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Job Interview By Phone? – What to Say

november 15, 2012  

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10 years later, in 1993, I finally realized the mistake I had made. It wasn’t until I noticed a pattern in some of the weaker candidates I was interviewing that I realized I had been making the same mistake myself.

If you know me, I’m a pretty chipper person. Usually a pretty positive guy. And throughout my career I’ve generally kept a great attitude and I’ve been able to recover gracefully from the inevitable disappointments that happen.

But back then I was in a slump. I was de-motivated because I was at a company selling an uncompetitive product I didn’t really believe in. I started to feel really beat down. If you’ve ever been on the job hunt for an extended period of time, then you know what I mean.

So I started looking around and interviewing for a new position. And in those days the “screener” interview by phone was the absolute first point of contact after you sent in your paper resume. There was no social media for employers to use to pre-screen you like they do today.

So I was getting nibbles on my resume and some initial calls from employers, but I after my first round of phone interviews I got absolutely zero callbacks. I would do another phoner. No callback. Then another. Silence. I knew I must be doing something wrong, but I wasn’t sure what. Here’s what I learned the hard way:

When you do your very first call with HR ⋯ Your energy, your attitude, and your tone are what they are really looking at. They don’t necessarily want to hear your personal history or a full-on sales presentation from you. They want a personable, upbeat conversation that mostly verifies the credentials on your resume and demonstrates that you are going to “fit in” at their company.

Back to my example. I had been so beat down by this job I had (and other life events at the time) that I was kind of depressed — and even though I was really excited for the positions I was going for, I didn’t always let that translate through the phone. This was a mistake.

I was also taking interview calls at my desk or in the conference room where I worked. So I was often kind of speaking in hushed tones, or I would pause when my coworkers were in earshot. This was another mistake. I wasn’t letting my full, likable personality shine through.

10 years later when I started doing heavy candidate screening (outbound first contact over the phone) it became really obvious to me who the GOOD candidates were — and they weren’t the “hushed” candidates who sounded tired. They spoke quickly, confidently, in a friendly way. They laughed at appropriate times. They were likable. I felt like I could probably bring them in to the office with the confidence that they would reflect well on me.

I could “hear their smile” through the phone.

You may have heard this phrase before, and it does sound saccharine … but it’s so true!

So that was part of my problem at the time. Even though I was qualified enough on paper to get the first HR interview by phone, I was blowing it by my lack of energy and the fact that I was kind of whispering, and keeping it “official” rather than being me usual jovial self.

On the contrary, when I was doing the screening, I was pleasantly surprised that the good candidates were asking the right questions on that first call … questions about the company or the position that:

1. Show the HR screener or hiring manager that you’ve done your homework, and
2. Get them to start selling the company to you, rather than you selling yourself to them.

When I heard this pattern, I finally realized that maybe I didn’t know how to LISTEN that well back then. Or think about other peoples’ goals and what motivates them. These days I can imagine what it must have been like to be the person on the opposite end of the phone from me during that period of my life. I wasn’t putting myself in their position. I talked too much. I wasn’t thinking about what they were looking for. I made it more complicated than it needed to be. And I wasn’t fun to listen to. Blah! 

… So ask yourself, who would you rather work with? Someone who smiles and sounds upbeat, or someone who doesn’t? This type of question operates at the unconscious level when they are screening you, and it matters more than you might think.

So here’s a point of advice: keep your energy level high during the call. Stand up. Smile. Look at yourself in the mirror, if you need to. You are “meeting” the person for the first time. Make a good impression just like you are shaking hands with them in person.

Let them “hear your smile” through the phone. Pretty basic advice, but you’d be surprised. It’s the difference between someone who gets called in for a face-to-face and someone who gets no callback.

What to say when HR calls

The HR person is your generally your friend. They WANT to get you (or somebody else) into a meeting with the hiring manager. They WANT to like you; they WANT to believe in you. Give them what they want.

But the HR person is also the “bouncer” at the velvet rope — they are there to screen you out if you don’t pass their test. Keep in mind that if they bring you in, your personal presentation is going to reflect on their professional judgment.

