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Hiring decisions are consequential. Yet even after multiple interviews, assessments, and reference checks, employers are often left trying to answer a difficult question:

How will this candidate actually perform once they are doing the job?

Traditional candidate-selection methods can provide valuable information. A resume shows experience. Interviews reveal how candidates communicate and think through questions. Reverences can provide additional perspective on past performance.

But each if these methods still require employers to predict future performance based largely on indirect evidence.

A Pilot Engagement adds another dimension to the hiring process: the opportunity to evaluate a candidate through actual work before making a longer-term hiring commitment.

Rather than replacing interviews, assessments, or reference checks, a Pilot Engagement can complement them – giving both the employer and candidate additional information before making an important decision.

What is a Pilot Engagement?

A Pilot Engagement is a defined, short-term work engagement that takes place as part of the candidate-selection process.

The candidate works on an agreed-upon scope of work over a limited period of time, giving the organization an opportunity to observe how the candidate approaches relevant responsibilities in real working environment.

Depending on the role, a Pilot Engagement might involve completing a project, analyzing a business problem, developing a recommendation, working with members of the existing team, or contributing to an active initiative.

A well-designed Pilot Engagement typically includes:

• A clearly defined scope and duration
• Expected deliverables or outcomes
• Defined responsibilities and points of contact
• Appropriate confidentiality and information-access considerations
• Clear evaluation criteria

The goal is not simply to give the candidate another test. Rather, it is to create a realistic opportunity for the employer and candidate experience what it may actually be like to work together.

Interviews Show Potential. Pilot Engagements Show Performance

Interviews are useful, but they are an unusual working environment. Candidates know they are being evaluated. They prepare for likely questions, refine their stories, and present examples of their strongest accomplishments. Experienced candidates can become particularly skilled at interviewing.

None of that means interviews are ineffective. It simply means that interviewing well and performing well in a role are not necessarily the same thing.

A Pilot Engagement allows employers to observe different dimensions of a candidate’s capabilities. For example, during an actual engagement, you may learn:

• How does the candidate approach an unfamiliar problem?
• What is the quality of their work?
• How do they communicate?
• How independently can they operate?
• How do they respond to feedback?

None of these observations should necessarily determine a hiring decision by themselves. But together, they can add meaningful information to the evidence gathered through the rest of the selection process.

Reduce Uncertainty Before Making the Hire

No hiring process can completely eliminate uncertainty. A candidate who appears ideal throughout the interview process may struggle once confronted with the realities of the job. Likewise, a candidate who is less polished in interviews may prove to be exceptionally effective once given the opportunity to work on real problems.

A Pilot Engagement can help reduce some of that uncertainty. It can be particularly valuable for important positions where the cost – time, money, lost productivity, and organizational disruption – of making the wrong hiring decision can be substantial.

The Candidate Benefits, Too

Pilot Engagements should not be viewed solely as a way for employers to evaluate candidates. Candidates are making an important decision as well.

Job descriptions and interviews can only communicate so much about what a role will really be like. During Pilot Engagement, candidates will gain firsthand exposure to the actual work they will be doing, the manager’s working style, team dynamics, et cetera. This can help candidates evaluate whether the opportunity is really the right fit for them.

This matters because a successful hire requires more than an employer selecting the right candidate – both parties need to decide that they want to work together. A Pilot Engagement can make that decision more informed on both sides.

You Don’t Need to Redesign Your Hiring Process

Adding a Pilot Engagement does not require abandoning an organization’s existing recruiting and selection process. For many employers, it can simply become an additional step once the candidate pool has been narrowed. The process might look something like this:

Candidate Screening -> Interviews -> Finalist Selection -> Pilot Engagement -> Final Hiring Decision

The organization can still conduct its normal interviews, assessments, reference checks, and other evaluation activities. The Pilot Engagement simply adds another source of information before the final decision.

In some cases, an organization may choose to conduct a Pilot Engagement with one preferred candidate. In others, it may be appropriate to use Pilot Engagements with a small number of finalists. The right approach depends on the role, the organization, and the circumstances of the search.

When can a Pilot Engagement Be Particularly Useful?

Pilot Engagements are not necessarily appropriate for every position. But there are situations where they can be especially valuable, such as:

• When the role is difficult to evaluate through interviews
• When practical execution matters
• When collaboration is central to success
• When several finalists look equally strong
• When the cost of a bad hire is high

The Design of the Pilot Matters

Simply giving a candidate some work to dodoes not automatically create an effective Pilot Engagement. This engagement needs to be thoughtfully designed. It should be representative enough of the role to produce meaningful insights while remaining appropriately scoped for a short engagement.

It should answer questions such as – what do you actually want to learn? What work will provide useful evidence? Who should interact with the candidate? How will the candidate be evaluated? and so on.

Avoid Turning the Pilot Into More Work for Hiring Managers

One understandable concern is that adding another step to the hiring process could create additional administrative work. If hiring managers have to design the engagement, coordinate schedules, communicate instructions, track activity, collect deliverables, gather feedback, and produce an evaluation, the process can quickly become burdensome.

However, the administrative burden can be separated from the actual evaluation. With a managed Pilot Engagement process, as provided by HireJar, much of the efforts can be eased away from the hiring manager.

Add a Pilot Engagement to an Existing Candidate Selection Process

Organizations don’t necessarily need to adopt an entirely new hiring model to benefit from Pilot Engagements. You can start with an existing open position and add a Pilot Engagement to the candidate selection process.

HireJar can help design the right Pilot Engagement for the role – including the scope, duration, expected deliverables, and confidentiality considerations. We can manage the engagement process, including the candidate coordination, progress tracking, deliverable collection, feedback gathering, and a structured evaluation report at the end of the engagement.

The result is an opportunity to gain greater insight into candidate capabilities and fit without adding more administrative work for HR or hiring managers.

Want to add a Pilot Engagement to the candidate selection process for an existing job? Learn more at:  www.HireJar.com/Pilot

 

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