Successful interviewing (Behavioral Based Interviewing)

WITHIN EEO/AFFIRMATIVE
ACTION GUIDELINES

1. Determine the required qualifications prior to
interviewing.
2. Develop an “Interview Worksheet” and use it for
every interview and rate each candidate using the
same standard.
3. Use good interviewing skills. Know what
discriminatory questions to avoid
4. Stick to the standard group of job related questions,
and use them for all candidates
5. Document your interview
6. Document the reasons for your decision
There are several quantifiable methods
to document your decision process:

EEO CONSIDERATIONS
All Interview Questions Must BeAll Interview Questions Must Be::
 Relevant to Job performance
 If Sensitive, Asked of All Applicants
For Example:
 Are you a legal resident of the U.S.?
 Do you have adequate transportation to get to the job on
time?

 Military Discharge
 National Origin
 Birth Place
 Ancestry
 Religion
 Health
 Age
 Financial Standing
 Citizenship
 Family Status
 Club Membership
DON’T ASK

ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS
To conduct a successful interview you must know about all factors
that contribute to on-the-job success.
All the non-physical skills, abilities and talents people bring to bear
on a job will fit under one of these factors. Use all factors to describe
what you are looking for on the Job/Candidate Profile.
Resume Factors  Education / Experience / Knowledge
Academic degrees, technical knowledge, certification or
licenses, Similar work experience.
Performance
Factors
 Intellectual
Capacity, application, decision making style.
Interpersonal
Ways of interacting with others.
Motivation
Goals, commitment, interests, values.

APPLICATION FORM FACTORS
Education / Experience / Knowledge
 Academic Degrees
 Technical Knowledge
 Certifications
 Licenses
 Similar Work Experience

Application Form Review
 Sketchy or erratic job history with many brief periods of
employment
 Gaps in employment record or overlaps that don’t make sense
 Expectations higher than job can offer
 Past experience and education related to job specification
 Reasons for leaving previous employers
 Overall appearance
 Inconsistencies

PERFORMANCE FACTORS
 INTELLECTUAL
 Capacity
 Application
 Decision making style
 INTERPERSONAL
 Ways of interacting with others
 MOTIVATION
 Goals
 Commitment
 Interests
 Values

The Interview
Be aware that interviews vary
tremendously and the approach and
strategy of applicants differ.
 Some are open, candid and forthright.
 Some are evasive and even falsify aspects of
background.
 Some are glib and articulate; explanations sound
logical and convincing.
 Some are poised and confident.
 Some are nervous, tense and visibly uncomfortable.

Approaching the Interview
1. Establish rapport with applicant and put the
person at ease
2. Be sincere, warm and friendly
3. Do not reveal or project criticism or
disapproval of candidate’s actions or
qualifications
4. Focus on your task to obtain information and
keep opinions and value judgments to yourself

NOTETAKING
 Tell the applicant what you are doing:
(E.g., I’m going to be taking notes during the interview.
This is my method of recalling what took place during
your interview)
 Incline notepad
(don’t reveal what you are writing)

NOTETAKING POINTERS
1. Write down positives AND
Negatives.
Don’t wait until you hear the first negative piece
of information
2. Use key words/phrases to
remember responses.
You do not need to write everything you hear.

Self-appraisal Questions ask the candidate to explain the meaning of the facts,
accomplishments, and data that come up in the interview. This helps you to translate
facts about the candidate into hypotheses about future on-the-job behavior.
Two Types Direct Self-appraisal
Ask the candidate directly about a fact or accomplishment –
“Why do you suppose you were promoted so quickly in that job?
Third-party appraisal
Ask the candidate to interpret the fact or accomplishment through the eyes
of a knowledgeable third-party –
“If I called your manager, why do you suppose she would say you were
promoted so quickly?”
Obtain and use the third-party’s name to raise the candor level of the
candidate’s answer.
INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

SELF-APPRAISAL QUESTIONS
Alternatives For candidates who do not feel they have the right to speak
for a superior, make the third-party a peer rather than a
superior.
“How would someone else on your team describe you?”
Lead-ins There are a number of ways to phrase the direct Self-
appraisal Question.
“What would you say it was about you……?”
“Why do you suppose…..?”
“How were you able to….?”

SELF-APPRAISAL QUESTIONS
ADVANTAGES
1. Places the burden of interpretation of facts on the candidate, not
on you.
2. Keeps you objective and prevent you from jumping to conclusions
about the meaning of facts.
3. Encourages the candidate to elaborate on their experiences and
accomplishments.
4. Draws out, through third-party questions, candidates from high-
context cultures where boasting about accomplishments does not
come easily.
5. Helps you avoid getting fooled or misled by the candidate. There
are two reasons why this works:
 It is hard for a candidate on the spot to conjure up a more favorable or
believable explanation than the truth.
 Use of Self-appraisal Questions throughout the interview is likely to
catch inconsistent explanations of behavior.

