Prepare a candidate for a requested work sample

Before you ask a candidate for a work sample, learn enough to describe the request without guesswork. A request for effort outside an interview deserves a clear purpose, a realistic time estimate, and a visible choice. An attachment alone leaves too much unsaid. The candidate needs to know what sort of response the client expects, who reviews the response, when a decision is due, and how questions reach someone who knows the exercise. Your preparation turns a vague request into an honest conversation.

Begin with the client process owner. Ask which skill or judgment the exercise examines. Ask for the prompt and every file needed to complete the task. A spreadsheet review, a written analysis, a presentation, and a live exercise place different demands on a person. Learn whether material uses a fictional situation or information from normal business activity. Ask how reviewers score the response, whether a discussion follows, and who leads each step. Write answers in one preparation note instead of relying on memory from a rushed call.

Time needs close attention. A manager saying an exercise is simple has not supplied an estimate. Ask someone familiar with the prompt how long a typical response takes. Ask when access begins, when work is due, and which time zone governs a deadline. Ask where questions go during the exercise. A request sent Friday afternoon with a Monday morning deadline presents a different choice from one sent Tuesday with several days available. If no estimate exists, say so directly rather than turning a guess into a commitment.

Ask how the client handles submitted work. A candidate often wants to know whether reviewers follow a shared rubric, retain the file, or use any portion in normal operations. Such questions seek clarity, not conflict. Record only answers from the owner. When a prompt uses fictional information, explain this fact in plain words. When an answer is still open, tell the candidate you need to check. Reassurance without confirmation creates a problem later, especially when a candidate spends personal time on an unfamiliar task.

Keep consent separate from interest in the role. Interest in an interview does not amount to agreement for an unpaid exercise. The candidate might decline, ask for more detail, request another deadline, or need time before deciding. Receive each response without pressure. If instructions change after agreement, share the new detail and invite another choice. A written record protects everyone from confusion about what the candidate accepted. Save client confirmation and candidate consent with your regular recruiting notes.

Use a compact preparation note before your call. Include the role, process stage, task form, purpose, supplied material, estimated duration, deadline with time zone, reviewer roles, discussion plan, question route, and source for each answer. Leave unknown fields blank. A blank field tells you where a client follow up belongs. Do not fill one with language from an earlier search or a similar role. Your note also helps a teammate give the same explanation if you are unavailable.

Here is a fictional practice situation. Recruiter Jules receives an email after Priya's first interview for an operations analyst role. The email reads, “Please send our spreadsheet exercise.” Jules does not forward the file. Jules replies, “Which decision does this exercise inform? Which files belong with the prompt? What duration should Priya expect? Who reviews her response? Does the file use fictional order information? How should questions reach your team? What deadline should I offer?”

Later in the day, the process owner replies. The fictional order file asks Priya to identify patterns needing attention and explain her priorities in a short response. Two interviewers use a shared rubric. The owner estimates ninety minutes and says submissions stay within the evaluation process. A fifteen minute conversation follows scoring, focused on Priya's approach. Jules notices one missing detail: no deadline appears in the reply. Jules asks again instead of selecting a date. The owner proposes Thursday at 5:00 p.m. Eastern time, with Jules collecting questions for the process owner.

Jules calls Priya with a direct explanation. “The team has asked whether you want to complete a spreadsheet exercise after your first interview. The file uses fictional order information. They want to learn how you organize observations and explain priorities. Two interviewers use a shared rubric. The estimate is ninety minutes. Their proposed deadline is Thursday at 5:00 p.m. Eastern time. I will take questions to the process owner. After scoring, they plan a fifteen minute conversation about your approach. Would you like the prompt?” Priya now has enough information to choose.

Priya asks whether reviewers use any part of her spreadsheet in their operations. Jules answers from the owner's confirmation: “No. The fictional file and your response stay within their evaluation process.” Priya asks whether the conversation after scoring requires a formal presentation. Jules says, “No. The owner described a fifteen minute discussion of your approach.” Each answer has a source. If Jules lacked either answer, the right response would be a pause and a follow up, not a smooth sounding promise.

Priya agrees to try the exercise but has a current work commitment on Thursday evening. She asks for Friday at 5:00 p.m. Eastern time. Jules takes no position before checking. The owner approves Friday. Jules sends a written message with the task description, fictional material note, ninety minute estimate, exact deadline, question route, reviewer process, and discussion format. Priya replies with agreement. Jules saves both messages, so a later handoff does not leave another recruiter to reconstruct terms from fragments.

Watch for vague phrases during client and candidate conversations. “This should take no time” does not help someone plan an evening. “Send something polished” leaves quality undefined. “We do not expect to use your work” is weaker than a clear explanation of how submitted material is handled. Replace each phrase with a confirmed detail or an open question. Accurate limits build more trust than an answer designed to make a process sound easy.

Use the fictional Priya request for a final practice. Copy the preparation fields onto a blank page and leave deadline, scoring method, and discussion plan empty. Write client questions for each blank. Then speak the candidate explanation aloud using only confirmed details. When you reach the deadline field, stop, message the process owner for the proposed date and time zone, and wait for a reply before you send Priya the attachment.