue that video resume may raise is what I will call, remote discrimination; how good your video is may decide whether you get a call for in-house interview or not.
We did something similar with FacesForce.com and tried a few markets. Video is very tricky. It appears it is best to let users submit a video without being asked, but the issue with this is users do not want to pay. So the HH model will definitely bring in revenue faster.
A few people are worried they may be discriminated against if they send a video, but if someone is going to disqualify you based on what they see, they will do it when you show up for interview. So at least you save time.
Great job on charging for service right out of the gate.
My assumption would be that someone with a flair for showmanship can excel at this even if they are a mediocre performer. However, I could see this being useful for real time.
The skeptical comments are interesting. But it doesn't seem like they are the primary market.
At Active Interview, we've been doing video interviews for a while now. We've gotten good traction among organizations who have continuous hiring needs and/or those who need to process candidates who are geographically dispersed.
For example, One Laptop per Child used Active Interview to screen a couple hundred applicants from around the world. They used us to test:
1. interpersonal skills & communication
2. language proficiency
How much time/money would it cost to coordinate and phone screen everyone?
We've also gotten a lot of interest from academic organizations, who need to process applicants every semester. We've especially been working with graduate departments, like MBA programs, who have a high number of international applicants. They use us because:
1. Time shifting - it's difficult to set up a mutual time with candidates around the world.
2. Language - many international applicants have through the roof English scores and can write like Steinbeck, but can't speak a lick.
3. Normalize interviews - different recruiters assess candidates with varying degrees of leniency. Active Interview lets the entire recruiting team view, score and comment on every candidate response. The scores are tallied and averaged.
4. Most candidates like taking a video interview over writing yet another essay.
I understand why some may be skeptical, but there's definitely a need for video interviewing for some types of organizations and I'm glad Hirehive is getting some publicity for all of us in this area.
I agree. Videos are particularly good for time-shifting and getting a sense for interpersonal skills. We too think many people will prefer recording a short video to wordsmithing an essay.
I think realtime interaction is the key element missing from most early-stage screenings, not video. I'd rather have an IM/irc/voice chat with someone, propose problems, and observe how he tries to solve the problem, than canned and rehearsed video clips. The only job for which I'd consider a canned video clip to be really useful is a job which requires producing canned video clips.
I don't think anything is stopping you from using IM/irc/chat. The problem that video screenings solve isn't one that you face.
For example, Thunderbird School of Global Management, a top international MBA program, is planning on using Active Interview as part of their admissions process. They're letting applicants answer a video questionnaire to replace 1 of 3 essays. It's purely optional. They have a full admission team of 10+ people, working full time traveling around the world screening applicants. Using a tool like AI saves tons of time and money in the early screening stages. Unless you are a organization like that, you won't truly feel the pain that Active Interview or Hirehive solves.
The idea is scary at first. But really makes sense once you think about it. I agree, it makes the screening process more human.
I know the job market is not good right now for job seekers to be chosers, but if I have to apply with a video, I would feel more up to it if I see the hiring team's or manager's video too.
"the higher bandwidth of video provides more information than text, which results in better informed hiring decisions"
Not sure about this. Generally, I'm uncomfortable with all the room for discrimination that something like video brings into play -- even if it isn't intentional.
See the case of orchestra auditions where female players did tremendously better when judged from behind a screen, gender being removed from the equation. Even if people feel unbiased about a lot of roles, they might still have them play out... ???
That, and I just think so many video things like this end up gimmicky. I can see it well applied, and also easily misused.
I think most candidates who are good will find this to be way too much work to prove their point. They won't do it. Secondly, depending on the job a lot of people may get disqualified just because they seem lame on video, though they are stellar at what they do.
But as an idea, I like it for its novelty. The jobs space is broken in many ways and this is worth a shot. Just don't think it will work for every job type. For hiring at Crate & Barrel or Starbucks perhaps.
We're still figuring out the full range of positions HireHive works best for. We agree that receptionists, sales/marketing people, customer service, etc are good fits for the service and have had positive feedback from them so far.
So it's not enough that I spend hours working and tailoring my CV and cover letter for every job application and hours more writing answers to selection critera.
Now you want me to record and produce a video selling myself?
