how to conduct effective interviews may 2011

How to conduct effective interviews

by Toronto Training and HR

May 2011

Contents3-4 Introduction to Toronto Training and HR5-6 Benefits of interviews7-8 Drawbacks of interviews9-11 Planning10-11 Needs that must be met12-15 Preparation14-15 Pain of poor engagement16-17 Welcoming the candidate18-19 The interview20-21 Timing and logistics22-28 Questioning29-30 Listening31-34 Decision time35-37 Using a data integration process38-42 Common mistakes43-44 Top worries for interviewers45-47 We both want the same thing!48-49 Drill50-51 Conclusion and questions

Introduction

Introduction to Toronto Training and HR

• Toronto Training and HR is a specialist training and human resources consultancy headed by Timothy Holden

• 10 years in banking• 10 years in training and human resources• Freelance practitioner since 2006• The core services provided by Toronto Training and HR

are:- Training course design- Training course delivery- Reducing costs- Saving time- Improving employee engagement &

morale- Services for job seekers

Benefits of interviews

Benefits of interviewsCreate an interactive forum for the assessment of interpersonal skills, job-relevant knowledge, motivation and potential fitAllow the interviewer to sell the organization to qualified candidates and give a realistic/detailed description of the position to candidatesProvide the organization with a chance to make a favourable impression even on applicants who are not given offers or who do not join the organization

Drawbacks of interviews

Drawbacks of interviewsPoor reliability/consensus between different interviewersPoor validity/prediction of job performance

Planning

Planning 1 of 2WHAT EXACTLY ARE YOU LOOKING FOR?Desired business experienceEducationKnowledge, skills and abilitiesTasks, duties and responsibilitiesObjectives and accountabilitiesCompetenciesWork scheduleTravelCompensation and benefits

Planning 2 of 2What selection methods will you use?What type of interview will you hold?

Preparation

Preparation 1 of 3TRAINING AND SELECTION OF INTERVIEWERSKnowledgeable about the role, the team, and the organizationRepresentative of diverse groups in the organizationGood at eliciting and evaluating informationReluctant to jump to conclusions Open-minded and able to revise opinionsSelf-aware and able to account for their own biasesAccurate in their predictions of candidate success over time

Preparation 2 of 3Select two or more interviewersMake sure interviewers are properly briefedDecide when to hold the interviewsPrepare your scriptSend written instructions to the candidatesReview the job description, person specification and resume

Preparation 3 of 3ON THE DAYReview the job description, person specification and resumeHave the questions readyBe positiveSelecting is the purpose not rejectingRemember the primary hiring objective

Welcoming the candidate

Welcoming the candidateAsk them if they would like a drinkCheck if they are comfortable with the heating/air conditioning and whether they would like the window openLet them talk about their journey and parkingEngage in small talk to calm their nerves

The interview

The interviewVerify informationExplore the candidate’s potentialProvide information to the candidateConduct of the interviewControl the flowBring the interview to an endWhat happens next and when

Timing and logistics

Timing and logistics

Do not make the interview too long or too shortDivide the interview into discrete stagesInterview in a quiet location free from distraction and interruptionsUse more than one interviewer to enhance objectivityDiscourage interviewers from discussing the candidate with one another before they have all met with the candidate

Questioning

Questioning 1 of 6TYPES OF QUESTIONSituationalBehavioural

Relevance to audienceJob complexityTypical or best performanceFiguring out the answer

Questioning 2 of 6QUESTIONS TO AVOIDAre you single? Why (or why not)?Do you intend to have children?Is that your natural hair colour?Would you join a church to get a job?Do you belong to a religious organization? How old are you? How would you describe your ethnicity? What is your sexual orientation? How did you hurt your leg?

Questioning 3 of 6QUESTIONS TO ASKIn what ways will this role help you stretch your professional capabilities? What have been your greatest areas of improvement in your career? What's the toughest feedback you've ever received and how did you learn from it? What are people likely to misunderstand about you? If you were giving your new staff a "user's manual" to you, to accelerate their "getting to know you" process, what would you include in it?

