Recruitment

At Elon, we are committed to hiring qualified and talented people to join our community. Hiring the right candidate takes a planned and strategic approach. Search committee chairs are encouraged to contact Elon’s Recruitment Coordinator (hr@elon.edu or 336-278-5560) to develop an advertisement and recruitment plan.

Evaluate Candidates

Ensure a Fair and Thorough Review of Candidates

  1. Create a search committee

    Your search committee should be broadly representative of Elon; its members should be able to provide a variety of perspectives on the role and function of the position. Consider enlisting those who will be peers of the new hire, in the new hire’s reporting chain, and include other individuals that may interact with the position (e.g., clients, faculty, other departments)

  2. Create a space for committee documents

    IT offers several tools you may want to consider for organizing your committee documents (e.g., hiring rubrics, meeting notes, etc.). Review the Technology Hiring Guide for more information.

  3. Discuss and develop criteria

    Meet with your search committee to discuss and agree in advance on the criteria to be used in evaluating candidates. Be sure to review the job description and ensure that the committee members understand each component.

  4. Narrow the applicant pool

    Review the candidates and begin narrowing the pool based upon the criteria developed by the committee. Be vigilant of biases that may occur in the selection process; encourage your committee to use the predefined criteria and avoid assumptions and stereotypes based upon race, gender, age, etc.

Interviewing Candidates

Review Interview Guidelines

Elon’s Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Guidelines for Interviewing Applicants goes through a list of questions that are appropriate, and inappropriate, to ask candidates. Be sure you and your committee members review this document before conducting interviews.

Develop Interview Questions

Work with your committee to develop a set of interview questions that each candidate will be asked. This consistency is important to ensure that each candidate is giving an equal opportunity to answer each question that may guide your decision. Developing interview questions beforehand also ensures that you’ve covered the pertinent questions needed for your decision and that you are utilizing the interview time well.

Consider a Two-Phase Interview Approach

Many committees find that a virtual interview is a great, low-cost tool for narrowing the candidate pool before bringing candidates onto campus for face-to-face interviews. Consider using video conference technology that allows you to see facial expressions and gestures rather than just relying on a telephone call.  Elon has several video conferencing options available; review IT’s Hiring Technology Resource Guide for more information.

Develop the On-Campus Interview Schedule

Provide candidates with a detailed schedule that identifies each interviewer, including the interviewer’s name, position, and a brief explanation of why this person is interviewing them. Ensure that each interviewer understands the job position and the criteria developed by the committee. Keep the same format for each candidate and allow an equal amount of time for each candidate to answer questions. Consider offering a campus tour to familiarize the candidate with all that Elon has to offer.

If you would like to record candidate presentations or have equipment needs associated with your search, consider contacting Media Services for a consultation.

Obtain Timely Feedback

Following the interview, solicit feedback quickly from interviewers to ensure that thoughts and impressions aren’t forgotten (or confused with other candidates). Consider utilizing a survey tool like Qualtrics to gather feedback.

Reconvene the Search Committee

Although you’ve already solicited feedback from all interviewers (many of whom were likely search committee members), it’s always helpful to get the search committee together one last time to discuss and compare all candidates. Consider ranking the candidates in case your first choice doesn’t work out.

Select the Candidate

Once you’ve solicited feedback from interviewers and ranked your candidates, you still have some work to do before making an offer.

Contact References

Reference checks are a critical part of the selection process. We’ve created a reference check form to guide you through questions to ask that could give you insight into the candidate’s current and past performance.

Offer Position

Inform the applicant that the offer of employment is contingent upon a satisfactory review of the background check results.

Complete the Hiring Form

For jobs posted 10/25/23 or prior in AppTrack:

Once the background results have been reviewed and your candidate has been cleared for hiring, complete the hiring proposal in AppTrack.

Note: AppTrack automatically generates letters to applicants that are not selected for hire. If you would like to reach out to specific candidates on an individual level (recommended for those you interviewed or otherwise had personal interactions), please contact the Office of Human Resources to ensure an automated letter will not be submitted to those applicants.


For jobs posted 10/31/23 or after in PageUp:

Once your final candidate has been selected move the candidate to the “Hiring Proposal (Launch Offer Card to Finalize)” status in PageUp. Once in this status, the hiring proposal is activated.

Note: The hiring proposal must receive all approvals prior to requesting a background check.

Background Check

All Elon faculty and staff must undergo a background check before being employed. Be aware that background checks often take several days to complete and are conducted by an outside party.

Elon University has transitioned background check and motor vehicle record vendors from CastleBranch to HireRight.

Offer Letters

An offer letter will be sent electronically to the selected candidate via the PageUp Applicant Portal. The candidate must review the letter to be able to check the box acknowledging they have read and agreed to the terms. Next, the candidate must either accept or decline the offer within the PageUp Applicant Portal.

Note: Letters of Agreement for Salaried Staff Employees will be provided through a separate process via AdobeSign.