Interview Notes - Retain or Not!

nadrian

Our HR Department is discussing the issue of whether to save all recruiter and manager interview notes or to discard after position has been filled (except for interview analysis form). What is your company policy? If keeping notes, where should they be kept - separate from application/personnel file or with them? When interviewing internal candidates, do you get current manager recommendations in writing and do you save this also?
Thanks!

Down_the_Middle

I believe those notes s/b retained as they provide a "recollection" of who said what during the interview. It provides a memory of things that were discussed which can be useful to respond to "the recruiter/hiring manager said"... Additionally, those notes can be invaluable when an individual who was not selected alleges some form of discrimination. The interview notes of the person hired frequently can address the job-related background of the person you hired. Without these notes, it's tough to argue the likelihood of what was said. I also think these notes belong with the personnel file vs. being filed separately somewhere else.

Hatchetman

Since they are interview recruitment and selection interview notes, you probably should keep them for at least the time an EEOC (6 months) or state agency (in California, one year) discrimination complaint period ends, in case there is an EEOC filing or a state agency filing. Since they are not part of the employee's official record, I would keep them separate..perhaps in a file related to all the interviews for a particular position. Also, documentation about the recruitment and selection process should be maintained for the same reasons.

Down_the_Middle

If you decide to keep these notes separately, it'll be important to remember to disclose them when you get a subpoena for the pers record of that employee. Those notes will be discoverable.

Mike Maslanka

a recent case out of the second circuit(involving age discrimination and a scholl hiring an art teacher) has a discusiion of keeping notes of interviews and for how long...i'll see if i can find it...regards from texas,mike maslanka

Margaret Morford

I would tell your managers to forward the resumes/applications of all candidates they interviewed for each position with their interview notes to HR. Set up a file for each position and put all these documents in it. As DTM said above, you can use this to defend yourself against a lawsuit that alleges you discriminated in your selection process. Notes always impress the jury. Be sure that you train your supervisors how to take notes, not to use appearance or age descriptors (59 year old large woman) or judgmental conclusions (has an "attitude problem"). Teach them to describe the behavior they see and hear (Made several negative statements about his/her last supervisor).

Margaret Morford
theHRedge

Mike Maslanka

the name of the case that i mentioned is byrnie v. town of cromwell and was decided by the second circuit on march 15,2001...regards from texas,mike maslanka

CuriousG

I have had OFCCP and EEOC EOS's take the position that interviews and interview notes are a selection "test" that the candidate must "pass" and therefore they are a formal part of the selection process. Margaret Monford has the right idea about "job files." Since ideally each hiring decisions should be a separate and descrete selection decision you should have a job file for each position you fill. If you fill multiple positions from one process, (i.e.; six programmers for a systems project) you could run a sinlge file for that process, but you would need to keep records, including interview notes, very well dated so you can document which candidate(s) were at a decision phase at the time each job offer was extended.