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Sharing The Stories Keys To A Stellar Interview
- 1. Sharing The Stories – Keys to a “Stellar” Interview Michelle A. Waltmire Training and Development Specialist [email_address] 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw
- 4. Why Companies use Behavioral Interviewing 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw
- 5. Job Competencies 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw
- 6. What’s in it for me? Behavioral Interview Benefits for the Candidate 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw
- 7. How does behavioral interviewing work? 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw
- 8. “ The Stories” How / Where do I start? 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw
- 9. The “Stories”: Tell me about a time when….. 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw
- 11. ST A R Characteristics 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw
- 12. ST A R Example 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw S ituation / Problem / T ask Communication in my workgroup had broken down. Morale was very low and people were not working as a team. A ction You Took I organized informal lunch meetings where team members could come and discuss their issues / air their concerns. R esults You Achieved The group developed an understanding of other members’ issues. Group morale and lines of communication were improved.
- 13. ST A R Example 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw S ituation / Problem / T ask ABC Website’s advertizing revenues were declining and advertisers were not renewing their contracts. A ction You Took I developed a new promotional package containing a comparison of ABC website’s hits / market penetration compared to other area media. I also set up a special informational meeting for the account executives to review competitive selling strategies. R esults You Achieved 10 former advertisers renewed their contracts, 5 new clients were signed and revenues increased by 15% compared to the same period last year.
- 14. Your Turn – Group Exercise 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw
- 15. ST A R Competency Demonstrated: 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw S ituation / Problem / T ask A ction You Took R esults You Achieved
- 16. ST A R Competency Demonstrated: 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw S ituation / Problem / T ask A ction You Took R esults You Achieved
- 17. Exercise Debrief: What did you learn? 1/08/2010 – WorknetDuPage: maw
- 18. ST A R Tips 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw
- 19. ST A R Tips 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw
- 20. How to Use ST A Rs Interview Preparation 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw
- 21. How to Use ST A Rs During Interview 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw
- 23. References: Where to go for more information 1/08/2010 - WorknetDuPage maw
Editor's Notes
- 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- Behavioral Interviewing Overview: Set context / brief history What’s in it for me? : Can be intimidating to candidate – talk about how candidate can use to their advantage STAR / SAR / PAR Define / show format Examples Suggested methods for creation / starting points for stories Exercise Individual and group (pair off) exercise Create STAR / Share / Provide Feedback Tips Things to look out for – in preparation and in interview Value and use of the stories References Sources of more information / sample questions 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- This is it – the crux, if you will, of Behavioral Interviewing So – what does this “Mean”? – Future Behavior and Past Behavior? Real life examples: If you loan someone $20.00 and they do not pay it back next week as promised, what is the likelihood that you will loan them money the next time they ask you? If you ask someone for a movie recommendation, you go and enjoy the movie, what are the chances that you will ask them for another recommendation? Why / Why Not? Loan – Don’t trust them – fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice shame on me – right? Movie – Seem to have similar tastes / interests; Match regarding their opinions. How different does this sound from your experiences in the work environment? Trust or do not trust people to do their jobs based on past experiences Work with (and hire) people with similar tastes / values FYI – re: accuracy as predictor – won’t go into details but some sources say as great as 55% accurate in predicting successful hire compared to 10% in more “traditional” interviewing. References at the end for more reading. Web sites – got over 30,000 hits when researching this topic – lots of data out there on the subject if you want to know more. Next Slide: Why companies use Behavioral Interviewing 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- In manager’s and company’s best interest to select a person that they feel will be successful in the position – How to do that? Make best possible match between the company’s requirements / desired skills and behaviors and those of the candidate. Looking for Affirmation - they have been working a long time to get the budget for this position; it takes a lot to train a new employee, their credibility is on the line regarding their ability to make a smart hire AND they don’t want to be doing this again in 6 months! Looking for Evidence –manager knows what your resume and cover letters say – but how do s/he know you can do THIS job? S/he doesn’t! Needs data – evidence to “prove” you can do the work. For some jobs – like programming- there are standard evaluations that a company can choose to use to get a better idea of the candidate’s ability and potential to meet the requirements of THIS job but for many it’s a matter of sharing your stories . 