Skills of Interviewing

1. Skills of Interviewing

2. Domain • Key skill & activity for managers & HRM • Interpersonal communication • Cognition/information processing • Perception (selective) • Problem-analysis & decision-making(managerial behaviour)

3. Interview Experience • What is the best & worst experience that you have had • As an interviewer • As an interviewee • What made these experiences – best/worst? • What would have prevented & improved the worst experience?

4. The interview • More than just a conversation • "…. A specialist form of two-way communication conducted for a task-related purpose." (Whetton 1995)

5. Expectations and propositions • Information generated via the interview process provides data for decision-making • Training enhances performance – both as an interviewer and interviewee

6. Types of interview • Research/information gathering • Selection • Counselling/support • Appraisal • Development • Complaint/grievance • Disciplinary • Exit

7. Common approaches • Unstructured • Stress (validity?) • Semi-structured • Structured

8. Issues • Your role as a decision-maker/actor • Interview purposes & objectives • Structure and content • Environment (physical and psychological) • The interviewer – NPower, NAch, NRelate • Data collection and processing strategies • The communication exchange (interviewer-interviewee) – explicit, implicit, verbal and non-verbal • Organisational policy and expectations

9. The Selection Interview • Preparation and organisation • The interview process • Interviewing skills • Discrimination between candidates • Finalising the decision & "contract"

10. Preparation Products • Job descriptions & authorisation • Job criteria - competencies • Personnel specification (profile/model of ideal candidate) • Essentials - desirables - disqualifiers • Applicant information from various data sources • Selector preparation and appreciation of • role demands, choices, constraints, ambiguities, priorities, overloads, pressures/conflicts, organisational change • the social milieu - rules and tensions • Selector egoism, the political process of “justifying” the selection.

11. The Psychometric-Objective Model Assumptions • Eternal optimism • Smooth programmed administration • Measured, controlled, predictable, systematic search often using psychometric techniques • Match evidence of qualities to job Compare with social process approach • Interplay between selection events • Social and ritual aspects. Audition. Power vetting • Candidate & selector feelings/responses • Intra organisational negotiation & adjustment • Candidate - given fair opportunity or “club” scrutiny

12. Interview Strategies • Frank and friendly vs. Interrogation & stress • Simulate stress. Put on the spot? Validity? Spurious appeal? • Strengths and weaknesses of • individual interview • sequential interviews • panel interviews • Biographical journey • Critical events and experiences - what, why, how, options, plans, outcomes? • Problem-solving - “imaging yourself as ...what would you do if...? • GASP

13. Interviewer Preparation The GASP Interview • Greeting • Acquiring Information • Supplying Information • Parting

14. GASP – Greeting & rapport • Genuine positive regard – Move towards • Calm, neutral, no interruptions, safe. • Maintain rapport • seating voice, eye contact, warmth and body posture.....NVC • Preparation & “contract of interest & expectation” • Smooth gear change

15. GASP - Acquiring Information • Listen more - talk less. • Objectivity, bias, stereotyping & premature judgement • Not adversarial. Halo, horns and doppleganger • Taking notes • Question carefully (preparation) • well-structured, open-ended questions • probe and link • direct, leading, trick and taboo questions • Emphasise biography/experience, explanation/analysis • Mental agility and hypothetical questions • Interview flow with control: - agenda, space, time • Summarise periodically and conclude

16. Asking questions • Open-ended, well-sequenced, well-structured • Tell me about …..Six honest serving men • Closed (pros & cons?) • Probe, link and follow-up (control) • Leading (candidate adaptation) • Intrusive

17. GASP - Journey • Recent & significant jobs/projects • contributions, events/phases, initiatives, products, achievements, decisions. Strengths and gaps • Competencies from REAL experience • knowledge/understanding, analytical skill, written/numeric, specialist & technical. • attitudes & values, drives & motivation • Interpersonal relations – visualise with others • Education, training, learning & development • Personal & domestic topics - relevance/irrelevant • Applicant’s questions about • the organisation and the job - current & prospective • terms of employment

18. GASP: Supplying Information • cutting it short (horns/halo, premature judgement) • equal opportunity to all candidates • intimation of acceptance (verbal + non-verbal) • Potential for misunderstanding. No promises. • Communicating a decision • hints to attractive candidates (in a competitive situation) • intra-organisational bargaining • the decision in writing • subject to references • Career advice to rejected candidates? Culture?

