How we find skilled, reliable remote team members without drowning in resumés

Hiring remote staff from abroad, such as a deep talent pool like the Philippines, can be a game-changer for a small team or a growing company. But it’s also easy to get overwhelmed between flooded inboxes, underwhelming resumés, and flaky applicants. These are all a fact of life in the virtual outsourcing world. To the uninitiated, outsourcing can feel more like a gamble before it feels like a solution. That’s why we developed a streamlined hiring system that helps us filter hundreds of applicants down to the select few who are actually a great fit. It’s a process we’ve refined over the years through iteration, learning from mistakes, and continuous evaluation, the kind of work that services like Wise Scout specialize in. 

In this walkthrough, we’ll show you how combining technology-enhanced vetting with a human-first approach to recruitment can cut through the noise of mass-market platforms to find the perfect fit for the roles we need.

STEP 1: POST A JOB ON A HIRING PLATFORM

Our hiring process kicks off by announcing our intention to recruit. There are dozens of hiring platforms Filipino job seekers go on to find work, but my companies hire full timers from just a handful of these sites. Onlinejobs.ph (OLJ) is one of our favorites. This Utah-based outsourcing website has an easy-to-understand interface, low-commitment payment scheme, and a moderate price to discourage scammers.

In 2022, OLJ reported having 2,000,000 Filipino job seekers in its database, and our job posts regularly reach the platform’s 200-applicant limit per job. To cast a wider net, we also post on Jobstreet, Indeed, and on occasion, Upwork and Fiverr.

So we’re used to parsing through a ton of resumés, and that’s a positive sign—it means our job post is attractive and visible, so there’s a high chance there are good candidates in the pool.

Later on, we’ll systematically trim this group down to only those whom we want to interview. For now, the objective is to get as many serious people as possible to apply. 

First impressions last

Before we get into the content of the job post, we want it to stand out visually and get applicants to click on it. This is what a jobseeker on OLJ sees when seeing one of our posts:

How does this compare to many other job postings on the platform?

In our posts, the reader can see at first glance the employer’s face, full name, and the salary offered. Many of our current staff cited my photo as one of the things that grabbed their attention and made them feel the job post was legitimate. Applicants feel more at ease knowing that the poster is a real person whose identity they can cross-check on Google and LinkedIn.

Meanwhile, a sizable portion of talent seekers on OLJ leave their account picture blank. Companies and agencies often upload their logo, which helps a little but feels very impersonal and corporate. We’re a small business, so we leverage that to create a more human connection.

STEP 2: LAY IT ALL OUT IN THE JOB POST

Once an applicant has clicked on our job post, the ball is in our court. Time to capitalize on their attention with a well written job post. Here’s an example of one of our favorite templates. At the end of the sample, we provide a list of important bases to cover:

Experienced QuickBooks Online Bookkeeper (E-commerce & Inventory) – $7 to $12/hr – Full-Time | Remote

We are looking for a detail-oriented QuickBooks Online Bookkeeper with e-commerce and inventory accounting experience to join our growing board game publishing company. This is a full-time, long-term position with salary increases, benefits (PhilHealth/SSS reimbursement), and growth opportunities into leadership.

The input, contributions, and decisions made by this person will be extremely important to the success of our company. To fill this role, you must be able to work roughly half of your hours in the US Central time zone with our team.

We’re looking for someone who’s highly self-directed, organized, and analytical. Someone who’s personable, has a sense of humor, loves solving challenging puzzles, and isn’t afraid to try new things, test things out, and make progress by trial and error. We need someone who thrives in an atmosphere where giving and receiving feedback is expected.

Most importantly, this person finds meaning and fulfillment in using their skills to personally and directly drive the growth of a small company.

If you’re looking for a mindless, mechanical job, this position isn’t for you. If you’re not open to taking on potential management/leadership roles in the future, then this position isn’t for you.