So, here’s some advice on what to say to start your call:

• If you are expecting to do a job interview by phone, don’t answer with an empty “hello” — followed by silence and crickets.
• Answer using your first name. Keep it professional. After years in business, when answering the phone I always say “Good afternoon, this is Bob.”
• Try saying it out loud: “Good afternoon, this is _______________.”

Sorry if I’m insulting your intelligence here!  … but you wouldn’t believe the number of qualified-seeming candidates that start out on the wrong foot on the first call. Don’t be one of those people.

Again, you are making a first impression. Saying a couple more syllables when you answer the phone for your interview gives the caller a better sense of your vibe, right off the bat. It makes THEM more comfortable. Use your first name when you answer, and be upbeat. Then set the tone:

Caller: “Hi, this is Alan Smithee calling from XYZ corp. We got your resume and I wanted to ask you a couple questions. Is this a good time?”

You: “Oh great, thanks so much for calling! Yes, please, go ahead. How can I help you?”

Or: “Fantastic. I’m glad you called. Yes it’s a great time to talk! What can I do for you?”

Or: “Oh hi Alan, I’m so glad you called! I’ve been really excited to speak with you guys but I’m in the middle right now. Can I shift gears then call you back in about 10? … What number should I ring you at? Ok, 10 minutes. Thanks! bye bye.”

If this is your first call, you’ve got to expect some standard “screener” questions that are used to see how interested you really are:

“So, what do you know about our company?”

“Ok, tell me a little bit about yourself”

I’m not going to go into specific answers in this article (you can find those here  and here) but what I will do is give you some good questions for YOU to ask while you are on the call.

YOU: “How would you describe the company culture there? Is it a good environment? What do you like about working there? (this lets them be personal. Plus, HR people love talking about “company culture”)

“Is it a new position, or how did it open up?”

“Do you have any tips or advice you could offer me?”

Remember, you’re just trying to confirm their suspicions that you are a confident, competent professional — so you get invited in for a meeting. So keep it brief, be upbeat, conversational, and get yourself invited in:

“Alan, can I get your email address and the best phone number for you?” (don’t forget this)

“It sounds like a great opportunity and I’d love to be able to come in and meet in person.”

“That sounds a great match for my skills and experience. Do you have your calendar out? … When could we meet in person?”

 Your Action Items / Next Steps!

1 Keep your energy level up. Be business appropriate.
2 Let them "hear your smile" through the phone.
3 Ask some questions to get them to sell to you. Keep it brief. Don't forget to get their contact info. Close the deal by asking to schedule a time for you to come in. Always ask for the interview!

http://job-interview-answers.com/job-interview-tips/phone-interview-tips/telephone-interview-tip-how-to-project-energy-through-the-phone/

Telephone Interview Tip: How to Project Energy & Emotion Through The Phone

october 18, 2012  

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The phone interview is really a chance for you to make a great first impression, and here’s how.

Let me tell you about a hiring technique we used to use at a company I worked for. This was well before the days of monster.com or craigslist, so what we would do is place classified ads in local newspapers. We were looking for inside salespeople.

What made our hiring process different was that in the ad we said:

“We don’t care if you went to college or not, and we don’t even want to see your resume. To apply, please call this voicemail number and tell us why we should hire you.”

This was a great strategy because we were hiring phone sales people. If they couldn’t sell themselves over the phone, then how could we expect them to be successful selling for us?

What was most interesting — and most relevant to your phone interview — is how quickly we could pick out the good candidates from the bad. It was pretty obvious. We would sit there listen to all the messages, back to back.

However, even among some good candidate we noticed:

“THEY STARTED OUT REALLY STRONG, ENTHUSIASTICLLY INTRODUCING THEMSELVES … and then they would describe their experience … then their voice would get lower and softer … then they would kind of fade out and finish the message …”

The difference between the start of the message and the end of the message was night and day. This was a clear pattern in the many messages we reviewed. Even some of the people with good experience trailed off and faded out.

What You Can Learn:

The point is to maintain your voice and your vocal delivery at a consistent, strong level during your phone interview. The interviewer can’t see you; they may have only seen a picture of you online, if at all. For the person listening, your presentation of yourself is in your voice and in their “theatre of the mind.”

Your telephone interview is like a performance.