19. GASP: Parting • Signal closure - NVC plus • maintain concentration • clarify future steps - the selection schedule • verify • dates - holidays and availabilities • phone, post • stand up, move, parting courtesies

20. The Good Interviewer? • At times • well-prepared • sharp & in focus, specific & rational • at times intuitive as well as systematically analytical & evaluating • picking up nuances and rationalisations • stepping back to see the whole interaction, fitting things together and noting the time left and areas to cover.... • Interviewer calmness helps the candidate to relax • clear perception • Positive regard for the other • Aware of self and biases • Use productive silences & seamless asking of questions. • Counteracts habituated boredom in interviews

21. Yourself as an interviewer? Good Points? Weaknesses? Interview exercise and analysis.

22. GASP Interview Issues • Premature decision • Tentative, pre-determined views seldom altered at interview • accept/reject within 3-4 min. Gather evidence to confirm first impression • Weak candidates make average candidates look good • Unstructured interviews • Propositions • interview practice alone does not improve performance, training does • Dramatic performance may not reflect job. Interviewees as actors. • Panels - defer to influential. Poor correlation when choice is confidential • Psychometric tests - weak evidence but belief/practice strong. • Validity of the psychometric-objective model?

23. The Potential for Distortion • Stereotyping • Halo, horns, doppleganger effects • function & dysfunction • Physical environment • Psychological state • Poor listening (active vs. passive listening) • Lack of interviewer competence • Defensive uniformities

24. Stereotyping • What is it? What form does it take? • How does it occur? • Common stereotypes • Is there positive and negative value? • Problems of signs, signifiers, interpretation. • Body language • Presentation of self - Front - stage and audience • What dangers for fairness and equity?

25. Types of interviews – APPRAISAL • One member of staff (usually a manager) appraises aspects of the performance of another member of staff (usually a subordinate) • Mediation and intervention mechanisms?

26. Types of Appraisal Interview • Tell and listen • Tell and sell • Joint problem-solving • Mixed model interview

27. The appraisal process • Establishing the agenda • The Interview • Action planning • Pre-interview form filling • Handling disagreements e.g. grand parenting

28. Types of interviews – COUNSELLING - 1 • The manager as counsellor – equipped for the role? • Operational vs. personal counselling • Directive  Non-directive • Dependency, confusion & responsibility • Trust and genuine positive regard • GASP: Mixed model with substantial unstructured component

29. Types of interviews – COUNSELLING - 2 • Opening up & expressing concerns (interviewee) • Defining "the problems" – how the interviewee sees and defines the problem • Testing reality • Mirroring assumptions • Courses of action • Closure and follow-up

30. Types of Interviews – COMPLAINT/GRIEVANCE - 1 • Moan, gripe, complaint • Grievance - a formal complaint made by an employee against a colleague or the organisation • Problems of "policy and procedure" • Problem perception, information and power/status • I'm OK, You're not OK. "Now I've got you, you SOS" • Neutral processing • Rescue the managers and establish KARMA

31. Types of Interviews – COMPLAINT/GRIEVANCE - 2 • Verifying the claim rights • Importance of shared, agreed information • Safeguards in procedure • Formality of the interviews • Recognising "the person" - perception of self and acting on the problem • Equity – the complainant and the "complained about" – the discrimination issue

32. Types of interview – DISCIPLINE - 1 • Rights not to be unfairly dismissed • Natural justice & reasonableness in procedure • Disciplinary action • Formally sanctioned, organisational action in which an individual is informed that their work-related behaviour is not acceptable. • Reasons & "fair" dismissal"Conduct, capability, redundancy, statutory rule, some other big reason • Automatically unfair.

33. Types of interview – DISCIPLINE - 2 • Informal, prior supervisory communication & guidance • Minor conduct which runs counter to express & implied contractual obligations • From irritation to substantial, non-fulfilment of obligations • Gross misconduct (severed roots)

34. Types of interview – DISCIPLINE - 3 • Importance of evidence • Defendant's rights – law & natural justice • Equitable procedures • Very formal, systematic interviews • Representation • Corrective versus punitive action • Interview tension and reaction – the "afront" • Recording and communication

35. Types of interview – DISCIPLINE - 4 • Stress, bullying and constructive dismissal • Appeals • Intra-organisational bargaining & authorisation • Managerial powerlessness • Consistency of supervision and communication • The trust/separation puzzle