This guide will help recruiters prepare for intake meetings with hiring managers, including targeted questions that will create the base for a successful recruitment process.

What is a recruiter intake meeting?

Recruiters arrange intake meetings with Hiring Managers, during the initial phase of a recruitment process. During these meetings, Hiring Managers and Recruiters determine candidate qualification criteria, clarify the job duties and job title and agree on the hiring stages (like resume screening, assessment test etc.)

Intake meetings are useful because they help Recruiters:

• Maintain healthy work relations with Hiring Managers
• Engage Hiring Managers in the recruitment process
• Clearly decide a position’s requirements
• Reduce miscommunication

How to prepare for an intake meeting with Hiring Managers?

The recruitment process is when Recruiters start screening CVs or calling candidates to discuss the profile. For successful intake meetings with Hiring Managers:

• Carry out internal and external research. Before meeting with Hiring Managers, save time by researching:
  • Typical qualifications and skills required for the position
  • The salary you are going to offer for this role
• Set a timeframe. Determine how much time you will need for each hiring stage depending on recruiting metrics like:
  • Time-to-hire
  • Time-to-fill
  • Yield ratios
• Collect basic information about the open position. Before meeting the Hiring Manager, decide:
  • The reason for this job opening
  • The recruitment budget for this role
  • The employment type

Questions to ask Hiring Managers during intake meeting

Both you and Hiring Managers will benefit from intake meetings, given you ask pointed questions that help shape the profile of a qualified candidate. Here are a few questions you can ask:

• What is the function of the department (you are recruiting for) in your company?
• Why you are hiring for this position?
• What is the structure of your current team and who will your new recruit report to?
• How you will be assessing the candidates during the recruitment process? Will there be any written assignments or a project?
• How soon do you want the new hire to join you?
• What will be the working schedule for the candidate?
• What benefits will be given to the candidate?
• What is the salary range for the job?
• Which software the new hire should be proficient in?
• Is relevant industry experience important for the role?
• Essential skills for the candidates.
• Essential qualifications for the candidates.
• How this position is related to the other roles in the company?
• What will be the key responsibilities of the new hire?
• What will be the top 3 responsibilities of the new hire in the company in their first 45 or 60 days?

What to do during and after an intake meeting

• Prepare the job description: You can use the JD as a starting point. Ensure your JD is buzzword-free, well-structured and clearly describes the responsibilities.
• Help Hiring Managers to separate essential skills from add-on skills: A long list of skills not just scares applicants away, but could also force you to reject good candidates just because they don’t check all boxes.
• Regular follow-ups: Communicate with Hiring Managers through the complete recruitment cycle. Hiring status updates make the process easy to understand and transparent.

Share the following data with Hiring Managers: Number of interviews taken, number of candidates qualified and reasons why candidates were rejected.