Behavioral Interviews & Competency Framework

Karishma DhagePGDM – C

Roll No - 131

Behavioral Interviews

A Job Interviewing technique whereby the applicant is asked to describe the past behavior in order to determine whether she is suitable for a

position

Features

• Heart of the Job Competency Assessment process• Richest source of hypotheses about competencies

that predict effective job performance• Can be used as psychometric tests to assess

competencies for selection & other HR applications

• Structured like the trait interview• Includes singular open ended questions about

past events in the candidate’s work experience • Interviewing technique is reliable & valid• Provides basis for linking organizational identity

to the interviewing system

Guidelines

1. Know whom you will be talking to

2. Arrange a private place to hold the interview and the quality time for the interview

3. Arrange to tape record the interview

4. Know what you say

Steps in Behavioral Interview

1. Skills analysis

2. Select & edit skill definitions

3. Create a structured interview

4. Gain behavioral examples

5. Rate skills

1. Skills analysis

• Job experts are able to give accurate description of what needs to be done to do the job well. Very different approach from in depth study of high performers

• Skill analysis coordinator collects existing information on the job, documents qualification of job experts and directs job experts on steps of work analysis

• Skill definition’s linked to performance skills for easy selection by interviewer’s

• Specify essential job functions

Systematic process of identifying technical & performance skills important for doing a job well

2. Select & Edit Skill Definitions

There are 2 approaches to develop skill definitions

3. Creating a Structured Interview

• It is also called a patterned interview • A list of pre-planned questions are present with

an interviewer from which he may select his questions

• Comparing it to the scoring guides scores each answer to the question

• Such a technique is called a linear interview• Such an interview has to be structured failing

which it looses its effectiveness

4. Gain Behavioral examples

• Behavioral examples are a candidate’s description of past instances when he used a skill

• They provide events from the candidate’s background to compare to job related skill definitions

• Selection decision can be based on the extent to which the person has the skill needed for the specific job

• Not the entire person but only his job related skills are assesses

5. Rate Skills• In this final step, a process called triangulation

evaluates the interview responses

• After Ratings are completed the pattern of the ratings along with other candidate information is used to make the selection decision

Compare the notes taken in the Interview to the skill definition by using rating scale

Read all the notes taken in the interview

Read the skill definition specifying what to measure

Behavioral Interview Outline

Introduction & Explanation

Job Responsibilities

Behavioral Events

Characteristics needed to do the job

Conclusion & Summary

Introduction & Explanation

• Real purpose is to establish sense of mutual trust & good will between yourself & the interviewee so he/she is relaxed, open & ready to talk to you

OBJECTIVES Put the Interviewee at Ease Motivate the Interviewee to Participate Emphasize the Confidentiality of the Responses Get permission to Tape-Record ( you can say to pay

more attention and not having to make many notes)

Introducing yourself & explaining the purpose & format of the Interview

Job responsibilities

Specific questions are directed at what the person actually does & with whom on his/her current job1. “What is the tittle of your present job”2. “Whom do you report to?” (You can say you don’t

need name, just his/her title)3. “What are your major tasks or responsibilities?

What do you actually do?”(If the person has difficulty listing major job tasks/responsibilities, you can phrase the question even more specifically)

4. “For example, what do you do in a given day, week, or month?”

Getting the Interviewee to describe his/her most important job tasks & responsibilities

Behavioral Events

• This section should take up bulk of the interview time & should provide specific details

5 Key Questions1. “What was the situation? What events led up to it?”2. “Who was involved?”3. “What did you think, feel, or want to do in the

situation?” 4. “What did you actually do or say?” (you are

interested in the skills that the person showed)5. “What was the outcome? What happened?”

Asking the Interviewee to describe, in detail, the 5 or 6 most important situations he/she has

experienced in the job- 2 or 3 “high points” or major successes, & 2 or 3 “low points” or key

failures

Behavioral Events contd

Pointers on this Technique

Characteristics Needed to Do the Job

2 Basic Objectives1. To get additional critical incidents in areas that may

have been over-looked2. To leave the interviewee feeling strong and

appreciated by asking for his/her expert opinion Pointers on this Technique

• Use the “characteristics” question to get additional incidents if the interviewee has not been able to come up with 5 or 6 incidents before this points

• Reinforce the interviewee for whatever characteristics he/she gives you, in order to end the interview on a positive note.

