The theory of Behavioral interviews is that your previous performance is an indicator of your future work. Behavioral interviews are the most common form of interview. They're an all purpose style, adaptable to any form of employment.
Questions at behavioral interviews
|
|
The questions at Behavioral interviews are based on the job criteria. They're used to identify skills and experience levels.
|
Say the essential skills for a position are:
- Communications
- Customer service
- Problem solving
- Interpersonal relationships
- Teamwork
You can expect to be given questions requiring an example of your skills in each of these areas. The interviewers use your answer as a guide to your proficiency, knowledge, and skill levels.
The main purpose of this process is to establish your actual competencies in terms of value to the employer.
Obviously an experienced, proficient, person with a lot of good examples is a potentially valuable employee.
|
|
So the questions will be standardized, to fit all the job skills criteria. Each candidate gives a series of answers which define their skill levels relative to each other.
|
The example above naturally creates these questions:
- Give us an example of your communication skills. This means how you show your levels of communication to the interviewers. Communication is an essential part of any job. You have to show a range of communication skills, (written, verbal, electronic, etc) and the degrees of complexity. Your answer must be relevant to the job, and demonstrate skill levels to the standard required.
- Tell us about your work in customer service. Whatever the job, your experience is very relevant. In this case, customer service is the job, and you'd have to show that you're able to deliver the required level customer service. To demonstrate this effectively, you have to give a clear explanation of your duties, your role in customer service, and make it clear that your experience is relevant to the new job.
- Can you explain to us a situation where you solved a problem? Problem solving is another major issue in all jobs. It's a demonstration of competency in handling work related situations. Your example must show an ability to deal with a level of complexity which is equal to that of the job.
- Tell us how you manage interpersonal relationships in the workplace. This question is extremely important. All workplaces are social environments. The mix of people and relationships has a lot to do with workplace efficiency. The interviewers are trying to make sure you're a good 'fit' for the job. You have to show them how you manage workplace relationships. (Don't be surprised if you get related questions, like 'How do you deal with conflicting priorities when given tasks by different managers,' etc., which also relate to relationships and team roles.)
- Give an example of your role as a team member. Teamwork is another important, issue to employers. They need people who can work together. Your teamwork skills should be shown in the form of your role in a team and your contributions. Give examples which show a positive commitment.
The interviewers then make a recommendation based on comparison of applicants, but with one extra feature:
The successful applicant must achieve a Pass level in requisite skills.
|
The decision has to be based on the applicant demonstrating an acceptable standard of skills, knowledge, and competence.
|
|
Behavioral interviews are actually pro interviewee. They allow for consistent standards of questions and comparison. They're fair, and designed to appoint on merit. Learn how to do these interviews, and get interview training if you think you need it.
