Best Practices in Interviewing

Best Practices in Interviewing
From Mike Poskey*
How to Interview Legally and Effectively
We all know how litigious our society has become in the area of employment-related issues !very recruiter" hiring manager" e#ecutive" and
department manager must reali$e that asking the wrong interview %uestions or making improper in%uiries can lead to discrimination or wrongful-
discharge lawsuits" and these suits can be won or lost based on statements made during the interview process
&hus" it is important to incorporate risk management into your interviewing process to help minimi$e your firm's e#posure to employment
practices liability
(ou" or your company" could be accused of asking improper interview %uestions or making discriminatory statements or comments that reflect
bias It is also possible to make assurances or promises during an interview that can be interpreted as binding contracts
)ecogni$ing these potential danger areas is the best way to avoid saying the wrong thing during an interview
Most companies have at least two people responsible for interviewing and hiring applicants It's critical to have procedures to ensure
consistency *evelop interviewing forms containing ob+ective criteria to serve as checklists
&hey ensure consistency between interviewers" as well as create documentation to support the decision if a discrimination charge is later filed by
an unsuccessful applicant
Interview Problems to Avoid
&o minimi$e the risk of discrimination lawsuits" it,s important for interviewers to be familiar with topics that aren,t permissible as interview
%uestions For e#ample" you shouldn,t ask a female applicant detailed %uestions about her husband" children and family plans
-uch %uestions can be used as proof of se# discrimination if a male applicant is selected for the position" or if the female is hired and later
terminated .lder applicants shouldn,t be asked about their ability to take instructions from younger supervisors
It is also important to avoid making statements during the interview process that could be alleged to create a contract of employment When
describing the +ob avoid using terms like /permanent"/ /career +ob opportunity"/ or /long term/
Interviewers should also avoid making e#cessive assurances about +ob security 0void statements that employment will continue as long as the
employee does a good +ob For e#ample" suppose that an applicant is told that /if you do a good +ob" there's no reason why you can,t work here
for the rest of your career/ &he applicant accepts the +ob and si# months later is laid off due to personnel cutbacks
&his could lead to a breach of contract claim where the employee asserts that he or she can't be terminated unless it's proven that he or she
didn,t do a /good +ob/ 1ourts have" on occasion" held that such promises made during interviews created contracts of employment
Illegal Interview Questions
Most companies have at least two people responsible for interviewing and hiring applicants It,s critical to have procedures to ensure
consistency *evelop interviewing forms containing ob+ective criteria to serve as checklists
&hey ensure consistency between interviewers" as well as create documentation to support the decision if a discrimination charge is later filed by
an unsuccessful applicant
2earn to assess +ob candidates on their merits When developing evaluation criteria" break down broad" sub+ective impressions to more ob+ective
factors
.bviously" you must prepare for the interview by reviewing the application" resume" test results" and other materials submitted by the candidate
&ry and put the candidate at ease and ask interview %uestions that can,t be answered with a /yes/ or /no/ response
&hese open-ended %uestions allow applicants to tell all about their skills" knowledge and abilities
-ome e#amples are3 /Why are you leaving your current employer4/ /*o you prefer routine" consistent 5work or fast-paced tasks that change
daily46 /0nd why4/
Interview Problems to Avoid
Interview %uestions and issues you want to avoid include the following3
•
asking improper interview %uestions"
•
making discriminatory statements" and
•
making binding contract statements
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&he following are e#amples of interview %uestions that should be avoided in interviews because they may be alleged to show illegal bias
•
0re you a 7- citi$en4 8adversely impacts national origin9
•
*o you have a visual" speech" or hearing disability4
•
:0re you planning to have a family4 When4
•
;ave you ever filed a workers, compensation claim4
•
;ow many days of work did you miss last year due to illness4
•
What off-the-+ob activities do you participate in4
•
Would you have a problem working with a female partner4
•
Where did you grow up4
•
*o you have children4 ;ow old are they4
•
What year did you graduate from high school4 8reveals age9
0s you can see" these rather simple and seemingly non-threatening %uestions can easily violate one of the aforementioned dangers when
conducting interviews
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How to Develop a Legal Interview and Interview Questions
1ompanies that use /best practices/ in interviewing and that are e#tremely effective in consistently hiring top performers" use customi$ed or
standard behavioral-based interview guides with interview %uestions to remain consistent in their line of %uestioning
&hese companies not only train their recruiters" but they train their e#ecutives" department managers" and hiring managers on legal and effective
interview %uestions and techni%ues to utili$e during the interview
&hese same /risk wise/ companies will conduct a +ob analysis audit for every position within their companies to establish the types of behavioral
and situational %uestions necessary for their interviewing process
0 +ob analysis audit is a process whereby a company compiles ob+ective data of what is re%uired to be successful in a given position
&his process is conducted via interviews" surveys" and testing 8both hard skills and soft skills testing9
&his process allows the company to ob+ectively identify the competencies" behaviors" thinking and decision making styles" as well as the
technical skills that are common among their top performers and re%uired for the position in %uestion &his process establishes a hiring
=benchmark6 or interviewing /guide/ to follow
&he resulting list of critical competencies is what interviewers will use to evaluate candidates &his benchmark" custom to each position" leads
the company to define the core line of behavioral interview %uestions that will uncover these critical competencies" behaviors" and thinking
styles" as they directly relate to the +ob re%uirements
-ome of the most effective pre-employment behavioral assessments in the market will provide the necessary 5link
url>http3??humanresourcesaboutcom?od?interviewing?a?behavior@intervhtm:behavioral interview5?link: %uestions to pose to candidates &his is
due to the assessment's ob+ective evaluation of each candidate,s competencies
;ere are a few e#amples of legally-defensible behavioral interview %uestions that will assist in uncovering core competencies in an interview
•
What has been a particularly demanding goal for you to achieve4 8&his interview %uestion taps into the candidate's achievement
orientation and re%uires them to e#plain the obstacle and their thought process and actions to overcoming the obstacle9
•
1an you think of a situation in which an innovative course of action was needed4 What did you do in this situation4 8&his interview
%uestion allows you to uncover whether the candidate can develop innovative solutions to work-related problems" and identify potential
opportunities and ways to capitali$e on them9
•
What are the typical customer interactions you have in your present position4 1an you think of a recent e#ample of one of these4
8&his interview %uestion focuses on the candidate,s customer service orientation9
•
;ave you ever been in a situation where you have had to take on new tasks or roles4 *escribe this situation and what you did4 8&his
interview %uestion allows you to probe into the candidate,s degree of fle#ibility9
•
In your present position" what standards have you set for doing a good +ob4 ;ow did you determine them4 8&his interview %uestion
allows you to uncover if the candidate has high work standards9
•
1onducting a +ob analysis audit to ob+ectively identify the core competencies re%uired for a given +ob" and then customi$ing a list of
behavioral-based interview %uestions like the ones mentioned above to identify those competencies" can significantly reduce your e#posure to
employment practices claims and increase your potential for hiring top performers
A By instituting guidelines such as these and making sure that your organi$ation's managers follow them you will have gone far in reducing your
risk of a lawsuit from an employee or +ob applicant
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