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
Document Accomplishments
Using PAR Format
 Problem
 Action
 Results

ACCOMPLISHMENT QUESTIONS
To identify meaningful accomplishments (what the person
did) and draw out behavioral evidence (how and why they
did it).
PAR MODEL
Use the PAR Model (Problem – Action – Result) to confirm
you have a meaningful accomplishment.
“Let’s talk about one of your recent accomplishments….”
“What problem (or challenge) required your attention?”
Determine whether there was a special need to deal with
this or was it really just part of the job.

(Continued)
•“What action did you take?”
How did the candidate accomplish this?
Ask them to explain the actions in terms of “I”
rather than “we.”
•“What were the results?”
Get specifics – dates, names, quantifiable
results.

(Continued)
Pointers
•Ask for the name (not just the title) of the person’s
manager at the time of the accomplishment.
“If I called your major customer, Betty Gonzales,
how would she say you handled the problems
with the inventory?”
•More recent accomplishments have a greater
predictive value for future performance.

PROBE FOR UNSEEN
BEHAVIOR QUALITIES
TRAIT Don’t Ask A Question Request An Example:
Ambitious “Let’s talk about ambition as
a quality you have.”
Give me an example of a situation
….where your ambition was
reflected in the goals you set for
yourself.”
Career-
minded
“How career-minded would
you say you are?”
….when your career-mindedness led
you to avoid a short-term
opportunity.”
(Wants a)
Challenge
“What can you tell me about
wanting a challenge?”
….where you sought out a problem
to solve because it represented a
challenge for you.”

PROBE FOR UNSEEN
BEHAVIOR QUALITIES
Committed “What can you tell me about
your being committed to
things or ideas?”
where your level of commitment
sustained you in the face of
numerous obstacles.”
Customer-
oriented
“Some people see themselves
as being customer-oriented.
What can you tell me about
that quality in you?”
where you were especially attentive
or responsive to customer concerns.”
Determined “How determined would you
say you are?”
where your determination made
something happen.”

PROBE FOR UNSEEN
BEHAVIOR QUALITIES
Enthusiastic “Some people would
describe themselves as being
enthusiastic, what can you
tell me about that quality in
you?”
Give me an example of a
situation… where your enthusiasm
for what you were doing sustained
you in the face of disappointment.”
Entrepre-
neurial
“How entrepreneurial would
you say you are?”
….where you gave up some
security and took a risk.”
Goal-
oriented
“Some people think of
themselves as being goal
oriented, what can you tell me
about that quality in you?”
….where a goal you achieved was
because you wanted to, not because
others expected it of you.”

PROBE FOR UNSEEN
BEHAVIOR QUALITIES
Go-for-it
Attitude
“Tell me about you having a go-
for-it attitude.”
….where others hesitated but you
went for it.”
Hard-
working
“How hard working would you
say you are?”
….where hard work accounted for
an accomplishment you are proud
of.”
Interested
in_____
“How would you describe your
interest in ______?”
….where you picked a job or
volunteered to handle a project
calling for ___________.”

PROBE FOR UNSEEN
BEHAVIOR QUALITIES
Persistent “I’d like to know how
persistent you are.”
….where others gave up but you
persisted.”
Quality
Commitment
“How does having a quality
commitment describe you?”
….where your commitment is
reflected in how you shop for or
maintain the things you own.”
Resourceful “Let’s talk about resource-
fulness as a quality you have.”
….where resources to complete a
job were not available and you had
to be resourceful to get it done.”
Responsive “Tell me about your
responsiveness.”
….where your responsiveness won a
customer.”

PROBE FOR UNSEEN
BEHAVIOR QUALITIES
Self-
motivated
“Let’s talk about you being
self-motivated.”
….where being self-motivated led
you to initiate something without
being told to do so.”
(Seeks)
Variety
“Some people think of
themselves as seeking variety.
What can you tell me about
that quality in you?”
….where you changed jobs or
assignments in the hope of achieving
more variety in your work.”
Willing to
Travel
“Tell me about your
willingness to travel.”
….where you traveled a great deal
on the job.”
Note – These questions can be revised to make them more appropriate to your job situation.

MAKING THE DECISION
 Specifically identify key strengths
 Specifically identify key limitations
 Relevant to job?
 Offset by strength?
 Subject to training and development?
 Assess strengths and weakness

Never….Never…Never…
….Never reject the applicant.
To begin with, non-selection notification is an awkward, if not
impossible task.
 Some applicants are hostile or aggressive.
 Many applicants are well prepared for rejection with excuses and
rationalizations.
 At the very least, a time-consuming argument is likely to take
place, which the interviewer cannot win.
 You want to convey the message that the applicant was not found
unqualified; rather, someone else was selected who most closely
matched the desired qualifications.
 It is safer to say “we went through a selection process, not a rejection
process so I do not have any reasons to give you on why you were not
selected. I can tell you that we have selected the person we think is the
best match for the position”.
Rejecting the Person Not Selected

Successful interviewing (Behavioral Based Interviewing)

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