Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Lecture Outline:
Basic Types of Interviews
Structured versus Unstructured Interviews
Interview Content
How Should We Conduct the Interview?
Improving Performance though HRIS
Three Ways to Make the Interview Useful
Errors That Can Undermine an Interview’s Usefulness
First Impressions
Not Clarifying What the Job Requires
Candidate-Order (Contrast) Error and Pressure to Hire
Nonverbal Behavior and Impression Management
Effect of Personal Characteristics
Interviewer Behavior
Social Media and HR
How to Design and Conduct the Effective Interview
Designing the Structured Situational Interview
Talent Management: Profiles and Employees Interviews
Developing and Extending the Job Offer
Appendix
Interview Guide
In Brief:
This chapter gives an overview of types of interviews and their features. It discusses common
mistakes in interviewing, and outlines effective interviewing techniques from the views of both
interviewer and interviewee.
Interesting Issues:
While structured interviews have been shown to be more valid than non-structured ones, some
managers tend to resist structured interviews in favor of trusting their own skills as interviewers.
Learning Objectives:
1. List and give examples of the main types of selection interviews.
2. List and explain main errors that can undermine an interview’s usefulness.
Annotated Outline:
I. Basic Types of Interviews
A. Structured versus Unstructured Interviews - Unstructured or nondirective interviews
generally have no set format. Structured or directive interviews generally identify
questions and all applicants are asked the same questions. Sometimes acceptable
responses are specified in advance and the responses are rated for appropriateness of
content.
B. Interview Content - Interviews can be classified according to the nature or
content of their questions, such as situational interviews, job-related
interviews, behavioral interviews, and stress interviews. Puzzle questions are
also popular today, and they are used to see how candidates think under
pressure.
C. How Should We Conduct the Interview?
1. Panel interviews occur when a group (panel) of interviewers questions the
candidate together. A mass interview is where a panel interviews several
candidates simultaneously.
2. Phone interviews are often conducted entirely by phone. Technology has
also made interviewing by videoconferencing possible, saving time and
travel costs.
D. Improving Performance though HRIS
1. Computerized interviews involve computers administering the interview.
Typically the questions are presented in a multiple-choice format, one at a time,
and the applicant is expected to respond to the questions on the screen by pressing
a key.
E. Three Ways to Make the Interview Useful - Studies confirm that the validity
of interviews is greater than previously thought. Structured interviews are
more valid than unstructured interviews for predicting job performance.
Some traits, however, are not able to be accurately assessed in an interview.
1. Structure the Interview – Structured interviews are more valid than
unstructured interviews for predicting job performance.
2. Be careful what sorts of traits you try to assess – Interviews are better for
revealing some traits than others.
3. Beware of committing interviewing errors – Understand and avoid the
various errors that can undermine any interview’s usefulness.
II. Errors That Can Undermine an Interview’s Usefulness
A. First Impressions – One of the most consistent findings is that interviewers
tend to jump to conclusions about candidates during the first few minutes of
the interview.
B. Not Clarifying What the Job Requires – Interviewers who don’t know
precisely what the job entails and what sort of candidate is best suited for it
usually make their decisions based on incorrect or incomplete stereotypes of
what a good applicant is.
8. Review the Interview – Once the candidate leaves, and while the interview
is fresh on the interviewer’s mind, he/she should review his/her notes and
fill in the structured interview guide.
B. Talent Management: Profiles and Employees Interviews - Talent
Management: Profiles and Employee Interviews – Profiles include
competencies, traits, knowledge, and experience. Using the same profile for
multiple jobs will ensure an integrated, goal-oriented process.
IV. Developing and Extending the Job Offer - After all the interviews, background checks,
and other tests, the employer decides who to offer the job to and will base his decision on
the information gathered throughout the selection process. The employer will also need to
decide if he will extend an offer of employment or a contract.
V. Appendix
A. Interview Guide for Interviewees
1. Preparation Is Essential
2. Uncover the Interviewers Real Needs
3. Relate Yourself to the Interviewers Needs
4. Think Before Answering
5. Remember That Appearance and Enthusiasm Are Important
6. Make a Good First Impression
7-1: You have to hire dozens of wait staff every year for a new restaurant on Miami Beach.