Conclusion & Summary

• Conclude the interview by thanking the interviewee for his/her time & the “valuable information”

• You may need to “cool out” the interviewee by sympathizing with his/her situation

• Attempt to leave the interviewee feeling as strong and valued as possible

Summary Write - Up

1. Introduction & Description of Duties & Responsibilities (Fill in the interviewee’s details)

2. Behavioral Events (Make sure you have all the data)3. Performer Characteristics (List the characteristics in

narrative form)4. Summary & Interpretation ( The physical

appearance of the Interviewee, the conversational style, Words & Phrases that the interviewee used repeatedly)

Summarize the data from the Interview

The Star Method

• Situation: Describe the situation that you were in or the task that you needed to accomplish

• Task: What goal were you working toward? • Action: What specific steps did you take and what

was your particular contribution?• Result: Describe the outcome of your actions and

don’t be shy about taking credit for your behavior

A structured manner of responding to a behavioral-based interview question by discussing the

specific situation, task, action, and result of the situation you are describing.

Challenges

• Behavioral questions are only effective when they prompt a response that reveals the truth about both weaknesses and strengths

• Every one of those questions contains an obvious “tip off” on how to game a response that showcases the good and hides the bad

• The focus is often on past behavior, which isn't necessarily indicative of future results

Competency Framework

A ‘competency framework’ is a structure that sets out and defines each individual competency (such as problem-solving or people management) required by individuals working in an organization or part of an organization.

Need for Competency Frameworks ?

• Translate agency vision into clear measurable outcomes that define success & that are shared throughout the agency & with customers & stakeholders

• Provide a tool for assessing, managing & improving the overall health & success of business systems

• Identify core capabilities in the business & in the individual to help connect work with behavior, consequently influencing the performance & results

• Replace existing assessment models with a consistent approach to competency management

• Implement efficiently• Undertake pilots as necessary• Go for the Kill once acceptance is gained for across the

board execution

Elements of Competency Framework

Role Profiles

Competency Development Cycle- Core competence, Strategic analysis, Vision & Value orientation work,

Organizational Structure Implication

Proficiency levels &

benchmarking

Competency Dictionary

Employee Band Matrix

Assessment Set Assessment Worksheet

for assessment, including templates

Conducting the

assessment center

Assessment Data

Conducting the

Development Plans

Organizational Development

PlansTechnical, Enabling & Managerial

CompetenciesCompetency definitions, clusters, meta & Sub-Set

Competencies

Short & Long Term Plans

Basic Quality Standards

• Is related to the job role

• Clear and easy to understand

• The framework will be relevant & affect all staff

• Takes account of expected changes

• Has a specific behavior indicator

• Can be applied to many situations

• Has been benchmarked against specific standards

Level 1 Framework

• Organizational vision, aspiration, foresight & business landscape in which the business operates

• Articulation of a strategy, core competence, the delineation of the business plan, defining critical success factors, key performance indicators

• Creating a competency dictionary in sync with core competence of the firm

• Defining the HR strategy & its influence on the core strategy of the firm

Level 2 Framework

• Organizational structure & architecture, including roles, responsibilities

• Defining employee bands, role maps, job clusters, defining variation in levels

• Determining the Assessment Set• Assessment worksheets for individuals including

templates, key areas to be covered, mega & sub competency differentiation

Level 3 Framework

• Short term initiatives in terms of Individual Development plans

• Long term initiatives in terms of Individual Development plans

• Integrated Individual development plans• Assessment Data (Individual & Summarized)• Assessment Technique (Methods, tools, formats,

expert panels, etc)

Benefits

• They can link organizational and personal objectives and ensure that employees are clear about how they are expected to perform in their jobs.

• They can also make the appraisal and recruitment systems fairer and more open and differences between levels, job titles and grades more transparent.

• Competency frameworks have also been shown to play a major role in both attracting and retaining staff, particularly when linked to career progression and pay.

• The identification of required competencies can assist with workforce planning and succession planning – identifying the requirements for a job and how staff can develop to move up within an organization.

• Competency frameworks help to target scarce training and development resources more effectively and encourage individuals to take more responsibility for their own development

Limitation & Learning's

• The question of specifying a certain model: Is it really possible to specify a single model of a competency or might there be other patterns?

• The question from the standpoint of cultivating human resources: Isn't it too difficult to fortify the weak points of individual no matter how well you present a model of competency?

• The question of the reproducibility of results: the model is a pattern of past success. Can one really generate reproducible results by continuing to act in the same way ?

• The question of restricting behavior: If anything, doesn’t it rather discourage individuality, encouraging the entire workforce to adopt the same behaviors & attitudes & act in the same way, and as a result cause the whole organization to become unicellular, weakening its flexibility to deal with change?

Bibliography

• Competency at Work by Lyle M Spencer & Signe M Spencer

• Competency Based HRM by Ganesh Shermon

• www.udel.edu

• www.leadershipiq.com

• www.smallbusiness.chron.com

• www.oakleigh.co.uk