Are most interviews one way traffic?

I was talking to one of our job seekers yesterday and one of the topics we covered was the interview process. I believe that interviews tend to be very focused on the employers asking most of the questions, psychometric evaluations and generally probing us to find out if we are the right fit for them.

In my opinion too many Employers view people as commodities, instead of a business partner. If Employers changed their focus to finding a partner instead of a commodity then their employee retention would improve greatly.

If Companies enabled the applicants access to indepth information about their organisation, their culture and may I suggest an industry standard Employer CV, (it is common for applicants to have CV's, why not Employers) the applicants would be better placed to make the right decision. It could be a bit like the new sellers pack when buying a new house.

What about offering the applicants a reference check, this could include customer and supplier contacts, current employee details, a copy of the latest financial accounts or any other number of things.

I truly believe finding a new job and finding a new employee is a long term partnership and both parties should have indepth information to make an informed decision for the future.