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- So … what do we mean my “job competencies” and why do we care about them? Desired Attributes - Every employer has an idea of what they want in an employee – both overall and for each specific job. These may be an idea, a “gut feeling” or a more formal definition based on the specific job responsibilities Indicators of success in position / organization - Regardless of how clearly / formally defined, these attributes – called competencies – define the company’s idea of the type of skills, knowledge and attitudes required to be successful both in the position and in the organization as a whole Types – 3 main classifications of competencies Content / Job Specific – “nouns” – what you DO in the job. Main topic in more traditional job interviews Functional / “Transferrable” – Verbs - Done to people, data, things, resources – Still a skill but often called the “soft skills” – NOT job specific hence the “transferrable” label Personal Characteristics / Behaviors / “Self-Management ” – HOW you do WHAT you do; As important if not more so than the skill aspect of the competencies. Skills can be learned, behaviors more about who we ARE – can be “relearned” but much more difficult. 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- Admittedly, if one has never participated in a behavioral interview, it can be pretty intimidating – especially if your first encounter is IN the interview! That is no different from anything that is new to you. However when the candidate is well prepared, and we will see in just a moment how to do that, a behavioral interview can be the candidate’s “best friend”. Why? As we noted on the last slide, managers want to KNOW that they are hiring someone who can do the job and a mere resume just doesn’t tell the manager enough about the person to KNOW that. It never really did but now more and more companies are recognizing that fact. This is a chance for you to “strut your stuff”. Your “stories” of what you HAVE DONE help the manager SEE YOU in the job – doing the work they need done and being successful at it. 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- That’s really pretty much it! Expect interviewer to have pre-set list of questions, based on the job criteria and your resume, covering the key competencies of the job. Each response provides another “data point” toward the questions – can the person do the job within our environment and do they want to work here / will they “fit in” and be successful. Don’t be surprised if there are not a lot of questions / discussion regarding your job related competencies. These are most easily determined by your written resume. It is what got you the face to face interview – you wouldn’t be there if someone didn’t think you had the skills to do the job. The face to face and the questions asked are all about “do you fit the organization” / do they “like” you / do you “like” them. Note that it goes BOTH ways – it’s about the best match for BOTH sides. 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- Looking at three types of skills – Create list of major / favorite accomplishments, daily “tasks”, any related personal experiences Create list of skills associated / needed to accomplish work / tasks Categorize into major classifications / groups Pick strongest skills / ones listed on resume – review accomplishments that used those skills NOTE: Be sure to pick POSITIVE examples and examples that did NOT start out well but, because of YOUR efforts, had a positive outcome. Need 1-2 stories for each major point on resume. Be sure to have both Positive and Negative / Positive Result stories for major competencies 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- Other sources for stories – which of these situations apply to you? How did you respond, what competencies / skills did you use? Other ideas – How you responded to a crisis – on the job; personal experience How you overcame a stressful situation Time when you provided sense of direction / successful leadership Time when you had to juggle work priorities 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- Lots to talk about here – don’t get carried away. In terms of the stories – for each accomplishment (from previous slide) Identify the Situation. Just enough to set context – for person not familiar with situation to understand why something needed to be done. NOT all of bullet points on slide need to be addressed in situation – these are examples of areas that might be covered Determine the Actions taken – what you DID with regard to the situation. This is the major focus of your story. There was an issue and you did SOMETHING to resolve the issue – might have been as result of manager assignment or proactive on your part. Either is ok – depending on the competency being addressed. Describe the Results – What was the end result / what was accomplished as the result of your action. Great if can quantify: X % Improvement in sales, Reduction in unused inventory by $yy per quarter / per year; Increased customer satisfaction index by ZZ %, etc. Don’t forget to mention any recognition you received – by manager, organization, customer as result of your actions. IF a “negative” story – and you WILL need to have them available to tell – then talk about how you took a negative situation and made it positive or what you learned from the situation. 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- Concise: 1-3 minutes. Some references say 30-90 seconds! Clearly Demonstrate Competency: Be sure to think through the competencies and the stories. Some may demonstrate multiple competencies. Have a version focused on each one if plan to use for multiple competencies. Interesting / Full of action – WOW factor. What’s next / what happened Memorable – what makes YOU stand out, makes you unique at doing what you do (I am a Geek to English “translator”) Quantifiable – objective numbers where possible; Subjective – not as easy to capture / try 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- Note – no quantifiable results. Subjective re: improved moral and communication. 