You need to hire the right individual(s), but it’s hard to find out realistic information about a potential candidate and you’ve limited time to prepare for the interview. Here is a 10‐minute outline to help you prepare a few extremely effective interview questions and improve your hiring.
The Problem:
You need objective information about how a candidate performed in the past to help you choose the right person. The problem is that firms no longer give out detailed employee references. So, you need to get a very clear picture about the candidate and you need to get it quickly during your precious interviewing time. Use this behavior‐based outline to get the right information right away.
1 ‐ List 5 Skills / Outcomes
Think about the job in question. List the five most important skills or outcomes required for the job? Examples: Handling customer complaints, expanding sales into new markets, managing time well, gaining the respect and improving the importance of an already established team, working in a team, solving problems, communicating with employees throughout a change, keeping information confidential.
2 ‐ Create 5 Questions
Create an open‐ended question for each. The format for all your questions will be exactly the same, “Can you give me a specific example from your previous work experience where you . . . ?” You are looking for situations where the candidate exhibited the behavior you are looking for. Paste the specific skill or outcome to the end of the question. Hiring a customer service manager to handle difficult customers? Here’s a sample question: “Can you give me a specific example from your previous work experience where you successfully handled a difficult customer?” Prepare a similar question for each skill or outcome. Looking for someone who can earn the respect of a difficult group of individuals? The question could be: “Can you give me a specific example from your previous work experience where you successfully took over a team and helped them to work to accomplish more together?”
3 ‐ Set a Positive Tone
When you meet the candidate, find out a little about them. Offer coffee or water. Sit in a neutral environment. Your desk sends too many
power messages. Find a table you can both use. The goal is an atmosphere of mutual respect. This is not wasted time. Even if you don’t think
this is the final candidate, your treatment of the individual will send a powerful message about your firm and your ability with people. It is worth your preparation and genuine interest in the person sitting across from you.
4 ‐ Provide Information
Give a quick overview of your company. Describe its history, values, goals, and location information. Describe the position in question, its activities, and where it fits into the overall business process. Briefly describe the five key skills you identified earlier. Ask the candidate if she/he has any questions about the information presented so far.
5 ‐ Obtain Information
Explain that you will ask them a number of questions about their job experiences and would like a full description of each situation. Begin to ask your open‐ended questions. The tough part now is being quiet. Don’t coach or help out. Too many interviewers would rather talk than listen. If done correctly, this is the best opportunity to gather the information that you will need to make a wise choice. Take notes in point form to help you remember the candidate. Is the situation communicated well? How do they refer to co‐workers and customers? If the candidate continues to refer to the same example, ask them to think of another.
Balancing Questions
Ask balancing questions to allow any negative impressions to be corrected. If you ask for an example where the candidate went above and beyond the call of duty to meet a customer’s needs, the candidate may give you the impression that he/she carelessly ignores company policy to help a customer. A balancing question allows you to confirm or correct your impression. “Can you give me a specific example from your previous work experience where you satisfied a difficult customer but stayed within company policy?”
Grid the Answers
If you’re interviewing a number of candidates, then list the five major questions on a grid and record point‐form notes while interviewing each candidate. Remember not to let the individual see the previous responses on your sheet. It is a handy way to keep the interview consistent across a number of candidates and it also makes the differences between individuals highly visible. Studies have shown that people cannot
fabricate complex situations during an interview. The candidate either speaks from experience or not at all. Some candidates may not be able to think of an example of a specific situation immediately. Nerves may have an effect. Give them a few minutes alone to review their experiences. Offer to get them a coffee. If they still can’t think of a specific example then they obviously have never exhibited the behavior in
question.
The Result:
Objective, detailed realistic information about past behavior. If the candidate has good examples of the behaviors you need then the individual is probably worth another interview.
© Keith N. Miles
Streamlined Management Group Inc.
All Rights Reserved