Explain how you would use a computerized interview, including questions and tasks for
candidates
7-2: You are interviewing candidates in Bangladesh and you have a great candidate who
unfortunately is 25 years old, when the job calls for someone at least 40. List three questions
you would ask to see if the person is still qualified.
7-3: Write a one-paragraph (single-spaced) memo to the people who do your company’s
recruiting on the topic, “The five most important things an interviewer can do to have a
useful selection interview.”
Discussion Questions:
7-4: There are several ways to conduct a selection interview. Explain and illustrate the
basic ways in which you can classify selections interviews.
7-5: Briefly describe each of the following possible types of interviews: unstructured panel
interviews; structured sequential interviews; job-related structured interviews.
In the unstructured panel interview, the panel of interviewers asks questions as they come to
mind. They do not have a list of questions or points that need to be covered but may follow
many different directions. The structured sequential interview consists of the candidate
being interviewed one by one with several different interviewers. Each interviewer conducts
a structured interview that consists of pre-determined questions and a structured evaluation
form to complete. The job-related structured interview consists of pre-determined questions,
all of which are designed to assess the applicant's past behaviors for job-related information.
7-6: For what sorts of jobs do you think computerized interviews are most appropriate?
Why?
The computerized interview can be used as a screening device for virtually any type of
position that may generate a large number of applicants. It is less likely to be used for
managerial positions. However, if there are large numbers of applicants, it could certainly be
just as useful there as in skilled, professional, and unskilled positions.
7-7: How would you explain the fact the structured interviews, regardless of content, are
generally more valid than unstructured interviews for predicting job performance?
The structured interview helps to keep the interviewer focused on the types of behaviors,
traits, or answers that are desired and that are good predictors of job performance.
Unstructured interviews allow interviewers to become sidetracked with things like common
interests and other items that are not good predictors of job success.
7-8: Briefly discuss what an interviewer can do to improve his or her performance.
The students should refer to the section in the chapter on designing and conducting the
effective interview to form his/her suggestions for how an interviewer can improve his/her
perfomance.
Things to keep in mind here include understanding the difference between a job offer letter
and a contract. A job offer letter lists the offer’s basic information, including details on salary
and pay, benefits information, paid leave information, and terms of employment. There
should be a strong statement specifying that the employment relationship is “at will.” In
contrast to a letter of offer, it is not unusual for an employment contract to have a duration
(such as 3 years).
There are several things you can do to prepare to be an effective interviewer. Some of the
responses the students should give include: structure the interview; prepare for the interview;
establish rapport; ask questions; close the interview; and review the interview.
7-11: Use the Internet to find employers who now do preliminary selection interviews via
the Web. Do you think these interviews are useful? Why or why not? How would you
improve them?
The students should use the Internet to search the Web sites of various companies to find
examples of companies that use the Web for preliminary selection interviews. They should
provide the pros and cons of using the Web for preliminary selection interviews. Challenge
students to identify ways to improve the examples they have presented based on what has
been discussed in this chapter.
7-12: In groups, discuss and compile examples of “the worst interview I ever had.” What
was it about these interviews that made them so bad? If time permits, discuss as a
class.
Based on their experiences, the students should come up with various examples. They
should also discuss their suggestions for improving the interview.
The students should use this opportunity to design their own interview questions using the
suggestions given in the chapter.
7-14: Some firms swear by unorthodox interview methods. For example, Tech Planet, of
Menlo Park, CA, uses weekly lunches and “wacky follow-up sessions” as substitutes for
first-round job interviews. During the informal meals, potential staffers are expected
to mingle, and they’re then reviewed by the Tech Planet employees they meet at the
luncheons. One Tech Planet employee asks candidates to ride a unicycle in her office
to see if “they’ll bond with the corporate culture or not.” Toward the end of the
screening process, the surviving group of interviewees has to solve brainteasers, and
then openly evaluate their fellow candidates’ strengths and weaknesses. What do you
think of a screening process like this? Specifically, what do you think are its pros and
cons? Would you recommend a procedure like this? If so, what changes, if any, would
you recommend?
