The sustained success of any organization depends upon hiring the right people, in the right job, at the right time. Planning for human resources needs, specifically defining the necessary competencies and capabilities needed, is one of the greatest challenges facing managers. The journey to successful interviewing and selection begins with an understanding of these 5 basic steps.

1. 5 Steps for Successful Interviewing and Selection
Robin Schooling, SPHR
December 2013

2. Goals
•
Hiring the right people for the right jobs
•
Having a fair, equitable and legally defensible process
•
Providing value to both interviewers and candidates

3. Step 1
Have a Plan

4. “If you don't know
where you are going,
you might wind up
somewhere else.”
- Yogi Berra

5. Determine Job Requirements
•
Need to know (knowledge and
skills)
•
Need to do (behaviors)
•
Likes/dislikes (motivation and
fit)

6. Competencies
•
Observable and measurable
KSAs, attitudes and behaviors
•
Align to organizational business
strategy
•
Competency —> Competency
Model

7. Goal
Learn as much about
each candidate as
possible and effectively
evaluate the data
you’ve collected in
order to make the most
informed decision

8. Step 2
Develop a System

9. “If you can’t describe what you are
doing as a process, you don’t know
what you’re doing.”
– W. Edwards Deming

10. Think about…
…the recruiting funnel
…where are your decision
points?

11. When will you communicate…
• … with your
candidates?

12. Data Gathering
• Interview Questions
• Interview Notes
• What other ‘data’ do you
need?

13. Data Evaluation

14. Step 3
Find your Style

15. “I like guitars in the
Fender style because
they have skinny
necks.”
- Kurt Cobain

16. Interviewing Style
• Situational/Theoretical
• Stress
• Behavioral

17. Types of Questions
• Closed
• Open
• Leading
• Probing
• Follow-up

18. Step 4
Set the Structure

19. “The structure of a play is always the
story of how the birds came home to
roost.”
– Arthur Miller

20. Format
Have a Beginning: Greetings and intro; build rapport;
explain format and structure to candidate
Have a Middle: Review jobs/experience; ask behavioral
and follow-up questions; ask questions to determine
motivation and fit
Have an End: Explain position, organization and role;
answer candidate questions; define next steps

21. Gather Data
Use an Interview Guide
Take Notes

22. Rating Scale/Evaluation Method
•
A,B,C…1,2,3
•
Less than Acceptable ->
Acceptable -> More than
Acceptable (too much of a
good thing?)

23. Step 5
Make a Decision

24. “Men like a ref decision
because they just want to get
back to the game.”
- Jerry Seinfeld

25. Evaluate the Data
• Similarity/relevancy to job
• Impact (how meaningful and/or
significant?)
• Recency of behavior/action

26. Are there competencies that are
trainable after hiring or would they be
difficult to develop?

27. Take Five
•
Step 1: Have a Plan
•
Step 2: Develop a System
•
Step 3: Find your Style
•
Step 4: Set the Structure
•
Step 5: Make a Decision

28. Robin Schooling, SPHR
www.silverzebras.com
robin@silverzebras.com