The ideal candidate possesses the following characteristics:

• • • Analytical and enjoys thinking through things in a quantitative way
    • Tech-savvy and can quickly troubleshoot technical issues
    • Organized and consistent
    • Self-directed and needs little reminding to get things done
    • High achieving and loves delivering excellent work
    • Humble and listens to feedback
    • Enjoys trial & error and finding ways to optimize both results and processes
    • Not afraid to admit that they don’t know something
    • Enjoys the challenge of solving complicated but meaningful problems

The ideal candidate has the following qualifications and skills:

• • • Bookkeeping using QuickBooks Online
    • Spreadsheets (Excel and Google Sheets)
    • eCommerce Inventory Bookkeeping and Accounting experience, preferably Amazon and Shopify
    • Proactive online research and information retrieval
    • Math, logic, and problem solving
    • Written and verbal communication

Responsibilities and duties of the role:

• • • Manage bills, invoices, categorization, and reconcile all transactions in QBO
    • Create financial projections, cash flow forecasting, and financial reports
    • Research ways to grow the company or save money
    • Team-wide meetings and strategic growth
    • Administrative tasks and upkeep
    • Regularly update and maintain e-commerce financial records, including sales, returns, and expenses
    • Collaborate closely with the operations team to ensure accurate financial reporting and decision-making
    • Ensure adherence to accrual accounting standards in all financial transactions

Salary structure and benefits

1. 1. 1. First 3 months: $7/hour

      2. Next 9 months: $9/hour under current management

      3. After 1 Year: $10–$12/hour, with annual promotions and raises based on performance

      4. Pay Schedule: 5th and 20th of each month

      5. Benefits: Monthly reimbursement of PhilHealth and SSS self-payments (starts after 3 months of employment)

      6. Long-Term Growth (3–5 Years): Potential promotion to a team leadership role with annual compensation of $30,000–$40,000 USD (₱1.7M–₱2.25M)

To apply

Please send me a message so I know you’re serious about the role, and I’ll reply with a link to the formal application standard questionnaire.

Note that we require you to have already taken the English Proficiency Assessment on your Onlinejobs.ph profile through ExamEnglish.com before applying since we’ll request this later in the application process.

If we think you're an ideal candidate from your answers to the questionnaire, we’ll send a series of assessments. The last stage will be an interview with me and some of my team members.

About Genius Games

We believe that science is fascinating and should be a joy to learn. We also believe that hobby games aren’t just a fun way to pass the time, but a healthy activity to promote social skills and learn about the world we live in.

Thus, we focus on science-accurate products that engage, educate, and inspire. Genius Games specializes in publishing board games, card games, jigsaw puzzles, and many other types of interactive games and activities—all themed around STEM concepts and factually accurate to a T!

The company has been featured in Popular Science Magazine, Scientific American, Gizmodo, and many other media outlets. We’ve been growing at a tremendous rate every year since we’ve been in business, and the hobby board game industry as a whole is booming.

Core values

As a member of the Genius Games team, you’re expected to embody the core values of the company that we hire and fire by:

Self-Directed, High-Achieving: Taking responsibility for yourself and taking the initiative to do what needs to be done without having to be instructed step-by-step.

Always Improving: Seeking to become a more knowledgeable, skillful, insightful, and healthy individual, both on and off the job.

Accountability: Seeing your work through to the end, delivering results that reflect who you are and what you believe is your level of competency. And importantly, owning up to mistakes.

Feedback-Driven: Open to criticism and new perspectives, listening in order to understand how you can improve, and then judiciously applying those insights to produce results.

Candid and Compassionate: Always being forthright, empathetic, and sincere, because people are the most important resource we have. 

All our job post templates contain most, if not all, of the following:

1. 1. A concise, attention-grabbing title that states the official position

   2. Importance of the role to the company

   3. Most desired characteristics of a person in this role

   4. Required skills and proficiencies

   5. Examples of tasks

   6. Compensation model

   7. Instructions for application

   8. What to expect if the application moves forward

   9. A link to a questionnaire

   10. Details about the company

STEP 3: CREATE, SELECT, AND ADMINISTER ASSESSMENTS

Across all platforms, we routinely receive around 2,000 applications in total for generalist roles such as Virtual Assistants. More specialized positions can be between 800-900—still a huge number. 

To pick out the best prospects from the pool, we first go back to the job description and evaluate what we’re looking for in a candidate by listing down 3–5 priority traits. From this, we craft or select tests that measure or approximate those qualities.

For example, let’s say these are traits that we’d want out of a bookkeeper:

1. 1. Generally intelligent
   2. Has at least intermediate computer and internet literacy
   3. Has at least some accounting or finance background
   4. Has intermediate to advanced mastery of spreadsheet applications like Excel
   5. Can type numbers accurately and quickly

These should be measurable by some test, whether standardized or custom-made. Once we’ve decided on our priority qualifications, we create tests from scratch, choose from a list of standardized assessments, administer this series of assessments, then evaluate individual performance.

