Do you think, interviews are the best way of predicting a key performer for the company? If not, suggest one.

Well, the study ( out of  32000 candidates) shows that only8% of candidates were actually performed good as expected by the interview panal.  While i agree with the suggestion to check back with the privious employers but again the feed back could be baised depending on many varients..

 It is one of the best ways  if it is well prepared

A company has expectations ..interviewers  must decide who is the best one to meet those expectations

So they have to measure qualifications ,  willingness, character ..etc.  in the interviewees   

Another good  measuring tool is make contacts with ex-work managers that would give  performance feed back. Taking into consideration the type of work and the complexity of the project.