Group interviews not a good idea for firms

Some companies think group interviews (where are a group of candidates are interviewed by a company at once) are a cost effective way to interview a number of candidates at the same time. Take it from me, folks - I suggest firms refrain from using this method. Here's why:

We live in a competitive market and there's a war for talent. With baby boomers retiring, companies are competing for candidates to fill their roles and the shortage of experienced talent means it's a job seeker's market. In such a market, firms need to do whatever they can to differentiate themselves from the competition. Whereas a group interview may seem cost effective and efficient for the firm, it sends a message to candidates that the firm doesn't think they are important enough to warrant interviewing each of them on an individual basis. As a candidate, what goes through my mind is that if the company doesn't think I'm important enough to spend an hour with talking on an individual basis, why should I give them the time of day when there are other companies that are willing to spend that one on one time with me? It gives me a sense that the company views employees as a commodity; as widgets that can be replaced easily which means the firm is not likely to develop and grow them in the way their most important assets should be treated.

Second, in order for firms to assess candidates properly, they need to ensure that candidates are at ease and behave in their usual manner. Group interviews create an uncomfortable and somewhat competitive scenario where a person sees their competition face to face for a particular job and it leads to people in many cases not behaving like themselves. People get nervous, self-conscious or alternatively overly competitive even though this is not their normal self. It takes an already inexact science of interviewing and makes it more complicated. It's like asking someone to count the white stripes on each zebra in a zoo but on the condition of the zebras running around in circles and having a person count the stripes at the same time. Would it not make more sense to take each zebra aside and count its white stripes individually?

The single most important factor for a company's success in the knowledge economy is human capital. Thus, identifying that human capital is an important endeavour for the firm and companies shouldn't be "cheaping out" by trying to take shortcuts and hoping to somehow luck out with attracting high performing employees.