1. Stand up, and smile. Seriously. There is a reason why they called it “smiling and dialing” when I was in sales. Your smile translates through your voice over the phone. Some of my sales guys even used a mirror mounted in their cube, or on their desk, so they could evaluate their own expression and make sure they were smiling. This is an oldschool technique and I think it still applies today for phone interviews. Try it.
2. Try to speak from your diaphragm. Puff your chest out a little bit. Speak with boldness and dignity — as much as suits your personality.
3. Remember, they WANT you to be likable. They want you to sound like you have something to say. Speak with confidence. Smile.
4. Whether you are standing up or sitting down, maintain the the same tone and the same relative volume level. Don’t “trail off” like so many of our applicants did in their voicemail messages.

Emphasize your accomplishments with emotion.

A guy called Dr. Albert Mehrabian at UCLA discovered through his research that face-to-face communication is 38% tone of voice. Since voice is the only channel when you interview over the phone, the way you say it (your tone) thenhas five times more emotional impact than the actual words you say. Try to put some passion behind what you are saying.

Speak quickly.

Your interviewer will have to pay attention to stay with you. They’re less likely to zone you out and start checking their facebook or something — you don’t want that. Also, you’lltransmit more energy and enthusiasm if you speak a bit faster and a bit louder than you are used to.

Use pauses for effect.

If you’re going to speak quickly, remember to use pauses. It will give them a chance to soak up what you said. You can also use pauses to draw attention to your important points.

Technique:

Highlight a particularly important phrase (for example, an accomplishments from your work experience) by pausing dramatically … and then repeating it again more slowly and with more emphasis.

 Your Action Items / Next Steps:

1 Don't "trail off" during your telephone interview. Start and keep your tone and delivery strong and reasonably quick, from the start of the interview through to the end.
2 Smile! Try using a mirror. I also suggest you do the call standing up most of the time.
3 Practice speaking a little bit louder than you are accustomed to. This might feel awkward at first, but this is how it's done. You want to get hired, don't you? This is not too much to learn. Anyone can do this. You can do it too; and you'll have a better phone interview for it!

http://job-interview-answers.com/job-interview-tips/behavioral-interview-questions/how-to-handle-behavioral-interview-questions-related-to-your-project-management-skills/

How to Handle Behavioral Interview Questions About Your Project Management Skills

september 24, 2012  

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Preparing for behavioral interview questions related to your project management skills is one of the best ways to prepare for your interview overall — and here’s the best way to do just that.

Even if your title has never been “Project Manager,” we’ve all been in charge of managing projects at some point. Today we’re going to be looking at the following question:

“Tell me about a time when you were assigned what you considered to be a complex project … What steps did you take to prepare for and finish the project? … What one step would you have done differently if given the chance?”

But first, let’s look at the skills and behavioral competencies of a good project manager. You’ll notice that these are are generally the skills of someone who is a good overall employee in any position.

1. Determining who the project stakeholders are & managing their expectations.
2. Setting clear project goals, with metrics of success.
3. Scheduling, managing & prioritizing timelines and work activities to meet delivery dates.
4. Managing costs.
5. Clarifying quality and completion criteria for deliverables (when is a work product considered “done”?)
6. Communicating with all stakeholders on an ongoing basis.
7. Identifying and managing potential risks.
8. Overcoming obstacles / putting out fires.
9. Using persuasive techniques and presentation skills.
10. Motivating teammates, building & maintaining relationships.

The main idea when you answer project management related questions is to use an example from your own personal work experience and weave in as many good project manager qualities as possible.

This means that you have to prepare! — Just do it. 

… So, you’ve got 10 points (above) that you want to try to weave into your answer. Don’t think you can just “wing it” and make up your answer as you go along.

It’s really going to pay off for you to prepare this answer in advance. It’s going to help you in your interview overall. Once you start thinking about how your interview answers should be demonstrating specific “behavioral competencies,” then you’ll begin to naturally create more compelling answers that will convince the hiring manager that YOU are the right person for the job. That’s the whole point.

