Interview Do’s and Don’ts

SHRM 2011

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● Hiring good employees is the foundation of any successful business!!

● So how can I be successful at it ???

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Why is effective interviewing important?

What happens when you effectively interview?

What happens when you do not effectively interview?

Select the right person for the job Don’t select the right person for the job

Enhance company creditability with those candidates who were not hired

Lose creditability with those candidates whom you did not hire

Avoid legal/behavior issues May have legal/behavior issues

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Be Prepared

● Create a suitable environment for your interview

o Best case is to forward your phone and inform your staff you are in an interview and need an hour of not being interrupted.

o Be on timeo Ensure privacy

● Prior to the interview take a few minutes to review the candidates resume/application and learn a little about your candidate and take some notes.

● Greet and put the applicant at ease with a solid hand shake.

● Provide the applicant with an overview of the interview structure

o Let them know there will be a discussion of previous experience.o Time of interview process and any testing to be conductedo There will be time at the end for final questions, but to ask questions during

the interview as well.

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Starting the Interview

● Don't conduct an “interview”, have a conversation.o One of the biggest mistake people make in the

interview setting is to conduct it like it appears in a magazine (question and answer). Don't make that mistake. Forget about the questions and just have a comfortable conversation. Keyword: comfortable.

● Do your homework.

o The only way to avoid getting stuck asking questions is to do so much research that you don't need them. Know your subject, know the issues and know what the public would want to know if they could sit down with the subject matter.

● Don't stick to your agenda.

o To make matters worse, most interviewers follow the questions that they have lined up in the order they wrote them, instead of letting it flow based on what the subject is saying. I've seen many great follow-up conversations and side-tracks lost because the interviewer was following their flow instead of the flow of the conversation.

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Starting the Interview

● Open Arms.

• Do your best to have nothing blocking you from your subject matter. This includes objects like recorders, pens, coffee tables, etc...

● Have notes prepared.

• It's ok to have some notes about concepts you would like to discuss, but don't hold it in your hand and look down at it - that will break the conversation and turn it into a typical interview.

• Ask open ended questions. Always start your questions or commentary with words like "how" and "why". Those two words can never be responded to with the words, "yes" or "no". If you want something more than one or two word answers, use words like "how" and "why".

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Danger! Danger! Danger!Keeping it Legal

● The interview process is subject to numerous employment laws designed to protect applicants' privacy and ensure them a fair shot in the selection process. ,

● Employers cannot ask questions about religion, national origin, age, height, weight, marital status, disability, or gender unless they represent genuine qualifications essential to the operation of the business. (For example: a church can ask potential ministers about their religious background; a contracting firm can ask if candidates are physically able to perform certain tasks.)

● Compliance with laws such as ADA also can become involved in the interview process.

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Title VII

● Title VII prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy or national origin.

● Title VII applies to all employers who are engaged in interstate commerce and have 15 or more employees.

● Remedieso Back Payo Front Payo Attorney’s Feeso Compensatory and Punitive Damages

● Injunctive Relief

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Disparate Impact

● Disparate treatment refers to a discriminatory situation where one individual is treated differently than similarly situated individuals (usually because of that individual’s race, sex, religion, age, etc.) with regard to a term or condition of employment

● Disparate impact discrimination occurs when a company has a policy or procedure which is neutral on its face, but which has an adverse affect on individuals in a protected category

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Arkansas Civil Rights Act

● Generally follows Title VII● Allows suits to be brought in Arkansas

state court rather than federal courts

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ADEA(Age Discrimination in Employment Act)

● The ADEA prohibits discrimination on the basis of age. It applies to individuals 40 years of age and older.

● The ADEA applies to employers engaged in interstate commerce with 20 or more employees.

● Under this Act, it is unlawful to force an employee to retire, and it is also unlawful to give preference because of age to one person over another, even if they are both in the protected age group.

