The Truth, The Whole Truth, and Nothing but The Truth
By Bruce Powell
Every candidate understands the importance of interview performance, and most try to predict what questions they might get asked and what the best answers to those questions might be. The problem is… sometimes the ‘prepared answers’ aren’t the real answers.
Your goal as an interviewer or Hiring Manager is to ask questions that probe beneath the ‘prepared answer’ - to draw out accurate information surrounding their skills and experience so that you can make an informed hiring decision. The following interviewing tips will help you do that.
Implement PORC
PORC stands for Potential of Reference Check. To implement PORC is to establish that you have the names, and therefore the ability to follow up on any of the answers a candidate has given you. Doing this keeps people honest because they know you now have the information to follow up on what they’ve told you. And if people think there’s less of a chance you’ll be following up and confirm what they’ve said, the more apt they’ll be to deviate from the truth and embellish their answers.
To obtain this information, tie questions to specific people that would have insight on the candidate - usually former managers or colleagues. For example, instead of just asking what their strengths are, ask who their last manager was and then ask what that person would say their strengths or weaknesses are. Doing that gets you an answer as well as a contact name. Follow up by saying “May I call your ex-manager and ask them about your strengths?” Whether you plan to or not, their reaction should give you signs about how truthful they were with their answer, as well as help to ensure they stay honest with their answers going forward in the interview.
Throw Them A Curveball
An easy way to increase your chances of actually getting an honest answer is to take a standard interview question, but put a bit of a different spin on it.
“Where do you see yourself in 5 years?” allows for a certain level of vagueness and being able to mention a general level of success within their industry. Instead try asking “Where do you see yourself in six months?”
The shorter timeframe forces candidates to be more specific and state their short-term, realistic goals, and will also require them to reference specific action steps. A-players will be happy to lay out what their short-term goals are and how they plan to go about achieving them. Pretenders though may stumble since they’re not used to constantly setting goals and action plans that address them.
Ask For More Than They Expect
Most candidates will have the typical three strengths or one weakness prepared for the common strengths/weaknesses question. By asking for more you’ll force them to actually think of what all their various strengths and weaknesses are. Those fourth and fifth strengths they give you might actually be their legitimate strengths. Also, try inquiring what specific action steps they’re doing to leverage their strengths or manage their weaknesses.
Push For Specifics
Too often interviewers let candidates get by with generalities and don’t push for details. This is one area where you’re able to separate top talent from the pretenders. Drill down as far as you can, and keep probing with additional questions. Further questioning with a simple “why?” or “how?” is a great way to request more detail and have a candidate explain something to you further.
Pushing for further clarification will give you a better indication of how involved they might have been with a project. If they’re able to explain the strategy and the reasoning behind why something was done, then it probably means they have a solid understanding of the project and were substantially involved.
Let Them Talk....and Talk
Often times some of the best information you can gather from a candidate comes after they’ve given their initial answer. A great trick is to stay quiet and say nothing after someone has responded to your question – most times the interviewee will take that as a sign of you wanting more information, and they’ll usually continue talking.
Because they’ve probably given you their more ‘scripted’ answer initially, the additional information you receive tends to be more honest and unfiltered. Candidates run the risk of accidentally divulging info they may not have wanted to share because they’re put on the spot.
Conclusion
The last thing to remember is that true A players will WANT to divulge all of their pertinent information to you. They’ll want to discuss their accomplishments, examples of showing initiative, and what their future goals are. Great interview questioning will allow them to do this, while at the same time exposing the non-A players and preventing them from embellishing their way through the process.
7 Great Interview Questions:
- What brings you here today?/Tell me about yourself
- This is a great question that forces a candidate to distill down their skills and experience, and basically ‘sell’ themselves to you in a couple of minutes. It can also provide insight as to why they’re applying and looking to move jobs.
- What are 3 goals you’ve achieved this past year? - Reveals if they’re a planner and hold themselves accountable for what they set out to accomplish.
- What’s a major obstacle you overcame this past year? - Speaks to the candidate's problem solving abilities, and level of determination.
- How do you raise the bar for yourself and others around you?
- Demonstrates potential leadership characteristics.
- What are the first five things you would do if you got this position? - Helps to show their knowledge of the industry, your business, as well as what you’re currently doing (and not doing).
- What could your current employer do to be more successful? - Helps show if they’re bitter or a person who is constantly looking for better ways of doing things. Following up by asking if they’ve ever communicated any of their suggestions will help reveal their level of initiative.
- What risks did you take in your last position? - Risk takers are typically more successful than passive individuals.
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Bruce Powell, Managing Partner, established IQ PARTNERS as a leading recruitment firm to help entrepreneurial companies hire better, hire less, and retain more.
[Full bio]
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IQ
Insight is published by IQ
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IQ
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hire less and retain more. Our services include
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