The Interviewer's Guide to Giving Great Feedback

Why Feedback Quality Matters

As an interviewer on EliteInterviews, your feedback is the most valuable thing you provide. Candidates aren't just paying for a practice question — they're paying for expert insight they can't get anywhere else.

Great feedback transforms a candidate's trajectory. Poor feedback wastes everyone's time.

## The Feedback Framework: SBI + A

We recommend the Situation-Behavior-Impact + Action model:

### Situation

Describe the specific moment in the interview.

*"When I asked you to design a URL shortener…"*

### Behavior

State what the candidate did (objectively, without judgment).

*"…you immediately started drawing database tables without asking any clarifying questions."*

### Impact

Explain the effect of that behavior.

*"This made it seem like you were rushing and might miss important requirements. In a real interview, the interviewer might wonder if you'd skip requirements gathering on the job too."*

### Action

Give a concrete, actionable recommendation.

*"Next time, spend the first 3–5 minutes asking about scale, core features, and constraints. Even if you think you know the answer, it shows maturity and thoroughness."*

## Dos and Don'ts

### Do:

- Be specific. "Your answer was weak" is useless. "You didn't mention indexing when discussing database performance" is gold.

- Balance positives and negatives. Start with something they did well. It builds trust and makes critical feedback easier to absorb.

- Use examples from real interviews. "At Google, I've seen candidates lose points for X" carries weight.

- Prioritize. Don't list 20 things to fix. Pick the 2–3 highest-impact improvements.

### Don't:

- Be vague. "You need to communicate better" — how?

- Be harsh. You can be direct without being cruel. Remember, they're already stressed.

- Compare to other candidates. "Most people do better on this" isn't helpful.

- Skip the positives. Even a struggling candidate did *something* right. Find it.

## Structuring Your Scorecard

EliteInterviews provides a scorecard template. Here's how to fill it effectively:

### Technical Accuracy (1–5)

Did they arrive at a correct or reasonable solution? Note specific technical gaps.

### Problem-Solving Approach (1–5)

Did they break the problem down? Did they consider edge cases? Were they systematic or random?

### Communication (1–5)

Did they explain their thinking? Could you follow their reasoning? Did they ask good questions?

### Overall Recommendation

Would you give this candidate a "hire" signal at your company? Why or why not?

## The Ripple Effect

When you give great feedback, candidates improve. They come back for more sessions. They tell their friends. They leave glowing reviews. And when they land their dream job, they often come back as interviewers themselves.

You're not just conducting a mock interview — you're shaping someone's career. Take that seriously, and do it well.