India-based Interview Master nabs funding to help streamline the job interview process

Interview Master, a Bangalore-based app that screens job candidates, has received a round of funding from Indian venture capital firm VentureNursery that will allow it to expand globally, Tech in Asia reports.

Companies can use the software to streamline the entire job application process, from the initial job posting to the final selection of candidates. The core of the service, however, is its management of job interviews.

HR departments can submit pre-recorded and customized interview questions to candidates, who then respond through video as if the interview were live. The recruiters can then collect the videos and evaluate them. Once a candidate is selected, Interview Master collects a fee based on the total number of interviews conducted.

Interview Master has a chart comparing traditional face-to-face interviews with its own recruitment solutions on its website. There, it admits that its method of conducting interviews through canned, pre-recorded questions lacks spontaneity, but argues that this prevents charismatic candidates from unduly influencing the recruitment process.

Interview Master also offers a practice interview service for candidates who want to sharpen their skills, as well as a platform for college admissions consultants, which recalls the China-based Initial Views (though that firm focuses exclusively on Chinese students).

While job hunting has evolved in such a way that tools like LinkedIn and Twitter are now essential, the traditional face-to-face interview has not yet been optimized by Web 2.0 services (save for Skype and other video-chat platforms).

As Interview Master claims it can save firms up to 80% in time and cost, if HR departments are comfortable sacrificing intimacy for efficiency, Interview Master could see itself becoming a popular platform across many industries.

Note: This post was initially published stating that Interview Master is based in Bangladesh, but it is in fact from Bangalore, India. We quickly removed the error, apologies for any confusion. Image Credit: Chris Hondros/Getty Images