News

Interviewing Basics

The costs associated with a high turnover rate (termination, severance, advertising, recruitment, training) are significant.  In fact, each termination, for whatever reason, costs the organization about one year's wages for that position.  This makes the hiring process critical to business success because you want to get the right person the first time.  In order to do this, effective interviewing skills are essential.  What's required?

1)  Ensure that you have a complete knowledge of the position including requisite skills, appropriate experience and core competencies.

2)  Formulate clear interview objectives to ensure that the candidate is the right fit.  Take time to compile questions that are specific to the knowledge and skills required for the position.  Also formulate a number of questions that focus on workplace behaviors, particularly how the candidate handled and resolved situations in the past.  Consider both the content of the responses and the body language of the candidate to ensure that he or she is the ideal fit for your culture and your needs.

3)  Use open-ended questioning, frequently using the words "what" and "describe" to ensure that responses aren't vague or 'yes-and-no' responses.  Questions must probe in depth to gain a full understanding of the candidate's capabilities.  Probes using "how did you" or "tell me about" are also particularly effective.

4)  Use the "echo technique" to elicit further information.  This entails responding to a candidate's statement or description with "I see" or "I understand", or by simply repeating part of the candidate's response and then not saying anything until he or she elaborates on the subject.

5)  Write down the questions and the responses in detail so you can refer back to the interview and recall the details without having to rely on your unreliable memory.  Keep things as objective as possible and keep everything in the context of the position requirements, not whether or not you 'like' the person.