Sony Electronics is a leading provider of audio/video electronics and information technology products for the consumer and professional markets.
The Challenge
As part of their recruitment process, the HR team at Sony have to manage and administer extensive lists of questions. These range from standard procedural questions to technical, more role-specific ones. These “question lists” are tailored for each role.
When Sony approached us, they were already using Smartsheet to select and input their lists of questions, but were having to then put together each questionnaire manually, as there was no way to usefully format the list of questions automatically. Copying and pasting dozens of individual questions by hand was time consuming and prone to errors. They were looking for a way to automate this part of the process and transfer the list of questions to the relevant manager.
The Solution
We provided a two part solution. We created a link to a webform that the interviewers can access live, quickly and efficiently during each interview. This form gives the interviewers access to all the questions they need in one simple click. Using this form, the interviewers can submit their evaluation of each answer from the interviewee and provide an overall recommendation with comments. These responses are then sent directly back into the right place in Smartsheet.
At the same time as the link to the webform is created, a PDF of all the interview questions is emailed to the Hiring Manager and attached to the relevant row in Smartsheet. This gives the interview team the option of printing out a PDF if they prefer not to have a screen in front of them during the interview process.
Testimonial
Smartsheet has been instrumental in streamlining processes, manage projects and programs successfully online and from an operational standpoint has allowed us getting requests out of email to collaborate more effectively and in turn increase overall productivity.
When we first approached Smarter Business Processes to share the pain points we were facing with the interview evaluation process and the desired solution that we were looking for, Dr. James Harris quickly understood our requirements. He then developed a solution for us that was beyond our expectations. Because of his brilliant work and product, we can now effectively streamline and automate a very human process that was very manual before, which will improve the team’s productivity and allow them to focus more on tasks that truly matter to us – internal and external customer satisfaction in the electronics and entertainment business.
Alexandra Waltz – HR PMO & Talent Insights – Sony Corporation
