Interview Questions for Delivery Companies During Coronavirus Pandemic

The coronavirus pandemic has added another point of consideration when it comes to hiring employees who will be interacting with your customers daily. Businesses like fast food chains and retail stores have tried to reduce human interaction by encouraging take-outs and delivery orders, and delivery companies have begun implementing contactless delivery services - all in a bid to increase social distancing and reduce the chances of the virus spreading.

When coming up with interview questions for potential hourly hires, you need to clearly articulate the role, the outcomes that the role is responsible for, and the skills needed to succeed. You can create scenario-based questions to get a better insight into the applicant’s thought process and how skilled they are in dealing with a variety of situations commonly encountered when carrying out their tasks.

We also suggest that applicants are interviewed first by a senior member of your company if possible; for example, a hiring manager who has experience as a deliveryman. These individuals would know the best ways to deal with difficult situations specific to delivery and would thus be able to assess candidates’ responses to scenario-based questions better.

Lastly, given how important it is now to place a strong emphasis on one’s own hygiene and health, it is essential that you incorporate an element of personal responsibility into your selection process. Scenario questions about how the delivery staff will react during this outbreak period can also help you filter for the stronger candidates.

Here is a potential list of interview questions you can ask:

Travel History and Exposure

1. Have you travelled out of the country in the past 21 days?
2. In the past 21 days, have you been in contact with a sick person who has traveled out of the country?
3. Have you been in close contact with someone exhibiting flu-like symptoms?

Experience and Availability

1. Have you previously worked in the same industry?
2. Which days of the week are you available to work? 
3. What shift(s) are you available to work? Morning (8:00 am to 12:00 pm); Afternoon (12:00 pm to 5:00 pm); Evening (5:00 pm to 10:00 pm)
4. Total Hours Available Per Week?
5. Are you available to work on: Weekends; Holidays; Neither?
6. What are some of the things you’ve done before to exceed a customer’s expectations?

Scenario Questions

1. Now that our company is implementing contactless delivery, what will you do if a customer insists that you deliver the food to him or her face to face?
2. What would you do if you noticed that the drop-off spot for the food (e.g. the customer’s front door) is very dirty?

Questions on personal habits*

1. How do you keep yourself updated on the coronavirus situation?
2. What are the best practices to curb the spread of the virus?

*Knowing how proactive the candidate is in following official announcements and educating himself about updates can give you a better insight as to how much he cares about proposed measures to curb the spread of the virus.

With the right set of questions, you can hire hourly workers who are as invested as you are in their personal safety, and that of your customers and other employees as well.