Yep, hiring isn’t easy. Assessments alone are a multi-step process that requires at least intermediate data management skills, the right software, and a lot of time.

This is where pre-assessment platforms like Criteria, TestGorilla, iMocha, HiPeople, etc. come in. Most of these software allow us to accomplish the bulk of the recruitment process in one platform, from creation and administering of assessments, to evaluation and filtering of the applicant pool down to the final candidates.

One of the most convenient features of these services is their large inventory of science-backed standardized assessments that HR professionals use for their own hiring. These tests can be divided into five categories:

1. 1. Aptitude Assessments
   2. Emotional Intelligence Tests
   3. Personality Tests
   4. Risk Tests
   5. Skills Tests

When selecting applicants, we usually use a combination of one aptitude test, 2–3 skills tests, and one custom-made experience questionnaire specific to the role. We aim to be thorough without causing examinee fatigue, and we have found that applicants can comfortably complete 4–5 tests in roughly an hour.

Tests we commonly use

The Criteria Cognitive Aptitude Test (CCAT) or the Universal Cognitive Aptitude Test (UCAT) are our general aptitude assessments of choice. Both tests gauge an applicant’s overall problem solving, critical thinking, information processing and application, and skill acquisition.

The main difference between the two is that the UCAT doesn’t test verbal ability and verbal reasoning, so it’s language-independent and ideal for non-native English speakers and international candidates. Since some CCAT questions can be disadvantageous for non-native English speakers, we reserve this test for roles that are heavy on communication e.g., customer service, executive assistance, managerial positions. For many clerical jobs, the UCAT will suffice.

For non-client-facing roles that require a good level of English proficiency like email support and social media management, we sometimes administer the UCAT and the Criteria Language Proficiency Test - English (CLPT-EN). The latter measures English reading, writing, and listening skills. If we’re looking for a writer, we might let applicants take both the CCAT and the CLPT-EN.

Among skills tests, the Computer Literacy and Internet Knowledge (CLIK) test is one of our favorites. As the name suggests, this assessment measures how familiar an applicant is with basic computer and internet functions. Given that remote staff accomplish the entirety of their tasks on a desktop or laptop, operating a computer and browser with at least intermediate proficiency is a must.

Administering tests

Once we have our lineup of assessments (called a Test Battery), we simply send  candidates a secure testing link via email or through the Onlinejobs.ph messaging feature. The assessments are timed and must be completed in a single sitting, and the platform supports both proctored and un-proctored environments depending on the employer's preference. Candidates complete the assessments on a standard web browser on a desktop or laptop, and we instruct them explicitly to not use a phone to take the assessments.

STEP 4: EVALUATE AND FILTER SYSTEMATICALLY

Once an applicant finishes their Test Battery, they’re scored automatically, and the results are delivered to us in real time. The hiring platform then generates detailed reports that highlight each candidate’s strengths, job fit, and percentile rankings based on norm groups. This data-driven approach helps us make informed hiring decisions and is very useful in the early evaluation process.

Using automations to filter down to the top 80th percentile of applicants

We use the job pipelines feature to help us quickly zero in on the top 85th percentile applicants and higher. It starts with a series of filters based on the assessments we think matter most for the role. We set a cutoff score for the first test, and anyone who meets or exceeds it moves on to the next stage. From there, we apply another cutoff on the second most important test, and sometimes a third, depending on the position. Not all tests are used to filter people out, some are just there for additional insight.

That said, we leave room for exceptions. If someone scores exceptionally high on one of the assessments, we sometimes take a second look even if they didn’t make it through the earlier filters. In those cases, we can manually bump them up in the pipeline. In this way, we combine automation and human judgment to collect the best candidates without missing the hidden gems.

For illustration purposes, here’s what a job pipeline containing 132 applicants looks like towards the end of the hiring process:

Here’s what’s going on:

• The first cutoff score of 27 (out of 50) reduced the pool by 70%. Out of 801 (646+76+53+18+5+2+1) applicants who took the assessment, 646 scored 26 and below on the cognitive ability test (dark blue arrow).

• The other 155 (76+53+18+5+2+1) candidates moved on to the second stage (orange arrow) and only 26 (18+5+2+1) of them moved on to the video submission, and only 8 moved forward to the interview stage (red arrow).