Project Manager Interview Questions and Answers

How To Prepare:

Think about 2 or 3 fairly complex or longer-term projects you had to complete in the past. Select an example where you at least had to schedule timelines and work with others, preferably from other departments, or with customers or clients. It’s best if you were in charge of some budget, or had some impact on costs or revenue for your company. Not everyone has had project experience with responsibility for cost / schedule / quality … but that’s OK. You are just trying to show your project management competencies using an example from your work history.

Get out a pen and paper, or open a blank word document. In the left column, start writing down projects you managed at past jobs, or projects you worked on where you had some type project management role. You MUST come up with at least one example. Think hard. There has to be something.

In the right column, for each project, try to write down 10 sentences following the 10 points above. For each project, ask yourself:

• How did I manage the expectations of other people involved in the project?
• How did I determine the goals for the project? Did I come up with numbers or metrics (dollars, hours, percentages) to measure those goals?
• How did I prioritize the order of activities?
• What was my communication plan for keeping stakeholders updated?
• How did I think about project risks, and how did I maintain good relationships with people on my project team, including bosses, customers or clients?
• … etc. — Look at the 10 points above as a starting point.

Strategy:

Project management related interview questions test your skills and competencies on many levels. You need to demonstrate that you can you see the big picture, but also identify the details relating to what you will need to do day-to-day to complete the project. Good project managers show an orientation around RESULTS and achieving an “end goal” while understanding that it’s inevitable that risks and obstacles are going to happen. Make sure you touch on teamwork, communication, and how having good relationships helps solve problems and supports the overall success of the project.

Sample Answers:

“Good question. I’ve worked on many complex projects. I think that the most important thing is to clarify the goals of the project as much as you can in the beginning, and then create a reasonable timeline with milestones where significant parts of the project will be finished. Also, it’s smart to tackle the most difficult parts early on in a project. That’s the way I usually prioritize things. If you wait to until the last third of project timeline to do the riskiest or more challenging tasks, then you are going to have less time left to figure it out before the deadline. Also, I like to breakdown large tasks into bite-sized chunks so that it is easier to know where to begin. Careful and detailed planning is the most important thing you can do to make sure a complex project goes smoothly. FOR EXAMPLE, I worked on a three month project where I was in charge of “XYZ” I was definitely happy with the outcome of my work, and the outcome of the project overall. But looking back on it, the one thing I would have done differently would have been earlier involvement of the stakeholders …”

“In order to set up for Complex Project “X” at Company “Y” I started by determining who the key stakeholders were and getting their early input on the project. Then I created a rough outline of the major milestones and worked backwards to breakdown the work that would need to be done to meet those milestones. I made a list of every risk I could think of that might stop me and my team from reaching those milestones, and I then added some contingency in the schedule in case anything came up. I sought the input of my teammates not only to help identify risks, but to get them involved and grow a good working relationship with them. We ended up completing the project on time, but there were some problems that I think we could have avoided. I would have changed “ABC” in order to avoid the quality problems we ran into.”

Resources:

Project Manager Interview Questions  — from CivilEngineeringBlog.com.

What is a “Stakeholder?”  — from The Project Management Institute.

 Your Action Items / Next Steps!

1 Understand that preparing for project management related behavioral interview questions is one of the best ways to prepare for your interview overall.
2 Use pen and paper or a blank work doc to write down 2 or 3 projects you have been involved in, and for each, write down 10 sentences you can use that show good project management competencies.
3 Write out a fully formed answer to the project management question on this page using an example from your own work experience. Do it now! It's worth your time. This is great interview preparation.

http://job-interview-answers.com/job-interview-tips/interview-answers/behavioral-interview-questions-on-implementing-change-change-management/

Behavioral Interview Questions on Implementing Change & Change Management

november 22, 2012  

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I’d like to make you a promise: In business these days, the only thing you can count on staying the same is constant change. Are you cool with that? … The truth is you don’t really have a choice — but let’s talk about what you CAN do that will help you no matter what the future holds.

What I’m referring to is your ability to deal with change. And your ability to TALK about your abilities related to innovation and change management: developing, implementing, and getting executive buy-in & your co-workers’ support for smart changes within your department, your organization, and your industry.

Why do companies change?

Because market forces change. The world economy changes. Innovators emerge with disruptive technologies. More profit is demanded from shareholders. There are many reasons.

So how does this all affect you, and your possibilities for getting hired?