Questioning 4 of 6QUESTIONS TO ASKDescribe an ideal day at work.If hired, how would you prepare to succeed at this job?What is the most important thing you’ve ever done in your life (on or off the job)?Describe how you have developed leadership in another person.What would you do during your first 100 days on this job?Describe a problem or conflict situation at work that you helped resolve. What did you do? Why did it work? What were the results?

Questioning 5 of 6QUESTIONS TO ASKWhat was one of your biggest mistakes or failures at work? What went wrong? What did you learn? What would you do differently?What would your worst critics say about you? Are they right? Why or why not?What is something we don’t know about you that would surprise and delight us?If we hire you, how will the organization be better off one year from now?

Questioning 6 of 6QUESTIONS FROM THE CANDIDATEWhat’s a day like?What sort of projects will I be working on?What will the first day be like?What will the first month be like?Is this a new position or are you replacing someone? What happened?Tell me about the team I will be joining.Can I meet the team I will be joining?

Listening

ListeningListen actively and concentrate on what is being saidObserve behaviourKeep notes to remember the individual candidates

Decision time

Decision time 1 of 3 Assess the evidence for each candidate against the selection criteriaCalculate a weighted scoreMake your decisionInform both successful and unsuccessful candidates of the outcome

Evaluation form

Decision time 2 of 3 RATING SCALERate all candidates on the same criteria using the same scaleUse separate rating scales for each criterion Be mindful of biases in making ratingsMake ratings as soon as possible after the interviewDiscuss ratings of candidates with other interviewers as soon as possible after interviews

Decision time 3 of 3 Average time spent making a candidate decisionHow does Canada compare?Discussions with other interviewers

Using a data integration process

Using a data integration process 1 of 2

1. All of the interviewers who gathered behavioural information about the candidates meet to discuss each candidate.2. Focusing on one candidate at a time, each interviewer shares the behavioural evidence collected and organized for each competency or target.

Using a data integration process 2 of 2

3. Covering one competency, the group discusses the behaviours collected for a given competency and develops a consensus rating for a candidate in that target (typically a 5-point rating scale where a 5 means exceptional performance, 3 means successful performance, and 1 means inadequate performance).4. After this process is completed for every target, the group analyzes the candidate’s overall profile and decides whether to retain or reject the person.

Common mistakes

Common mistakes 1 of 4Keeping candidates waiting says all the wrong things about the organization.Not focusing on selection criteria leads to subjective and arbitrary decisions.Failing to explore key skills and knowledge can lead to disastrous appointments.Making snap judgements usually means you are responding to your own prejudices rather than the reality of the situation.Deciding too soon is an elementary mistake.

Common mistakes 2 of 4Expecting perfection opens the door to irrational decisions and self-delusion.Avoid being taken in by candidates with good interview skills.

Common mistakes 3 of 4TURNING OFF THE JOB SEEKERInterview techniques are more like interrogations.Taking too long to get back to me.Not being up-front about details like salary, hours, expectations.Keeping me waiting for a long period of time.Questions that are not relevant to the job.Acting like they have no time to talk to me.Being unprepared for the interview.Asking inappropriate questions.

Common mistakes 4 of 4DEADLY TRAPSDevaluingWithholdingDuellingEgo-strokingWandering

Top worries for interviewers

Top worries for interviewersMissing information about candidate weaknesses that will show up laterHave enough information to make a decisionAllowing one aspect of the background to influence othersTop candidates won’t accept offers madeThe kind of impression made on the candidateFeeling so much pressure that it becomes hard to settleNew hires quitting too soon

We both want the same thing!

We both want the same thing! 1 of 2

HIRING MANAGER"Can this guy do the job?“"Do I want this guy working for me?""Do I want this guy on my team?"Convince candidate that yours is an organization to work for.

We both want the same thing! 2 of 2

CANDIDATE“Can I do the job?“Convince the Hiring Manager you can do the job.Get a job offer, or move closer to it.

Conclusion & Questions

Conclusion

SummaryQuestions

how to conduct effective interviews may 2011

Business

specialist training

hrtoronto training

training course delivery

training course design

banking10 years

core services

human resources consultancy

timothy holden