• Less than half of the applicants (3 out of 8) did well enough in the initial interview to move to the final interview, from which we only chose to extend an offer to one (light blue arrow).

Shortlisted applicants

Once we’ve narrowed down our applicants to those in the top 85th percentile, we create a spreadsheet with their basic information and assessment scores. This shortlist becomes the pool for final trimming. At this point, we shift our focus to the custom experience questionnaire, which we design to align closely with the role. Each response is converted into a numerical score and added manually, which makes it easier to compare candidates objectively. This step helps us identify who truly has the relevant experience and mindset we’re looking for.

Since the next stage is the interview, we aim to keep the final shortlist to under ten candidates. If we notice anything off (e.g., inconsistencies across assessments and questionnaire responses) or simply need to trim the list further, we conduct background checks using OnlineJobs.ph. These checks give us access to the applicant’s profile history, work history, ID verification, any public social media accounts, feedback from previous employers, and account activity. It’s a helpful way to confirm a candidate’s legitimacy, spot red flags, or verify their employment claims before we invest more time in them.

If building your own system sounds like too much heavy lifting, Wise Scout can do the legwork for you, and you can expect a shortlist of highly vetted candidates that match your company’s DNA.

STEP 5: GET TO KNOW THE BEST CANDIDATES

After shrinking the number of candidates down to less than ten, everyone in this cohort is likely well qualified for the role already. Deciding who to hire from this group now hinges on personality fit. Any of the assessments you’ve given can’t reliably determine this, so you’ll need a little bit more input from your candidates.

This is where the interview comes in, and we like to divide it into two parts. As a preliminary screening, we ask our candidates to record a video of themselves answering a set of guide questions and submit it to us. Through the video, we get an idea of what working with them actually feels like (a “vibe-check”, there’s no better term), as well as their working space and manner of speaking.

The second interview is where me and some team members meet virtually with the candidate. This is usually just a casual 10-minute call where we get to know them a little, ask them simple short-answer questions, and give them the opportunity to ask their own questions.

We often already have a top candidate in mind by the second interview, but a good showing by an underdog can swing the odds in their favor.

Video submissions

In the first phase of the interview we ask candidates to record a short video. In our email, we make sure to start by thanking them for their effort and letting them know how well they’ve done so far. We also reveal their standing to encourage submissions. This is followed by the request: to record a video of themselves answering specific questions relevant to the job.

Depending on the role, topics range from professional background, work experience related to the role, best practices they've picked up, and how they typically organize their workflow. We also provide clear instructions about how to record and submit the video such as what device to use, how long it should be (usually 3–5 minutes), and whether we prefer a link or file attachment. We usually set a deadline within 2 to 3 working days to keep things moving.

Virtual interview

The second phase is a live virtual interview. By this point, we usually already have a strong frontrunner, so the call is mostly to confirm alignment and build rapport. Still, we make it a practice to speak with more than one candidate in case our top choice is fielding other offers. A real-time conversation is also an opportunity to validate all claims in their resumés, experience questionnaire responses, and even answers in the video submissions.

For the candidate, this is their chance to ask their own questions and clarify anything about the role, schedule, or company.

During the call, we cover basic but essential questions such as:

• • When can you start working?

  • Are you looking for full-time, part-time, or freelance work?

  • What is your desired pay rate per hour in USD?

  • What are your ideal working hours?

  • Can you work on US Central Time (CST) office hours (9am-5pm)?

  • If yes, which CST hours can we expect you to work?

  • Do you have other clients whom you work remotely for?

  • Are you currently working for a local company?

  • If so, where are you working and how many hours do you work?

  • Do you have your own computer and internet access?

  • How fast is your internet connection?

  • What will you do if the internet disconnects during an important call?

STEP 6: EXTEND AN OFFER

The fastest part of the whole hiring process. We send a congratulatory email to at least one candidate, outlining the agreed-upon terms and what happens next once they accept. From here, the real work begins.

An international talent pool is out there, it’s just a matter of whether you approach it strategically or let opportunities slip away.

From defining needs to testing, screening, interviewing, and pre-onboarding, we’ve walked through every step of a proven offshore hiring process. While there’s more to how the sausage gets made, this blueprint is something you can follow if you’re willing to invest in software that makes assessments and evaluations more efficient. Or, you can have a talent acquisition company handle it all for you.

If you’re ready to build a high-performing offshore team without the usual guesswork, talk to Wise Scout today.