A structured interview asks every candidate the same questions in the same order and scores the answers against the same rubric. It is the simplest way to make hiring fairer and more predictable, because every candidate is judged on the same bar.
Write the questions from the job, not the resume.
Start from what the person will do in their first 90 days. Turn each outcome into one behavioural question and one scenario.
Build a rubric before the first interview.
For each question, write what a weak, solid and strong answer sounds like. Keep it to a 1 to 5 scale.
Use the same questions in the same order.
Follow-up questions are fine, but every candidate should hear the same core questions. Changing them mid-process makes scores impossible to compare.
Score alone, then discuss.
Interviewers score independently before the debrief. It stops the loudest voice from setting the result.
Keep the evidence.
Note what the candidate actually said next to each score. When someone asks why a decision was made, you have the answer.
Review the rubric every quarter.
Compare scores with how hires actually perform and tune the questions that do not predict anything.
Where agents help
AI phone screens and video interviews are structured by default: the same questions, the same scorecard and a transcript behind every score. People review the evidence and make the final call.