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- Note quantifiable data. 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- Group Exercise - have them create and share their stories – 15 - 20 minutes 5 to Explain 3 to write their stories 3 to share / feedback 5 to Debrief Bring timer to be sure to keep under control Explain – Give group CLEAR instructions. FIRST – FIND A PARTNER Once everyone has partner – give rest of instructions. Tell them that will do this in 3 parts – Review all three before start. Will let them know when moving on to next part. Listen for the “times up” signal so we can move on together. Do as individuals – 3 Minutes Pick one of your strongest skills or use one of trigger questions. Think of Accomplishment that used the skill. WRITE DOWN the Situation or Task (what was the issue / problem / etc); the ACTION (what you did / decision you made to deal with the situation) and the RESULT (good or bad depending on what they ask). 3 Minutes then Switch and 3 more minutes Trade stories in pairs – (big group so need whistle or some way to cut off when time to finish each piece of the exercise). 1 st person – Tell your story – Not more than 3 to 5 sentences. Be brief and specific. 2 nd person – LISTEN and note the Situation / Task, Action, Result. Feedback to Person 1: What did you hear? Repeat back the ST / A / R. ST A R Templates – Next 2 slides – use for exercise / outside workshop 5 Minutes: Debrief (slide after 2 templates) 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- For Group Exercise May want to make a note of what competency they are “showcasing” in ST A R – as reminder of focus 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- Deliberate Duplicate – Use as template for writing ST A Rs outside workshop / for feedback in group exercise. 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- Easiest – not sure what the answers will be – maybe talking about the bad rather than good behaviors Most difficult – perhaps getting complete STARs, being brief and concise 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- Ideally want a diverse set of experiences, multiple stories for each competency but not always possible What you DID. If don’t have experience in that area – say so. Do NOT lie / make up a story. Won’t hold water and not real representation of you. Recency vs. relevancy– Ideally more recent the better. How you behave NOW. If have really good story way back in history and still behave that way then use it but expect if you still have the behavior and use the skill you will have a more recent story. 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- Both interviewers and many web sites and books fall into the trap of asking non-behavioral questions. Easy to move from behavioral to future tense – “What WOULD you do if” vs. “Tell me about a time when.. What DID you do?”. If are asked the “What would you” don’t bite or embarrass them – just answer what they meant to ask –” What DID you do”. Leading questions – more about job fit re: likes and dislikes. “Working overtime occasionally doesn’t bother you, does it?”. You know from the question the expected answer. You have to decide how to answer based on your values. Resume and Stories – just be sure when you are quoting any numbers that they match what is on your resume. Ok to have a copy of your resume in front of you – it’s an extra in case they have someone who needs one. Negative Stories – Talked about before. Just be sure can tell in a way that in NO WAY indicates that the negative situation was due to your actions! May want to write out your ST A Rs on 3x5 index cards and have to review in coffee shop / parking lot before interview. Do NOT take into interview with you. 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- Looking at the position and the organization to pull out the 3-5 top characteristics that you believe would make a successful employee in that position / organization. Use all the resources you have to do the best possible analysis on your match to the position – ideally did some of this before applied for job – and then pick your best stories. Top selling points – if listed in job description – great – you are ahead of the game re: stories. If not there but you know important to success in the role, think about ways you will work them into your stories / responses. Just don’t try to “wing it” – have prepared in advance Practice – need to be able to easily recall the stories, identify which is the right story for the competency and tell the story quickly without sounding memorized. Why in front of a mirror – just to check to see if you have any odd habits / expressions. Turns out I tend to close my eyes when I am thinking! 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- May also use ST A Rs in network meeting conversations – if are talking with “insiders” or decision makers within target organization. Provide evidence even though not talking about specific opening – yet. Want them to remember you and that you are a fit for a future position. 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- There are databases and books FULL of the possible competencies - 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw
- There are databases and books FULL of advice – some good, some not so good. Up to you to review and evaluate sample questions / responses. Just examples – you have your own stories so don’t really need them once you get rolling. 1/08/2010 - WorkNetDuPage: maw