Hah! Good luck with that.
I wonder how many of these comments are based on experience hiring. The challenge isn't from the applicant's standpoint but from the other end. Certainly video can be used for discrimination. But that is absolutely not the only use case.
I've never used video, and I have hired people based solely on phone conversations, or IRC conversations -- but usually phone/irc followed by an in-person interview.
I can't think of any value of recorded video over realtime chat for anything except "create a video clip for me!" For a sales job involving in-person meetings with clients, a realtime video chat might be a bit better than realtime audio, but the difference is much less than the value of an in-person meeting.
For a developer job, I would consider this totally without value. "IM presence" and "how well can he explain something in words" (voice or text) would be worth vastly more, and "sit next to me and do this task and explain it to me" would be the ultimate test.
I was considering a startup along exactly these lines within the last couple of weeks, but for college applicants. I ended up not going forward as I wasn't personally super interested, and the friend who had the original idea said there appeared to be a patent covering it.
The idea is actually a good one, but there is much talk of "killing" Monster.com - what's to stop Monster.com from developing a similar scheme and piloting it to its massive user base as soon as this idea catches on?
This is the problem every startup faces when going against established competitors. We have to compete by focusing, working fast, and always doing right by our users and customers :)
So it's a nock off of chatroulette with a business spin? How long will it take until The Gap sees that 90% of their video applicants are actually dudes wanking off?
[+] [-] old-gregg|15 years ago|reply
Let me explain: my wife is looking for a job now. She's not an engineer so the progress has been slow: hundreds of resumes emailed, no response, constant thoughts like "something's wrong with my resume??". Now you're telling me that she needs to sit down and film herself hundreds of times and then stare at the empty inbox and think "something's wrong with the way I look/talk?" That's just disgusting.
[+] [-] pg|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] coryl|15 years ago|reply
On the other hand, if your wife has a sparking personality and an average resume, video response might actually help her stand out of the crowd.
[+] [-] nicholasjbs|15 years ago|reply
The current job market is definitely a slog for non-engineers (somehow the market for engineers has remained strong). We'd like HireHive to be a way for people like your wife to be able to stand out from the crowd.
I'm in contact with a good number of companies that are hiring. I'd be happy to pass her info along if there's a good fit. Email me at nick [at] hirehive.com.
I appreciate your blunt feedback.
[+] [-] shazow|15 years ago|reply
I look at video as a substitute for phone screenings rather than a substitute for a resume. I hate phone screenings.
[+] [-] rdl|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pg|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] nicholasjbs|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] kiba|15 years ago|reply
If a company discriminate based on race, they will get the kind of performance they deserve.
[+] [-] callmeed|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|15 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] warpwoof|15 years ago|reply
You're going to be judging my skill at speaking into a little square at the top of a computer. I hope this isn't treated as a tool to judge interpersonal skills.
What value is added, beyond making it easier to dismiss people based on appearance and personal preferences? I guess judging based on a perceived personality is kosher, but let's be realistic about the purpose here.
I think a live video-call is totally fair-game, but something about this definitely rubs me the wrong way.
[+] [-] detst|15 years ago|reply
This sounds of little value beyond evaluation of acting skills. Might be of some use for a sales position.
[+] [-] nicholasjbs|15 years ago|reply
Another advantage is that, for some people at least, it's a lot easier to just record yourself speaking for 60 seconds than to write a cover letter (which have become engineered to point of being pretty bland, IMHO).
[+] [-] paraschopra|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Harj|15 years ago|reply
i believe employers will realize this too and once they do, they'll insist on having video as standard in applications. once that happens, uploading videos of yourself will become more commonplace and eventually feel less alien.
[+] [-] nicholasjbs|15 years ago|reply
One of the challenges we face is to figure out how to set the tone so people can relax and be themselves. Is there anything that you think would help you feel more comfortable?
Thanks for the feedback :)
[+] [-] kno|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] rokhayakebe|15 years ago|reply
A few people are worried they may be discriminated against if they send a video, but if someone is going to disqualify you based on what they see, they will do it when you show up for interview. So at least you save time.
[+] [-] bmcnamara82|15 years ago|reply
My assumption would be that someone with a flair for showmanship can excel at this even if they are a mediocre performer. However, I could see this being useful for real time.
