Interview Qs – The Winners and Losers
By VICKY BROWN
Hi, now I know we’ve talked about interviewing before, but the question keeps coming up. And I get it, it’s because you realize you need a new team member, or maybe even your first team member; you post the job and now you have a few good candidates to see. But that’s where people get stumped. Where do you start, what do you ask, how should that meeting go?
You see, finding the right candidate is only half the battle; getting real, solid insight into the candidate’s problem solving and thought process – well, that’s the other half. You don’t just want a recounting of what they’ve done in the past, but WHY they made that particular choice. What mental process did they go through to come to their decision.
And no, it’s not an easy thing to do – but focusing on behavioral questions is a great start. It will help you get at how they approach their work, how do they collaborate with others, how do they adapt in stressful situations.
So, if you decide to go the behavioral question route, you have to realize it’s not just a series of one off questions. Nope, this is a situation where the answer to the first question, informs what the second question will be and so on. Here’s an example:
- Give me an example of a time you were not able to meet the client’s request.
- What made the situation challenging?
- How did you communicate the information?
- How did the client respond?
- What was the outcome?
- Looking back, what would you have done differently?
- What could the company have done differently to help you in that situation?
“…asking a series of questions on the same topic, gives you a chance to dig deeper, and frankly just get at more information on the situation.“
See, this gets at the thinking behind the situation. It also gives you some insight into how, or if, they do a post mortem. Do they review past experiences to figure out if there was a better way to approach it, or a different solution?
You’ll see that asking a series of questions on the same topic, gives you a chance to dig deeper, and frankly just get at more information on the situation. And a pro tip here – when you ask a series of questions, it makes it far easier to determine if the example given is factual or has some fabricated elements to it. Basically, lying gets harder the more questions you ask.
And, of course, asking a series of behavioral questions also gives you a peek into the candidate’s temperament. What is the candidate’s demeanor as they’re recounting the story. Did they remain calm, do you sense a hint of anger; how do they describe the company and their colleagues – is there any blaming, or deflection. Are they taking accountability for the situation.
This can tell you a lot about how they’ll interact in your company, with your team and your customers. And last, but certainly not least – you’ll begin to see how resourceful they might be. Do they want everything just handed over in a pretty package, or are they adept at researching and digging to find the answer. And above all, can they apply knowledge from here to a circumstance over there.
Next, don’t’ be afraid to dig into their interpersonal skills too.
- Tell me about a difficult manager of colleague you worked with
- What was difficult about working with them
- What did you do to manager the relationship
- Was that strategy successful
- If not, what would you have done differently to give it more change at being successful
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You see, the answer to this series of questions helps you understand the candidate’s ability to manage difficult work relationships. And it also shows if they understand the impact of their own behavior on others. It’s also a good peek at their tolerance levels.
Now, onward to the ‘loser’ questions. I call them losers because you should lose them from your list of interview questions … they’re actually illegal, so just don’t ask them…
- What childcare arrangements will you make for your children?
- Have you been convicted of a crime?
- Do you own a car? (I know, I have to explain this to clients a lot. As an employer, your interest is simply that they will arrive at the right place, at the right time – not how that will happen)
- Do you have a disability that would interfere with your work here?
- What was your salary at your last job?
- Are you or have you ever been married?
- Have your wages ever been garnished?
- Have you ever been arrested?
- Do you plan to have children?
- Are you pregnant?
- How old are you?
- Have you ever filed a Workers Comp claim?
- What are your thoughts on the current healthcare changes?
- What was your maiden name?
- Do you attend church on Sundays?
- Where were you born?
A general rule of thumb – only questions related to whether or not the candidate can do the job are allowed. So all the questions related to their personal life – just steer clear of those altogether.
Alright – I think you’re ready. Go out there and have a great interview.
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