Behavioral Inteview Model for Hiring Managers and Job Seekers
Hiring managers do struggle with knowing how to conduct a fair and effective interview process. It’s tough to know what questions to ask, how to sell your organization at the same time you’re screening for the right candidate. Your concerns or worries might include…
- Are they going to get along well with others on the team?
- Am I going to be able to manage them effectively?
- Will they be a troublemaker, a slacker or a blessed gift from heaven above?
- Can I trust my instincts enough to make the right choice, given all the possibilities?
- And most importantly…will I regret my decision?
If you’re a job candidate, you have your own set of worries, including…
- Can I get my mouth to cooperate with my brain?
- Will I sound like I know what I’m doing or like a bumbling idiot?
- What if they ask me a question that I’m unable to answer?
- How can I admit I have faults, yet still appear to be a good choice?
- And most importantly…what if I regret my decision?
Regardless which side of the desk you happen to be on, it can be a sweat-provoking experience! So let me help by offering a Behavioral Interview Model that’s easy to remember and will help you prepare for that big decision-making experience.
Behavioral Interview Model for Hiring Managers
If you’re a hiring manager, you may want to standardize the way you evaluate responses from each candidate. That way you’re doing an apples-to-apples comparison, rather than using a “fly by the seat of my pants” process.
Step 1: Identify the qualities and competencies you seek in this candidate. Prioritize your list and hone in on the top 5.
Step 2: Draft questions to find out more about this person’s experience or abilities in each of those areas. You may wish to start each question with the phrase, “Tell me about a time that you…”
Step 3: Include one question about how they turned a negative into a positive
Step 4: Use my CARLA Concept(TM) Model to coach your candidates on HOW to answer your questions:
C – Tell me about a time you faced a Challenge, Change or Circumstance where teamwork was crucial
A – Tell me what Actions you book and please be as specific as possible
R – Tell me the Results you achieved, and please try to quantify those results or outcomes as much as possible
L – Tell me what Lessons you Learned along the way?
A – Since hindsight is “20-20″, tell me what Alternatives or Another Approach you’d take in the future, knowing what you know now
Step 5: Take notes, keeping in mind if you take notes for one, you’d better take notes for all. Also remember that any written documentation can be requested as part of a legal record should things “go south” if ya know what I mean.
Step 6: Decide how you’ll rank the results. Will you use a scale from 1-5, 1-10 or some other method. Please consult your HR folks for help with this.
Behavioral Interview Model for Job Seekers
If you’re a job seeker, you also may want a tool that’s easy to remember. That way, you can prepare in advance for the “big day” and when nerves and stress kick in, you can still sound competent and confident no matter what they throw at you.
Step 1: Identify all the key competencies and qualities you believe they want in a candidate for this position. They’re pretty predictable, really. You can review most job postings and see the same keywords cropping up time after time. Here are just a few: communication skills, problem solving, analysis, budgeting, talent development, leadership, personal accountability, etc.
Step 2: Take a pack of index cards and label each card with the competency or quality you believe they seek (and which you possess, of course!)
Step 3: Look into your past and remember the times you were faced with challenges, changes or circumstances related to each one of those categories. Your goal here is to remember the stories.
Step 4: Using my CARLA Concept(TM) Model, write out each story on a single index card using bullet points or talking points. Avoid writing the whole thing out in long sentences. You’ll never remember that. (Refer to the CARLA Model above)
Step 5: Practice describing each circumstance using the CARLA framework. It should sound something like this:
C – In 1999, my team was asked to…
A – Here are the actions we took in order to face the challenge…
R – The results we achieved included…
L – We learned some lessons along the way, including…
A – And now that I look back, there are things I’d do differently. Another approach I’d use would be…
See how that goes? It’ll keep you focused, clear and concise. Your interviewer won’t get the “deer in the headlights” look (as often). You won’t ramble (as much).
The other benefit? If you just remember the model, you’ll be able to reach back into your past and come up with examples and stories no matter what questions they ask you. And it’s okay to sit and think for a moment if nothing comes immediately to mind.
However, if you’ve done your pre-work, you should have multiple stories to fit any category.
And the more structured and specific you are with your responses, the easier it will be for them to remember you and think, “Holy cow! This guy/lady really has it together!”
Let me know what you think, okay? I’m always happy to pass along feedback from folks who have tried my ideas, whether they worked for you or not. Just plug in a comment below…
Until next time, Laura Benjamin, your Colorado communication, career and marketing coach