As companies pivot their mission, develop new products to serve new markets, or generally look for newer, better, faster ways of doing things, your job and your role will likely morph and it will open the possibility for you to suggest or support better ways of doing things. And companies are looking for people who can do this; people who can adapt, contribute, manage and measure change. It’s an opportunity for you.

But are you someone who can anticipate changing biz trends and develop newer, bigger, better, faster, less-expensive, more-profitable products and services?

Maybe you are, but probably not! ☺ … and that’s totally OK. Nobody is expecting you to have a crystal ball and nobody is comparing your resume to Steve Jobs.

BUT … if you are interviewing for a new position (particularly at the manager or executive level) then you will face modern HR people who are trained to analyze your competencies for dealing with change and doing change management. They’ll pick you apart with behavioral interview questions.

Scenario:

Imagine you’re in an interview and they are listening to your responses. Just imagine for a second that you have been asked a question — but YOU ARE TOTALY BLOWING IT — you’re not really giving them the answers (or indicators) they’re looking for. They’re taking notes on you, and putting a checkmark next to the behavioral competencies you FAILED to show:

• Did NOT specify that she had led a challenging change initiative with far-reaching organizational impact.
• Did NOT say that he had worked with high-level stakeholders or executives to solve an old problem in a new way.
• Did NOT mention that she had come up with innovative solutions or new ideas that are aligned with established company goals.
• Did NOT mention that he had acted as an agent of change within the department or organization.
• Did NOT discuss her role in creating enthusiasm around change and fostering an environment that encourages innovation and new solutions.

Example Interview Questions:

“Can you describe a time you were involved in implementing a company-wide policy change? What was your strategy, what tactics did you use, and what was the outcome?“

“Tell me about a time when you thought that the standard way of doing things might not be the best way … What lead you to believe this? … How did you create and communicate your new solution? What issues did you run into with other people when trying to get things done? … Were you able to encourage others to see your suggested change as a positive thing — although perhaps your idea impacted their work in a significant way? What was the overall result?”

At this point in the interview you should have some “stories” (STAR Statements) in your metaphorical back pocket that you can whip out and speak to. Stories that show that you HAVE indeed led change initiatives, you HAVE worked with executive stakeholders to get their buy-in on your innovative new ideas, you HAVE indeed been able to tactfully communicate the WHY behind proposed changes — and you HAVE been able to get people to agree it’s a good ideathat will probably benefit them.

Don’t be the guy in the interview that gazes up at the ceiling and says “ummmmmmm, let me think for a sec …” Have your STAR Statements ready.

So you’re not that guy after all. Because you are going to have solid STAR Statements prepared and you will remember to speak to the OUTCOMES of your stories; using metrics that show tangible business benefits, like:

“… So in the end we:

… decreased the expense of XYZ by 123%”

… achieved a reduction in turnaround time by about 33%”

… were able to spend about 40% more time on customer service”

… increased revenue for the department by 17% within 3 months.”

… reduced the time required for the complicated XYZ process by 45% … and by way of our communication plan, everybody began to see that benefit. We used the successful initiative as an example to foster a company culture where individuals and teams are encouraged to innovate and we all embrace positive change.”

 Now here's what you should do to prepare:

1 Read the above sample questions, and jot down 3 or 4 situations from your work experience that you could use as examples. Now, for each situation you wrote down, turn it into a "story" that hits each of the points they are looking for.
2 Elaborate on your stories. Write them out so they have a beginning a middle and an end, andpractice them out loud until you are proud of them and you "own" them.
3 If you can't recall any time during your career that you innovated or managed change, then THINK HARDER ... There's got to be something. Even if your examples seem small or insignificant to you, the fact that you are using ANY examples to demonstrate behavioral competencies will give you an advantage over less adept candidates who may have more "big shot" stories than you do. If you liked this article, please tweet it!

http://job-interview-answers.com/job-interview-tips/behavioral-interview-questions/behavioral-interview-answers-and-how-to-prepare/

Behavioral Interview Answers (and How To Prepare)

december 13, 2012  

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Give yourself an advantage by learning these little-known facts about the behavioral evaluation methods they’ll use on you not only in your interview — but also to determine who gets a raise, who gets promoted — and who doesn’t.

