Interviewing MANA 4328 Dennis C. Veit

Types of Interviews  Unstructured (traditional) interviews  Structured interviews  Situational (Job specific situations)  Behavioral / experience (non-Job specific situations)  Job-related (Job-knowledge)  Stress Interview  Screening Interview - Weed out  Committee Approach  Lunch Interview

Interview Purposes 1.Evaluate ability to perform the job. 2.Evaluate “fit” with the job. 3.Provide a realistic job preview. 4.Sell the job. 5.Gather any additional info needed.

Proper Use of the Interview – The success of an interview will depend on how well the interviewer is prepared. Before the interview:  You should have available to you Updated Job Description Copy of Applicants resume (Marked up with your notes) Application Overview of “What you don’t know) Specific questions for the applicant Questions prepared to gain the insight you need

Interviewer’s Responsibility 1. Compare data – 2. Probe Job History 3. Probe Career Knowledge 4. Employee Education 5. Personal Accomplishments 6. Awards 7. Observational Information  Interviewer’s Responsibility is to gain: __________

Structured Interviewing USED TO IMPROVE RELIABILTY AND VALIDITY OF INTERVIEWS  Ask all candidates the same questions.  Use a formal rating system.  Use situational / behavioral / job-related questions.  Don’t be swayed by body language, how someone speaks or how they dress -- unless it matters.  Practice.

Developing a Structured Interview 1.Conduct a job analysis 2.Categorize KSA’s (selection requirements then prioritize) 3.Decide which KSA’s best covered in interview 4.Develop situation / behavior / job related questions  Interview job incumbents for critical incidents and behaviors  Write the questions and rating scales  Validate the questions and rating scales 5.Train interviewers 6.Validate interview process

Planning the Interview:  Know where you are going to hold interview  Know topics of discussion and what you need to know from the interview  No questions unrelated to job requirements  Know your time constraints  How are you going to end the interview?

Physical Setting of interview:  Desk location  Angle of applicant and interviewer  Have all documents available  Know your questions ahead of time  Remember you are representing the Company at all times

Starting the Interview  Build rapport  Line out the interview steps  Build all questions ahead of time and ensure they are “lead questions”.  Know your questions ahead of time  Open the interview with a “Benefit Statement”

Which of the following would be a good lead question?  “I would like to begin the interview by discussing your early development and then progress on to your educational years, your work experience, and then conclude with a discussion of your current accomplishments you’ve made”  “I would like to begin the interview by discussing the early years of your career. I’ll be interested in the things that influenced you the most and their overall effect on you.”  “ I’d like to begin the interview today discussing some of the points you outlined on your resume and what you did to accomplish them”.

Discrimination Found  All interviewers were white / male  No structured written interview format  No objective criteria for employment decisions  Questions unrelated to job requirements  No scoring standards  Discriminatory questions  If the question is not job related then DON’T ASK!

Situational Questions  Use critical incidents that have actually occurred and are examples of particularly good or poor job performance.  Situations determined by job incumbents or experts.  Best for KSA’s related to:  Good citizenship / teamwork  Personal relations / communication  Include behavioral dimensions for scoring.

Situational Questions Your spouse and teenage children are sick in bed with colds. There are no relatives or friends available to look in on them. Your shift starts in three hours. What would you do in this situation? 1 Low – I’d stay home, my family comes first. 3 Average – I’d phone my supervisor and explain my situation. 5 High – Since they only have colds I would come to work. A customer comes into the store to pick up a watch he left for repair. The repair was supposed to have been completed a week ago, but the watch is not back yet from the shop. The customer is angry. How would you handle the situation? 1 Low – Tell the customer the watch is not back yet and to come back later. 2 Average – Apologize, tell him that you will check on the problem and call later. 3 High – Put the customer at ease and call the repair shop while he waits.

Behavior / Experience-Based Questions It is often necessary to work together as a group to accomplish a task. Can you tell me about the most recent experience you had working as part of a group?  What was the task?  How many people in the group?  What difficulties arose working with the group?  What role did you play in resolving those differences?  How successful was the group in completing its task? Should not require that applicant has actually done the job.

Job-Related Questions  Use information from job task analysis  Identify and rate critical job tasks  Identify and rate critical KSA’s  Choose selection measures appropriate for KSA’s  Job-related questions best for job knowledge KSA’s.

Job-Related: Maintenance Supervisor KSA: Verbal ability to give work instructions to laborers regarding construction and repair. 1. What instructions would you give a work crew who was about to string a 220-volt electric cable in a building under construction? 2. Two laborers with limited experience ask about the procedures for repairing a brick wall. What instructions do you give them regarding equipment and how they should operate it? 3. You will use eight summer employee to repaint an office building. What instructions do you give them about general and specific painting procedures? Apply a scoring format.

Interview Questions  Closed ended  Did you ever lead a team that was successful?  Tell me how you were rated as a manager?  Open ended:  Explain how you made those numbers?  What did you do to earn those ratings?  Echo/Reflective:  Framed  Silenced/Pause

Worst Interview Questions  Tell me about yourself…  Where do you see yourself in twenty years?  What are your greatest strengths / weaknesses?  What would you do if money did not matter?

Conducting a Good Interview  Be prepared.  Look over the resume.  Know what questions you want to ask in advance.  Keep appropriate notes.  Remember - the interview is about recruiting.  Put the candidate at ease – establish rapport.  Ask open questions so candidates can expand on their own capabilities.  Use silence judiciously.

Common Interviewer Bias  Similar-to-me error  Halo / Horns bias  First impression bias  Contrast errors  Stereotyping

Common Interviewer Mistakes  Talking excessively  Asking inconsistent questions  Poor follow-up question  Asking questions unrelated to the job  Unable to put interviewee at ease  Overconfidence in ability to judge candidates  Stereotyping

Prohibited Questions Don’t ask applicants if they have children, plan to have children, or what child-care arrangements they have made. Don’t ask an applicants age. Don’t ask whether or not the candidate has a physical or mental disability that would interfere with doing the job. Don’t ask for such identifying characteristics as height or weight on an application. Don’t ask a female candidate for her maiden name. Don’t ask applicants about their citizenship. Don’t ask applicants about their arrest records. Don’t ask if a candidate smokes. Don’t ask a job candidate if he or she has AIDS or is HIV-positive.

Structured Interviewing How to set up questions :  Past behavior???  Know what behavioral responses are  Look for specific answers  Look for theoretical answers

Structured Interviewing  You get what you ask for?  Be specific with questions  See Table 7.1 in book

Guidelines for Employment Interviews  TEN GROUND ROULES FOR INTERVIEWING:  Establish an interview plan  Establish and maintain rapport  Be an active listener  Pay attention to non-verbal clues  Provide information as freely and honestly as possible

Guidelines for Employment Interviews  TEN GROUND ROULES FOR INTERVIEWING (Cont.):  Use questions effectively  Separate facts from inferences  Recognize biases and stereotypes  Control the course of the interview  Standardize you questions asked

Candidates’ Physical Attributes  Influence Levels: None Slight Strong  Grooming 6% 21% 73%  Nontraditional attire  Handshake  Body Piercing  Obvious tattoos  Nontraditional hair color  Unusual hairstyle  Earring (male)  Beard  Mustache

Structured Interviewing  m/interview-questions-and-answers- vsl.php