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Tackling competency based interviews
Competency-based interviews are a good opportunity for the company to find out a lot about the candidate, but they're also your chance to display the qualities and skills necessary for the job. The better prepared you are, the better the interview will be.
The key to a successful and satisfying interview for both our clients and candidates alike is the depth of preparation undertaken before the interview – we know from our own recent research that over half of employers (55%) are frustrated by candidates in interview who are better on paper than in practice. So the following checklist can act as reminders which will help you conduct an expert interview, as well as highlight your own professional expertise.
Are you prepared?
- Utilise the internet – our research has also revealed that employers feel 1 in 4 candidates walk into an interview underprepared so make sure you’ve done as much research as possible. Check out their website thoroughly, and see what news they’ve had in the press recently. If you are entering into a new sector then a crib sheet on competitors and industry issues might also be useful to prepare.
- Do some LinkedIn checks and Google searches - look up the names of who will be interviewing you, where have they worked before, where did they go to university, is there anything you could have in common with them? Greeting them by name because you have checked out their profile picture on LinkedIn prior to the interview would be impressive. Of course, mutual contacts are always useful and highly likely, but seeing the connections prior to the interview on LinkedIn could be invaluable.
- When answering competency based questions thinking about how you structure the answers you give which will make it easier to understand the point you are trying to make. Generally, you should break the answer down into four points. Firstly, start with the situation or issue you had to deal with, secondly talk about the objective or goal you had to reach, the third part is the action you implemented to achieve the goal and finally talk about the impact it had on the business. While it is important to give a full answer, you should also remember to be concise.
Typical questions - examples
Self-management, self-motivation and self-knowledge
Do you always strive to achieve a standard of excellence, use initiative at the appropriate time and show persistence in pursuing goals? Accurate self-assessment skills will allow you to be objective and critical in evaluating your strengths and weaknesses so go through these steps to prepare your answer
Example questions:
1. Tell me about a time when you acted over and above the expectations of your role?
2. How would you describe yourself?
Conflict management and ethics
How do you behave in a crisis? What does it take to shake your poise or self-confidence? What approach do you take to problem-solving?
Example questions:
1. Tell me about a significant crisis you have faced?
2. How do you resolve conflict in the groups or teams that you are a part of?
Personal and career objectives
What are your short and long-term goals? When and why did you establish these goals and how are you preparing yourself to achieve them? Employers are likely to invest money in your training and development and will want to ensure that your objectives don’t conflict with theirs so it is important to show how your previous employers have benefitted from the training you have had.
Example questions:
1. Tell me about how a professional qualification you have obtained has helped you personally?
2. Tell me about how a professional qualification you have obtained has helped your previous employer?
Adaptability
How quickly and how positively will you adapt to changes in work practices, work roles and work environments? How do you manage or avoid stress?
Example questions:
1. Tell me about a time when you changed your priorities to meet others’ expectations?
2. Tell me about a time when you had to change your point of view or your plans to take into account new information or changing priorities?
Problem-solving and decision-making
What’s your problem-solving style? Do you manage your activities to minimise or avoid them? How do you behave in a crisis?
Example questions:
1. Tell me about a difficult decision that you have made?
2. What significant problems have you faced in the last year?
Administrative skills
These are generally checking that you have effective work habits, and the knowledge of workplace routines and some experience of common office administration systems.
Example questions:
1. Tell me how you organise your work and schedule your time?
2. Tell me about computer software packages you are familiar with and your experience in using them?
Communication
Are you an active listener? Do you really listen and do you hear what is actually said? Are you able to read the non-verbal messages that others communicate? Do you communicate in an engaging and convincing way?
Example questions:
1. Describe a situation you were involved in that required a multi-dimensional communication strategy?
2. Give an example of a difficult or sensitive situation that required extensive communication?
Ability, competence and achievement
What inspires you and motivates you to achieve? Are you a team person or do you excel in a stand alone capacity?
Example questions:
1. What two or three accomplishments have given you the most satisfaction? Why?
2. Describe a time when you led or motivated others?
Teamwork
Employers need people who are socially competent. Do you have the desire to build and maintain relationships in and beyond the workplace?
Example questions:
1. Describe a situation where you were successful in getting people to work together effectively?
2. Describe a situation in which you were a member (not a leader) of a team and a conflict arose within the team. What did you do?
Influencing or persuading others
You may have strong verbal skills but can you influence another person to change their thinking or take some action? Perhaps a colleague follows your advice or a client decides to buy a service or product. At management level do you have the skills to persuade and involve rather than coerce and punish? Are you ethical in your dealings with people?
Example questions:
1. Tell me about a time when you were able to change someone’s view point significantly?
2. Tell me about a time when you were asked to do something that you disagreed with?
Related articles
- Search for a senior level job
- Smart preparation for interviews
- Interview coming up? Types to prep for
- Ten questions to ask at interview
- How to be yourself at an interview
- See all HR events in the UK this year for networking and learning opportunities
Read more interview advice articles here, or search for a new HR job here.
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