Here are some key terms and ideas that you need to know to help get yourself hired and advance your career in general.

What is a behavioral interview?

Also known as a “competency-based interview” or a “behavior-based interview,” the behavioral interview is:

A personnel assessment procedure & interview technique that requires interviewees to give specific examples from the past where they demonstrated certain competencies, attitudes, knowledge, skills or abilities.

Ok, so let’s take a look at this definition, and how it can help you.

In a behavioral interview, then, they are basically looking to hear examples (stories) from your past work experience where you demonstrated certain “competencies.” This is crucial for you to understand.

In an effort to reduce the considerable expense of making bad hires, modern HR departments have become increasingly systematic in defining the specific competencies required for certain positions. Consequently, they’ll prepare your interview questions in advance, and design their questions to see if you can convincingly talk about your competencies in a way that matches the competencies that they’ve determined are necessary for a person to be successful in the role.

The trick is as they won’t necessarily tell you which competencies they are looking for!

Strategy:

You need to read between the lines:

• Go into the interview with an idea of the types of competencies they are likely to be looking for.
• When you are asked a question, think about it before you answer. What competencies are they really asking about with that question?
• Have 4 to 8 behavioral interview answers ready to go (see below) that speak to your competencies in certain areas.

So what exactly is a “competency” then?

Some definitions:

A competency is “a measurable pattern of knowledge, skills, abilities, behaviors, and other characteristics that an individual needs to perform work roles or occupational functions successfully.”  (Shippmann et al., 2000).

A competency can also be defined as “an underlying characteristic of an employee (i.e., motive, trait, skill, aspect of one’s self-image, social role, or a body of knowledge) which results in effective and / or superior performance.”  (Boyatzis, 1982).

Or more basically, a competency is your ability to get something done. The right way. On time. Without making mistakes or aggravating other people.

There are several different theoreticalCompetency Models  in use by employers today. But in my job as a career coach I’ve adopted a modified version of the leadership competency model used by NASA, the OPM, and the US Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) — which is one of the largest and most complex organizations in the world.

Most of the best HR and project management methods have been developed and perfected by these government orgs, or have been adopted by the government from the most successful American corporations, like Walmart. Their formal, research-based processes inform my theoretical approach and mental model for helping jobseekers like you to advance your career and achieve whatever it is you’re after.

As an example of why DLA processes have to be so good, think of the staffing and advanced project management they need to have in place to do something like build the space shuttle. Or take Walmart, for instance, which has over 1 million employees. Think of all the expensive research they’ve done to put efficient HR hiring processes in place. You can benefit from their efforts and gain a personal advantage if you understand how these processes work.

Hold on Bob, this does not apply to me!

Yes, it does. Even if you think your employer is not that sophisticated, or doesn’t do structured or behavioral interviews, they are ALWAYS looking for certain competencies — whether they know it or not. You want to get hired, don’t you? Be prepared to talk about the specific competencies you think they are looking for, like:

1. Leadership
2. Teamwork
3. Written Communications
4. Oral Communications
5. Strategic Focus
6. Responsibility / Accountability
7. Customer Service
8. Professionalism
9. Resource Stewardship
10. Innovation & Initiative / Entrepreneurialism

To understand these in more detail, review what I have written on activities you can do to show or develop your core behavioral competencies .

Keep Reading! … we’re getting to the most important part! 

General vs. Specific Competencies

You’ll notice the above list of core competencies is rather general. But under each item, there is a more specific set of competencies — such as problem solving, analytical thinking, interpersonal skills, planning and organizing, creative thinking, change management, motivating & inspiring, etc. Then of course there are various technical competencies unique to each job; like computer programming skills in a certain language, or the ability to do regression analysis for finance, or an understanding of how to segment customers in a marketing database, etc. These are occupation-specific technical competencies.

That said, what you really need to know here is that their behavior-based questions are going to be aligned with one or more of the above core competencies, and your behavioral interview answers then need to convince them that you indeed have demonstrated these competencies in the past. This is how you get hired.

Behavioral Interview Questions

Questions asked in a behavioral interview generally have two parts:

1. They’ll ask you to describe a problem or situation, and the outcome or result …
2. Then they’ll ask follow-up, or “probe” questions to expose your mindset, attitudes, and thought processes.