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ADA(Americans With Disabilities Act)

● The ADA prohibits discrimination in employment against a qualified individual with a disability who is able to perform the essential functions of the job, with or without a reasonable accommodation.

● An individual who poses a direct threat to the safety of himself or others is NOT covered under the Act.

● Current users of illegal drugs are specifically exempted from the ADA. However, an individual who has successfully completed drug rehabilitation, or is undergoing drug rehabilitation, is considered to be “disabled” under the ADA.

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“Qualified Individuals” with a Disability

● The individual must meet the prerequisites of the job (i.e., education level, certified or licensed in a particular area, etc.) and be able to perform the essential functions of the job.

● Courts will give deference to a company’s job description in determining the essential functions of a job.

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Reasonable Accommodation

● A reasonable accommodation is an action which an

employer must take that would allow a disabled person

to perform essential functions of the job despite the

individual’s disability.

● Examples:o Modifying existing facilities or equipment;

o Altering work schedules;

o Eliminating non-essential elements of the job; and

o Reassigning an individual to a vacant position.

● An employer must make accommodation unless it would

create an undue hardship on the employer.

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Attendance

● Attendance is an essential job function

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Workers’ Compensation History Inquiries

• NO before conditional offer of employment

• YES after conditional offer if in the context of medical exam/inquiry required of all applicants in same job category

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USERRA (Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act)

● Service members have the right to be reemployed in their civilian job if they meet certain requirementso 5 year cap, honorable discharge

● Additional discrimination protections for service members:o Employers may not deny employment

o Employers may not deny reemployment

o Employer may not deny retention in employment

o Employers may not deny promotion; or any other benefit of employment

● Also contains certain health insurance protections for service members

● Includes reserves!

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Interviewing:What Should Supervisors Know?

● Should you have front line supervisors involved in the interview process?o Gives the supervisor input on the members of their teamo Supervisor is invested in recruitmento Potential employee gets to meet their boss

● What role should they play?● If you decide to do it, you should do it for all

supervisors at the same level within your organization

How can I ask the question I need to and stay within the law?

Category DO ASK Don’t ASK

Sex and/or

Family Arrangements

● If the candidate has relatives already employed by the company

● Sex of candidate● Material status● Number of children or child

care arrangements● Health care coverage

through spouse?

Race ● No acceptable question ● Candidate’s race or color of skin

● Request a photo with application or resume

National Origin

or Ancestry

● If the candidate has a legal right to work in the Untied States

● To confirm the ability to peak or write fluently in English( if required by the job)

● Ethnic association of an candidates surname

● Birthplace of a candidate, their parents or spouse

● Nationality, lineage, or national origin

● Whether the candidate is a citizen of another country

● Native tongue● Maiden name

How can I ask the question I need to and stay within the law?

Category DO ASK Don’t ASK

Religion ● If the candidate can work the hours required by the position

● Candidate’s religious affiliation

AGE ● If the candidate is at least 18 years of age

● Candidate’s date of birth● Date of high school

graduation● Age

Disability ● If the candidate can perform the essential functions of the job

● If the candidate has a disability

● The nature of or the severity of a disability

● Whether the candidate has ever filed a Workers Compensation claim

● Recent or past surgeries● Past medical Problems

How can I ask the question I need to and stay within the law?

Category DO ASK Don’t ASK

Other ● Convictions ( if job related or company hiring criteria

● Academic, vocational or professional schooling

● Training received in the military

● Membership in any trade or professional organizations

● Job references

● The number and types of arrests the candidate has

● The height or weight of a candidate

● Veteran status, discharge status or branch of service

● A contact in case of emergency ( wait until after a job offer is made)

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During the Interview

● Don’t be afraid of silence● Take notes consistently through out the interview. Focus on documenting

actions and outcomes rather than trying to capture every word the candidate says.

● Ask at least two open ended questions in each performance skill you are looking for.