The students should use the information they’ve learned in this chapter to make judgments
about this screening process.
7-15: Several years ago, Lockheed Martin Corp. sued the Boeing Corp. in Orlando,
Florida, accusing it of using Lockheed’s trade secrets to help win a multibillion-dollar
government contract. Among other things, Lockheed Martin claimed that Boeing had
obtained those trade secrets from a former Lockheed Martin employee who switched to
Boeing. But in describing methods companies use to commit corporate espionage, one
writer says that hiring away the competitor’s employees or hiring people to go through
its dumpster are just the most obvious methods companies use to commit corporate
espionage. As he says, “one of the more unusual scams – sometimes referred to as ‘help
wanted’ – uses a person posing as a corporate headhunter who approaches an employee
of the target company with a potentially lucrative job offer. During the interview, the
employee is quizzed about his responsibilities, accomplishments, and current projects.
The goal is to extract important details without the employee realizing there is no job.”
Assume that you are the owner of a small high-tech company that is worried about the
possibility that one or more of your employees may be approached by one of these
sinister “headhunters.” What would you do (in terms of employee training, or a letter
from you, for instance) to try to minimize the chance that one of your employees will
fall into that kind of trap? Also, compile a list of five or ten questions that you think
such a corporate spy might ask one of your employees.
Students may suggest that the employer educate employees that tactics such as the ones
described here are used by competitors, suggest an appropriate response, and encourage
employees to report any such contact to management. Building trust and loyalty is clearly
important in order for this strategy to be effective. Brainstorm with the class a list of
questions that may be asked, and perhaps conduct a role play to demonstrate how the
conversation may play out, and facilitate a discussion on how the employee and employer
could respond.
7-16: Appendix A, PHR and SPHR Knowledge Base at the end of this book lists the
knowledge someone studying for the HRCI certification exam needs to have in each
area of human resource management (such as in Strategic Management, Workforce
Planning, and Human Resource Development). In groups, do four things: (1) review
Appendix A; (2) identify the material in this chapter that relates to the required
knowledge Appendix A lists; (3) write four multiple-choice exam questions on this
material that you believe would be suitable for inclusion in the HRCI exam; and (4) if
time permits, have someone from your team post your team's questions in front of the
class, so that students in all teams can answer the exam questions created by the other
teams.
Material from this chapter that may be included in the HRCI certification exam includes
interviewing procedures, federal, state, and local employment-related laws, and interviewing
techniques.
Required Understanding: You should be familiar with the information presented in the chapter,
and to read this: “For parents, children are precious.” It's therefore interesting that parents who
hire “nannies” to take care of the children usually do little more than asked several interview
questions and conduct what is often, at best, a perfunctory reference check. Given the often
questionable validity of interviews, and the (often) relative inexperience of the father or mother
doing the interviewing, it's not surprising that many of these arrangements are disappointments.
You know from this chapter that it is difficult to conduct a valid interview unless you know
exactly what you are looking for. Most parents simply aren't trained to do this.
Set up groups of five or six students. Two students will be the interviewees, while the other
students in the group will serve as panel interviewers. The interviewees will develop an
interviewer assessment form, and the panel interviewers will develop a structured situational
interview for a “nanny.”
7-17: Instructions for the interviews: The interviewees should leave the room for about 20 min.
While out of the room, the interviewees should develop an “interviewer assessment form”
based on the information presented in the chapter regarding factors that can undermine the
usefulness of an interview. During the panel interview, the interviewees should assess the
interviewers using the interviewer assessment form. After the panel interviewers have
conducted the interview, the interviewees should leave the room to discuss their notes. Did
the interviewers exhibit any of the factors that can undermine the usefulness of an
interview? If so, which ones? What suggestions would you (the interviewees) make to the
interviewers on how to improve the usefulness of the interview?
7-18: Instructions for interviewers: while the interviewees are out of the room, the panel
interviewers will have 20 min. to develop a short structured situational interview form for a
“nanny.” The panel interviews team will interview two candidates for the position. During
the panel interview, each interviewer should be taking notes on a copy of the structured
situational interview form. After the panel interview, the panel interviewers should discuss
their notes. What were your first impressions of each interviewee? Were your impressions
similar? What candidate would you all select for the position and why?