Note that behavioral questions are about the PAST — they are not questions about what you MIGHT do given a certain hypothetical scenario. And that’s ok! You should look at behavior-based questions as AN OPPORTUNITY for you to demonstrate your outstanding competencies … and now you’re going to be ready to do just that!

Example Behavioral Interview Qustions:

Describe a situation when … [you needed to pursaude others who didn't agree with you]

Tell me about a time when … [you had to learn a new concept & apply it to a problem]

Talk about your … [experience producing an important written document]

Give an example of … [a time when you had to disseminate sensitive information in a strategic fashion]

Give a past example of your approach to …

Explain a circumstance when …

Probes & Follow-ups:

What steps did you take?

What happened next?

Describe to me your thoughts and feelings at that point.

What was the outcome?

Why did you do it in that order?

Walk me through your decision making process.

What would you do differently next time?

What did you learn from that situation?

How was the organization and its strategic goals impacted?

How to prepare for a behavioral interview

Be a detective. Start by carefully reading through the job description from a “competency” standpoint. Using the above list of core competencies, try to determine which ones they seem to be looking for the most. What general competencies do they seem to be most concerned with? What technical competencies are being most emphasized?

You can also look at The Competency Wheel  and The Competency Model Pyramid  to learn about more competencies by industry.

Ok, so now write down what you have discovered.

You should now have a list of the competencies you think they’ll be looking for in your interview. Great. Just by doing this, you’re already way ahead of the game. Nice work.

Now, put your thinking cap on and go back in time. Start thinking about times on the job when you’ve demonstrated the competencies that are on your list.

Important:

Your goal for this part of your preparation is to generate 4 to 8 different “stories” (or STAR Statements ) to use during the interview. These are examples, or stories, from your past work experience that have a beginning, a middle, and an end. They are also more formally known as “Accomplishment Records.”

Keep in mind that your Accomplishment Records can be sourced from your hobbies, church group, or volunteer work as well. As long as the story is relevant to their question and shows an advanced level of the competency you think they’re looking for, then you can use it.

Behavioral Interview Answers

I’m sure you are familiar with the STAR Statement answer format (Situation / Task / Action / Result) — but I want to share with you another formula that in my opinion is a bit stronger, because it incorporates what you LEARNED as part of your answer.

“SOARA” Stories – The STAR Statement Alternative

Situation / Objective / Action / Results / Aftermath

SITUATION

What was the problem, challenge, or situation you faced?

 

OBJECTIVE

What specifically did you decide you were you trying to achieve to fix the situation, and how did you determine that this should be your objective?

 

ACTION

Based on your objective, what did you do? How did you arrive at and evaluate different possible alternatives? What course of action did you take, and what did that require? LEADERSHIP maybe? (hint hint) or TEAMWORK, or WRITTEN COMMUNICATION perhaps?

 

RESULT

What was the outcome? Did you achieve your objective as you had defined it? How did other people FEEL at the end? Did it make your boss look good, too? 

 

AFTERMATH

What learning did you take away from this experience, and how did you apply what you learned going forward? Did you teach other people something new based on what you learned? Did you positively impact changes to department policies, or align more with the defined strategic objectives of your company?

 

So … To best prepare for your interview it’s critical that you come up with 4 to 8 of these SOARA-style behavioral interview answers — and here’s a tip: Try to think of at least one story that had a negative or undesirable outcome. You might be asked about a situation you couldn’t resolve favorably, and what you learned from that experience.

This might seem like a lot of work, but it’s so worth it! You will be much better prepared to have a good interview and get hired, and you are also creating miniature “elevator pitches” that will be useful for you for the rest of your business career.

 What you can do next:

1 You should now have a list of competencies you've determined they are probably looking for, based on your analytic reading of the job description.
2 You should also have 4 to 8 SOARA stories ready to go, each demonstrating an advanced display of a specific competency.
3 What to do next: Re-write, perfect, and practice your SOARA statements aloud until you "own" them and you are totally confident delivering them. Lastly, please share this article on your social networks if you liked it and you think it might benefit others! Thanks. ☺ ~ bob