● Control the Interview. Guide the applicant to discuss information that achieves your information gathering objectives

● Maintain an 80/20 talk ratio ( You should only do 20% of the talking)● Be aware of the applicant’s communication skills both verbal and non-

verbal

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Behavioral Interviewing

● Definitiono Interviewing process that encourages candidates to discuss

specific past experiences and accomplishments.

● Purposeo Based on the theory that past behavior predicts future

behavior

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Trait vs. Behavior

● Trait: A word use to summarize a person’s characteristics

● Behavior: Anything a person does that can be observed or measured

Trait-Based Behavior-Based

Traits become labels Behavioral descriptions discourage stereotypes

Weak link between data and prediction

Prediction is directly related to data

All candidates try to sound good

“Stories” make it difficult to fake success

Avoiding true skills Candidates with a variety of skills are identified

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Behavioral Interview Model

Read anopen-ended

question

Allow silence

Gain a behavioral example

Take notes asyou listen

Probe for clarification

Seek contraryinformation

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Tolerate Silence

● For most candidates, up to 10 seconds of silence is productive

● After about 15 seconds, the tension may become destructive

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Tolerate Silence

● Tips

o Add to your notes

o After 10 seconds: “It’s ok to take your time.”

o Rephrase the question

o Avoid trying to answer or give examples

o Make more specific to their experience

Quality information drives quality decisions

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Using Open-Ended Questions

Closed-Ended Open-Ended

“Are you attentive to detail?”

“Are you willing to work hard?”

“Are you able to adjust to changes?”

“Tell me about a time when being attentive to the details of the job or task paid off.”

“Give me an example of a time when you had to put forth a lot of extra time and effort to reach a deadline.”

“How do you go about adjusting to some major changes in your job or organization.”

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Sample Behavior-Based Questions

● If you're looking for leadership: "Tell me about a time when you accomplished something significant that wouldn't have happened if you hadn't been there to make it happen."

● If you're looking for communication: "Describe a situation where you persuaded team members to do things your way. What was the effect?"

● If you're looking for customer service: "Tell me about a time when you had to deal with an irate customer

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Decision Making and Problem Solving

● Describe a situation when your judgment and common sense played a major role in solving an important problem and work.

● Tell me about a time when you used a systematic approach in problem solving.

● When has your ability to determine the potential causes of a problem enabled you to put an effective solution into action?

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Probing

● Gain specifics

● Clarify understanding

● Target the skill definition

● Focus on an idea

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Seeking Contrary Information

● With a negative gut feeling, try to find evidence to the contrary

● With positive gut feeling, look for areas of improvement

● Use supportive words to give permission to admit a mistake

● Recognize when a candidate does give a negative response; do not automatically discount the candidate’s skill

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Seeking Contrary Information

● “Describe a time when you lost your temper with a difficult customer and compromised the level of service provided.”

● “Tell me a time when you disappointed yourself with regard to your performance.”

● “Describe a time when you provided a high level of service to a difficult customer.”

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Evaluating Responses

● Recent: How long ago did the example take place?

● Multiple: How many examples support the evidence of the skill being present?

● Consistency: Is there consistency over time of the behaviors?

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Closing the Interview

● Thank the applicant for participating in the interview process

● Ask the applicant if they have any questions regarding the position or the company

● Communicate the next steps in the process

● Hand the applicant your business card and escort them out of the office

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Documentation

● Helps you remember

● Helps you make fair decisions—ask candidates same or similar questions for comparison

● Protects you in case of legal actions

Take notes that reflect exactly what the candidate said to help you rate skills. Avoid writing interpretations or general impressions.

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Evaluating all the Candidate and the Responses

● Related: How related or relevant are the examples to the skill being examined?

● Role: Is the candidate’s role clear?

● Depth: Is there adequate detail supporting the examples he or she gave?

● How did the candidate dress?

● Was the candidate on time?

● Did they do their homework-research your company?

● Did they show Enthusiasm for the job

● Did they Listen

● Ask Question/show interest

Open Discussion/Questions