News and Events

COMPETENCY BASED INTERVIEWING

What is it?

Whilst competency based selection has been around for a long while, it is only recently that it has become completely common place and is the new buzz word in the world of recruitment and human resources.

What is a competency? It is;
- A skill
- A behaviour
- A capability
- An aptitude or talent

In other words it's a way of working, when it is important to the employer HOW objectives are achieved or the job gets done and not just that it gets done.

A selection process is successful when it is:
- Accurate - has the ability to hire the right person for the job
- Equitable - when everyone in the process feels they had a fair and equal chance to be selected relevant to job related criteria
- Time well spent - for everyone in the process regardless of the hiring decision

Competency based interviews ensure all of the above and has the advantage of achieving the following:
- Reduced turnover
- Lower costs
- Consistency of selection
- Better understanding of job role
- Stronger job performance
- Higher motivation/morale
- Strong company image

Well planned competency based interviewing will avoid the interviewer asking questions that do not relate to the candidates' ability to do the job, avoid vague responses, avoid making emotional and hasty decisions and ensures that answers have to be achievement or competency based.

Interviewers should gather only three types of information about candidates:
- Knowledge - candidate's general background i.e. education, number of years service
- Behaviours - specific experiences
- Motivation - i.e. job fit, company fit and location, what the candidate is looking for in a job

When interviewing bear in mind 'past behaviour is the most reliable indicator to future performance'. Asking for specific experiences gathers that information.

Example questions:

1. Can you give me an example of a previous work situation where you've motivated a team?

2. Tell me about a time when you had to deliver unwelcome news. How did you do it?

3. Describe some obstacles you or your team have faced. How did you go about overcoming them? What did you learn from the experience?

Follow 1-1 Recruitment's six suggestions for a successful and happy career, remember attitude is everything!

1. BE ORGANISED: - Know what you want to achieve, set goals and realistic time scales and stick to them! It can be as simple as writing down what you want to achieve in the next ten years to detailing your goals for each month - its aim is to keep you focused! The key is to not let the fear of change hold you back, embrace it!

2. DETERMINATION: - Don't give up! Everyone experiences knock backs, unfortunately they're part of life! Pick yourself up after a disasterous interview or a job rejection, ask yourself what you could do differently next time and move on. Keep focused on your goal and realise it'll be worth the effort! For example; is you're looking for a role in the Marketing Department of Motorola and there's nothing available then consider a different role, make yourself visible and be in the right place when opportunities arise!

3. THE FUN FACTOR: - You only live once, so enjoy your job! You spend approximately 37 hours a week, that's 1,739 hours a year at work, how can you justify wasting that much of your life in a job or company that you dislike? Life's too short, when a job is no longer fun then move on! What's stopping you?

4. MOTIVATION: - Everyone has their own individual motivators; the reasons they get out of bed in the morning! For many the main motivator is money, however as the old saying goes, "Money can't buy happiness" this is (to some degree) true! You may have a big house and expensive car but if you dislike your job then is it really worth it? In a role, work hard, have fun and the money will follow!

5. LEARN FROM MISTAKES: - Everyone makes them, after all we're only human! Making mistakes teaches us lessons, ask yourself what went wrong, what could you have done differently to make the outcome a success? Don't let them stand in your way or stop you from achieving what you really want, move onwards and upwards.

6. CONFIDENCE: - And finally, believe in yourself! If you don't believe that you can achieve your goal and be successful then no one else will!

The first step to a happy and successful future is to ask yourself this simple question, "Am I happy in what I'm doing?" If the answer is no then do something about it! It's never too late.