[+] [-] cglee|15 years ago|reply
At Active Interview, we've been doing video interviews for a while now. We've gotten good traction among organizations who have continuous hiring needs and/or those who need to process candidates who are geographically dispersed.
For example, One Laptop per Child used Active Interview to screen a couple hundred applicants from around the world. They used us to test:
1. interpersonal skills & communication
2. language proficiency
How much time/money would it cost to coordinate and phone screen everyone?
We've also gotten a lot of interest from academic organizations, who need to process applicants every semester. We've especially been working with graduate departments, like MBA programs, who have a high number of international applicants. They use us because:
1. Time shifting - it's difficult to set up a mutual time with candidates around the world.
2. Language - many international applicants have through the roof English scores and can write like Steinbeck, but can't speak a lick.
3. Normalize interviews - different recruiters assess candidates with varying degrees of leniency. Active Interview lets the entire recruiting team view, score and comment on every candidate response. The scores are tallied and averaged.
4. Most candidates like taking a video interview over writing yet another essay.
I understand why some may be skeptical, but there's definitely a need for video interviewing for some types of organizations and I'm glad Hirehive is getting some publicity for all of us in this area.
[+] [-] nicholasjbs|15 years ago|reply
AI's work with OLPC was awesome!
[+] [-] rdl|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] rdl|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] cglee|15 years ago|reply
For example, Thunderbird School of Global Management, a top international MBA program, is planning on using Active Interview as part of their admissions process. They're letting applicants answer a video questionnaire to replace 1 of 3 essays. It's purely optional. They have a full admission team of 10+ people, working full time traveling around the world screening applicants. Using a tool like AI saves tons of time and money in the early screening stages. Unless you are a organization like that, you won't truly feel the pain that Active Interview or Hirehive solves.
[+] [-] jagjit|15 years ago|reply
I know the job market is not good right now for job seekers to be chosers, but if I have to apply with a video, I would feel more up to it if I see the hiring team's or manager's video too.
[+] [-] sabj|15 years ago|reply
Not sure about this. Generally, I'm uncomfortable with all the room for discrimination that something like video brings into play -- even if it isn't intentional.
See the case of orchestra auditions where female players did tremendously better when judged from behind a screen, gender being removed from the equation. Even if people feel unbiased about a lot of roles, they might still have them play out... ???
That, and I just think so many video things like this end up gimmicky. I can see it well applied, and also easily misused.
[+] [-] shelly|15 years ago|reply
I instantly get deer-in-headlightsy and stiff when the camera starts rolling, so a potential employer wouldn't get an accurate read on me.
[+] [-] nicholasjbs|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] betterlabs|15 years ago|reply
But as an idea, I like it for its novelty. The jobs space is broken in many ways and this is worth a shot. Just don't think it will work for every job type. For hiring at Crate & Barrel or Starbucks perhaps.
[+] [-] unknown|15 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] dannyr|15 years ago|reply
I'm not entirely sold yet that this is good for hiring developers since some of us are probably not comfortable talking on video.
Maybe the niche for this service is for hiring receptionists or sales/marketing people.
[+] [-] nicholasjbs|15 years ago|reply
Thanks for the pointer to SayHired!
[+] [-] dpritchett|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] xsive|15 years ago|reply
Now you want me to record and produce a video selling myself? Hah! Good luck with that.
[+] [-] MichaelGlass|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] rdl|15 years ago|reply
I've never used video, and I have hired people based solely on phone conversations, or IRC conversations -- but usually phone/irc followed by an in-person interview.
I can't think of any value of recorded video over realtime chat for anything except "create a video clip for me!" For a sales job involving in-person meetings with clients, a realtime video chat might be a bit better than realtime audio, but the difference is much less than the value of an in-person meeting.
For a developer job, I would consider this totally without value. "IM presence" and "how well can he explain something in words" (voice or text) would be worth vastly more, and "sit next to me and do this task and explain it to me" would be the ultimate test.
[+] [-] kingkilr|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] cal5k|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] nicholasjbs|15 years ago|reply
[+] [-] fatguy|15 years ago|reply
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[+] [-] gigafemtonano|15 years ago|reply