We can probably all recall an example of someone who gave a great interview but failed to live up to expectations in the job they were hired for. The job applicant answered the questions well, said all the right words but just didn’t make the grade when it came to job performance. The temptation is often to stretch the truth and fabricate some answers to create a great impression. The toughest thing for the interviewer is to uncover the candidate’s genuine skills and true potential fit for the job.

The interview only offers a short window of time to discover what is needed. The type of questions asked are key. If the interviewer employs a strategy where specific, relevant and targeted questions are used, there is a much better chance that the answers will be useful and truthful.

Rather than focusing simply on technical skills, the interviewer needs to ask behavioural questions to uncover the thinking behind the actions and skills.

Behavioural questions are used to uncover

1. Motivation and attitude – the candidate’s willingness to take direction and feedback. How do they perform under pressure?
2. Truth and honesty – ensuring there are no lies in the answers. Stretching the truth is okay within reason, but outright false claims are not.
3. Work ethic and dependability – is this job and this career what they are passionate about.
4. The leadership style they prefer – do they work better under minimal supervision, or do they respond best when spoon fed and given a lot of direction?

Here are seven types of questions (with examples) that could be asked to uncover behaviours rather than simple skillsets.

1. Questions designed to discover the candidate’s passion and enthusiasm for the job. “What would be your dream job or position? What do you see yourself doing in your next role? Designed to let the interviewer compare the answers with the position being discussed. Are the answers similar to the position being discussed? Very different? It also highlights how much the candidate has looked at the position available and how much they understand it. It is good to ask these questions during the first interview or phone screening when the candidate might not have the job description handy to look at.
2. Questions designed to uncover exaggerations or fabrications. Repeating questions that have already been asked in pre-screening or earlier interviews is a useful strategy. This is designed to uncover inconsistencies in answers and show if there is a true understanding of the position. Answers can often change drastically which should be a red flag. How much does the candidate tone down, change or add to their previous answers? Do they directly contradict themselves or have they even forgotten what they said previously?
3. Questions designed to indicate how they would perform working under pressure. “What do you consider a stressful situation?”. “What is the worst thing that has happened to you at work and how did you deal with it?”.  “What was the outcome?”. “Why was it so stressful for you?”. These questions are designed to highlight how the candidate might perform in a pressure situation. Compare the situations they talk about and look at how many similar situations they might face in the job being discussed.
4. Questions designed to explore their ability and attitude to life/work balance. “How have you handled situations in the past when you needed to step away from work to handle a personal situation?”. “What have you done in the past to make sure you balance both life and work commitments?”. These questions are designed to make the candidate reflect on how they handle work-life balance. Has it been an issue in the past? The answers should also help to highlight commitments that they currently have in life that are important to them?
5. Questions designed to highlight the candidate’s motivation. “Describe a situation where you needed to do more than was asked for to get the job done?”. “Give an example of a time that you went above and beyond to complete a task or project”. These questions tie in with the questions in #4. Answers should indicate how committed they are to the job at hand and how likely they are to struggle to go the extra mile when personal life issues surface. How motivated are they to get the job done. The fact that they may or may not be able to come up with examples will be telling.
6. Questions designed to examine what managerial style they work best with. “In your previous position, what would you have changed if you were made the boss?”. “Talk about a boss that you did not enjoy working for and what was it that you did not like?”. The answers and comments should start to reveal some opinions of a boss, or bosses that they have previously worked for. What they liked, what they disliked. What they would have done differently.  Have they thought about how they could have handled situations and people in a different way in the past?
7. Questions designed to look in to company culture and what they did or did not enjoy working for a previous employer. “What is the best job or position that you have ever had?”. “What position or role have you enjoyed the most in your working career?”. “What is the happiest you have ever been at work?”. These questions should draw out answers that reveal information about things they liked about a job or a company. It could be the people, the company culture, the package, the location, the job description, the way they were managed or their boss. The things they choose to discuss can be a great indicator of what they will look for within your organization.

Using these questions as part of a strategic approach to an interview will help reveal truthful answers and highlight behavioural trends in a candidate. These behavioural trends are recognized as better predictors of performance than simply trying to check off a list of desirable skills.

Subscribe for weekly newsletters, written by our career experts

Name

First and Last Name are required

Email Address

Email is required

Please enter a valid email address

We only accept your business email address. No Hotmail, Yahoo, Gmail...

I agree to receive marketing information from ExpatJob.com

You have successfully subscribed to the Career Advice newsletter

Sorry, there was a problem subscribed to the Career Advice newsletter