Five things to prepare before your first interview with a candidate
Ubuntu Home Staffing 29 September 2026 4 min readPreparation is what turns an interview from a chat into a confident hiring decision. Five practical steps before the candidate arrives.
The best interviews are not the longest ones. They are the ones where you knew what you were looking for before the candidate sat down.
1. Read the profile properly
Go through the candidate's experience, skills and documents before the interview, not during it. Note two things you want to confirm and one thing you want to explore.
2. Write down your top three questions
Keep them practical and job-related:
- Tell me about the last household you worked in and why you left.
- How do you handle a day when the children are unwell?
- What would you do if a task was not finished by the end of your shift?
Behavioural questions reveal more than yes-or-no questions ever will.
3. Prepare the practical details
Decide the start date, the working hours, the salary and who the candidate will report to. If you are unsure about these, you are not ready to interview.
4. Arrange a safe, comfortable setting
Interview in a quiet space, keep the door open or have another adult present, and confirm the time and address in advance. This protects both you and the candidate.
5. Plan your follow-up
Decide before the interview who will call references, when you will make a decision, and how you will tell every candidate the outcome. Speed matters — good professionals are often interviewing with more than one household.
Prepare these five things and you will interview with clarity instead of instinct.