Synopsis:
Zipcar is a company that allows customers to share a car for a fee as small as a short cab ride.
Individuals who become Zipcar members are able to reserve a vehicle with as little advance
notice as one hour through any wireless device, unlock a car with a card that members carry with
them, and drive for the reserved period of time. The goal of Zipcar is to reduce the number of
cars being driven and thereby reduce environmental pollution.
Zipcar is a fast-growing innovative company that supports the environment and is socially
responsible. This makes it an attractive place to work for many who are looking for a company
that is doing something new. When selecting new employees, Zipcar aims to find people who
are passionate about the brand, professional, courteous, and presentable. It wants someone who
can understand the value of the organization and the culture within which the company operates.
Discussion Questions:
It is fairly clear that the panel interview was a stress interview designed to see how well
she could handle difficult situations. In this respect, it seems to have been a well-thought-
out interviewing strategy, but there was a very clear element of carelessness on the part of
the firm's management. The panel was obviously not well-trained and was careless in the
choice of questions that they used. Many of the questions were clearly discriminatory and
could be used against them in a gender-based discrimination suit.
7-24: Would you take the job offer if you were Maria? If you're not sure, what additional
information would help you make your decision?
Maria needs additional information. What she does know is the nature of the job and the
clear fit with her training and skills. The additional information that she should seek
involves the number of women who work at Apex, the levels of management which they
have attained, and the satisfaction of those women with their treatment by Apex
management. The fact that the entire interview panel was composed of men and their
choice of questions leaves us with reservations about how she would be treated once hired.
7-25: The job of applications engineer for which Maria was applying requires: (a) excellent
technical skills with respect to mechanical engineering; (b) a commitment to working
in the area of pollution control; (c) the ability to deal well and confidently with
customers who have engineering problems; (d) a willingness to travel worldwide; and
(e) a very intelligent and well-balanced personality. List 10 questions you would ask
when interviewing applicants for the job.
There are a wide variety of specific questions that could be posed to address these issues.
Questions need to be job-related, specifically to the requirements listed above. They also
need to clearly avoid any discriminatory areas.
7-27: Should she implement a training program for her managers, and if so, specifically
what should be the content of such an interview-training program? In other words, if
she did decide to start training her management people to be better interviewers,
what should she tell them and how should she tell it to them?
The obvious answer to this question is yes, a training program should be designed and
delivered. Students should include suggestions from the section on designing and
conducting effective interviews, including training in preparation, utilization of a
structured interview process, and interviewing techniques discussed in this chapter. She
should educate managers in the potential pitfalls that come up in the interviewing process
as outlined in the text. She should also provide an opportunity for practice with mock
interviews in the training session so that managers can use the skills they learn and become
comfortable with the process.
Hotel Paris: Improving Performance at the Hotel Paris - The New Interviewing
Program
7-28: For the jobs of security guard or valet, develop 5 situational, 5 behavioral, and 5 job
knowledge questions, with descriptive good/average/poor answers.
Examples may be found in Figures 7-2 and 7-3. Student answers will vary. For the
security guard, questions might focus on ascertaining the level of dependability,
responsibility, initiative, and cool-headedness under pressure. The car hop position’s
desired behaviors may include detail orientation, friendliness, and ability to follow
directions.
7-29: Combine your questions into a complete interview process that you would give to
someone who must interview candidates for these jobs.
Students should follow the outline for interviewing in Figure 7-1 and in the Chapter
Appendix.
Key Terms:
Unstructured or Nondirective Interview - An unstructured conversational-style interview -
The interviewer pursues points of interest as they come up in response to questions.
Situational Interview - A series of job-related questions which focus on how the candidate
would behave in a given situation.
Behavioral Interviews - A series of job-related questions that focus on how the candidate
reacted to actual situations in the past.
Job-Related Interview - A series of job-related questions which focuses on relevant past job-
related behaviors.
Candidate Order Error - An error of judgment on the part of the interviewer due to
interviewing one or more very good or very bad candidates just before the interview in question.
