JOBTALKS
A Primer on
Behavioral Interviews
Indiana University
Kelley School of Business
C. Randall Powell, Ph.D
Contents used in this presentation are adapted from Career Planning Strategies
and used with the permission of the author.
A Primer on Behavioral
Interviews
OBJECTIVES OF BEHAVIORAL-BASED
INTERVIEWING (BBI)
 Gather new data and samples of past performance not present on
candidate resume, application or through pre-screening and testing.
 Successfully interview candidates for any position.
 Successfully evaluate job candidates’ technical/ functional
knowledge, leadership competencies, experience, and educational
qualifications, and ability to learn, change, and gain from exposure,
feedback, successes and failures.
 Increase quality of candidates selected by separating candidate
from image he/she is trying to present.
 Make decisions on consistently gathered job-related
data/considerations.
BEHAVIORAL-BASED INTERVIEWING
(BBI)
 Behavior-Based Interviewing - A selection process
that can reveal the job worthiness of candidates with
considerable accuracy leading to hiring/not-hiring
decisions.
Best predictor of future performance in similar
circumstances:
More recent past behavior has greater predictive power
More long-standing behavior has greater predictive power
Samples of past performance are better predictors than
indicators of personality traits.
WHY BEHAVIORAL-BASED
INTERVIEWING
The desired outcome is a bottom-line
result which is to ultimately hire the best
candidate who is the best fit for the
position and the culture of the
organization.
THE HIRING PROCESS
 Hiring Is An Important Business Decision:
A recent survey asked managers to identify their most important
business decisions . . . 90% put hiring decisions at the top of
the list.
The importance and risk associated with a hiring decision is very
high but often the planning and execution by managers doing
the hiring . . . Is poor.
Planning better prepares you for making an important decision
and reduces the risk associated with a mishire.
Cost of a mishire is two to four times the person’s salary.
Six steps in the hiring process . . .
THE HIRING PROCESS
 Six steps in the hiring process:
Step #1: Planning
Step #2: Determine Search Strategies
Step #3: Determine Screening Strategies
Step #4: Determine Selection Strategies
Step #5: The Offer Package
Step #6: Transitioning the New Employee
THE HIRING PROCESS
 Candidate Profile: Identify The Criteria and Leadership
Qualities for the Ideal Candidate:
Education Requirements and Technical Qualifications
Experiences and Accomplishments:
What are the experiences the candidate should bring to the job?
• Specific Experiences
• Specific Accomplishments
• Specific Sector
From list of 67 competencies, identify the competencies
needed for the job and why.
This creates the leadership criteria for the selection decision.
WHAT IS A COMPETENCY?
A competency is a cluster of knowledge,
skills and attitudes.
What to do (knowledge)
How to do it (skills)
Why to do it (attitude)
THE HIRING PROCESS
 The Interview Questions Explore 4 Dimensions of the Competency
 Type 1: Has the candidate used the competency in the recent past? Can the
candidate describe a negotiating experience?
 Type 2: Can the candidate describe how he/she has seen others use the
competency? Can the candidate describe someone else who negotiates effectively?
 Type 3: Does the candidate know how to use the competency? Does the candidate
understand how negotiating works?
 Has the candidate integrated the competency . . . negotiating . . .into how he/she
approaches the situation?
 With each competency there is evidence to listen for in the
answers.
 Use follow-up or probing questions.
 Probes allow you to get more detailed information from the
candidate about how he/she did something or why he/she did it
that way . . . and what he/she learned.
THE COMPETENCIES IDENTIFIED
WILL:
 Guide the interview by focusing on information about
the candidate that will be most predictive of his/her
performance.
 Provide legal credibility for the selection process.
 Help define and maintain standards during the
selection process:
The candidate will be evaluated based on how he/she
performed in the various competencies.
The hiring decision will be based on how well the candidate
matched the requirements of the position.
If you would like to
learn more, Career
Planning Strategies
textbook will supply
additional information
on this topic.