It is good practice to give unsuccessful interviewees feedback if they require it. This can be done at the time of notifying them that they were not successful or you may wish to arrange a mutually convenient time to feed back, either in person or by telephone. In addition, managers have a responsibility to give constructive feedback to all internal applicants who were either not shortlisted or unsuccessful at interview.

Prior to the discussion make sure that you are familiar with the candidate's documentation and the outcome of the decision. Look upon the feedback as an opportunity for you to help the candidate to review their performance and make their own judgements.

When starting the discussion check that the candidate knows the outcome and also tell them how much time you have if this is limited.

Open the discussion by asking them what they want from the feedback. For example, they may have another interview or may be considering applying for a similar post. This should allow you to tailor the information to their needs - remember that the feedback is for their benefit.

Ask them for their self-assessment - what they believe they did well and less well. Listen for clues in what they say as this will allow you to focus more easily on difficult areas.

Begin your responses by reminding them what key criteria you were looking for. Focus on actual behaviour by giving examples of things they actually wrote, or said, and how this affected the outcome. Avoid judgement and stick to facts. This is most powerful for the candidate and is less likely to be misunderstood.

Remember to balance the less positive information with the more positive and allow them to ask questions. Don't collude with unrealistic aspirations or ideas. For example, if they performed poorly across the range of areas specified in the person specification it would be unhelpful to agree that they should apply for any other similar post. Of course, they can still choose to do so if they wish.

For feedback on psychometric testing and other ability tests, only those who are qualified are eligible to feed back this information. Therefore, if you have received a request for feedback from someone relating to any testing that was undertaken for them please contact a member of the recruitment team to arrange this.