— No, jopa jotakin, herra Iivana Julma!… Nyt meidän tulee oikein
hauska. Olemme kaikki ihastuksissamme! Niin, on oikein hauskaa,
kun herrat ovat tuollaisella tuulella… minusta se on hauskaa, sillä on
niin kauheata kuulla heidän puhuvan semmoista. Minä ja joukko
ystävättäriäni olemme siitä samaa mieltä… Mutta hyvä, kiltti Omar
Pasha, tarkoitatteko siis täyttä totta, että kaikki tuollainen, jota me
katsomme hienoksi, on aivan yksinkertaisesti eläimellistä?
*****
— Äiti, sinä käsität meidät niin tykkänään väärin. Salli minun nyt
tulla mukaasi! —
Hänen äänessään oli jotain, joka huomautti tytärtä siitä, mikä heitä
erotti, ja jota tytär ei tätä ennen ollut huomannut.
5.
Nyt kertoisi hän kaikki. Näille voi hän uskoa mitä tahansa —
ihmiset arvelisivat sen osoittavan että hän oli päästä sekaisin —
oikein hänen täytyi nauraa — sehän juuri osoitti että hän oli viisas!
Hän silmäili häntä kylmästi, ihmetellen. Oliko tuo hän itse? Oliko
yhdyselämä hänen kanssaan tehnyt tuon miehen tuollaiseksi?
Itse oli hän myöskin ajatellut että hänen onnensa olisi Arvid
Thammers — onni oli kai sitten sellaista!… Ja myöhemmin tulisi
kaikki se, mitä hän odotti, — olihan kaikki hyvin, kun oli vielä niin
paljon hyvää odotettavissa! Niin oli aina, niin sanoivat kaikki. Ja
muuthan tiesivät sen paremmin kuin hän. Itse oli hän ajatellut, että
oli parasta pyrkiä turvaan, — hän oli tuntenut itsensä niin
turvattomaksi. Hänestä oli kuin olisi hän pudonnut jyrkkää kalliota
alas, mutta pelastunut ihmeellisellä tavalla… Eikä hän tahtonut
kärsiä… Miksi olisi hän sitä tehnyt! Hän oli kahdeksantoistavuotias.
Hän tahtoi osalliseksi elämän ihanuudesta! — — —
*****
Hän tunsi olevansa kuin valmis elämään nähden. Mikä voi murtua,
se oli murtunut… se mikä oli loistanut, se oli sammunut ja
menehtynyt!
Hän muisti nuo ajat, jolloin elämä oli häntä koetellut, jolloin hänelle
oli karttunut kokemuksia — noita unohtumattomia, muistoon
syöpyneitä päiviä — päiviä, jotka eivät enää voineet palata, sillä
hänellä ei ollut voimaa kestää niitä kahdesti.
*****
Ilta lähestyi.
Vai tuuliko se oli tai joki? Vai ilman hengetkö sulattivat yhteen
kaikki nuo heikot äänet, jotka olivat kuin laineiden loppumatonta
loisketta!… kuin hänen oma ainainen, hiljainen kaipauksensa, joka ei
voinut tyyntyä! — — — Kaislikosta saapui hiljainen suhahdus.
Miksikä piti nyt tuon kulkijan tuolla saapua? Mitä oli ihmisillä täällä
tekemistä?
Thora Thammers näki että tulija oli parantolan vieraita, — tuo, jolla
oli niin ihmeellinen ääni ja niin sietämättömän iloinen seurustelutapa.
Hän tunsi ehdottomasti vastenmielisyyttä ihmisiä kohtaan, jotka
nauroivat paljon, ja häntä oli vaivannut keveä tapa, millä hän käsitteli
kaikkia asioita.
— Toivottavasti te sallitte!
Tuo mies, jolla oli niin ihmeellinen ääni, — olisihan hänen pitänyt
tietää että se oli hän! Hän näki syvät uurteet hienopiirteisen suun
ympärillä… tuon valtavan katseen… nyt vasta tunsi hän hänet.
Kaikki tuo, jonka hän oli taistelulla voittanut… ei, sitä hän ei antaisi
riistää itseltään!