Competency Based Interview Questions Made Easy
By Annette Lewis
Competency based interview questions are used in an effort to make the interview process as standard and as fair as possible.
It is a technique which is being used increasingly in large organisations where many managers may be interviewing for the same type of position.
Competency Based Interviewing can sometimes be referred to as Structured Interviewing or Evidence Based Interviewing and there are two common approaches; one is to ask a series of questions, targeted at each of the core competencies while the other involves in-depth probing questions with the interviewer actively listening for clues which provide evidence that the candidate possess the necessary skills.
The word competency is widely used in business environments and refers to the skills that are necessary to achieve an effective performance level in the job. Every job will have a set of key competencies, some of which are essential and others desired and all are required to do the job properly.
Examples of core competencies required in many jobs are:
- Communication skills
- Delivering Results
- Interpersonal Skills
- Use of Initiative
- Planning and Organising
- Analytical Thinking
- Strategic Thinking
- Building relationships
- Developing Others
- Team Work
When preparing for a Competency Based Interview the experienced interviewer will draw up a list of questions relating to each competency and all directed towards discovering if the candidate has the necessary skills.
Questions asked in Competency Based Interviews
The most common types of questions asked in Competency Based Interviews are Behavioural Based.
These are also called Situational and are used as a tool to discover how your behaviour in a previous role or situation can contribute to your performance in the job being recruited for.
These will usually start with phrases such as:
- Tell me about a time when you....
- Give an example of a situation where....
- Describe a scenario....
Your interviewer may also choose to ask direct questions such as:
- How would you rate you Communication skills?
- Describe your Management style
- What is your Leadership philosophy?
Something to be aware of; even if your interview is not described as such, it is very likely in today's recruitment market that you will be asked Competency Based Interview Questions.
Answer Any Competency Based Interview Question
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About the Author
Annette Lewis is an accredited interviewer and has recruited for many organisations
within Healthcare, Education, Customer Services and Banking.
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