Behavioural Interviewing
Behavioural Interviewing is a new style of interviewing that more and more organizations are using in their hiring process.
The basic premise behind Behavioural interviewing is this: the most accurate predictor of future performance is past performance in a similar situation. It focuses on experiences, behaviours, knowledge, skills and abilities that are job related. Traditional interviewing questions ask you general questions such as "Tell me about yourself."
The process of Behavioural interviewing is much more probing and works very differently.
Employers predetermine which skills are necessary for the job for which they are looking and then ask very pointed questions to determine if the candidate possesses those skills.
For example, if successful negotiation is necessary for a position, you may be asked to talk about an experience in which you were the lead negotiator as well as what you think makes a good negotiator.
To assess which skills the employer seeks, review the employer’s website, speak with their customers or associates who work in similar industries.
During a Behavioural interview, always listen carefully to the question, ask for clarification if necessary, and make sure you answer the question completely.
Your interview preparation should include identifying examples of situations from your experiences on your resume where you have demonstrated the behaviours a given company seeks. During the interview, your responses need to be specific and detailed.
Tell them about a particular situation that relates to the question, not a general one. Briefly tell them about the situation, what you did specifically, and the positive result or outcome. Your answer should contain these four steps (Situation, Task, Action, Result or "STAR") for optimum success.
Situation or
Task
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Describe the situation that you were in or the task that you needed to accomplish. You must describe a specific event or situation, not in a generalized description of what you have done in the past
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Action you took
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Describe the action you took and be sure to keep the focus on you.
Even if you are discussing a group project or effort, describe what you did - not the efforts of the team. Don't tell what you might do, tell what you did.
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Results you achieved
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What happened? How did the event end? What did you accomplish? What did you learn?
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Sample STAR story:
Situation / Task (S T):
Advertising revenue was falling off for my newspaper, the Weekly News, and large numbers of long-term advertisers were not renewing contracts.
Action (A):
I designed a new promotional packet to go with the rate sheet and compared the benefits of Weekly News circulation with other ad media in the area. I also set-up a special training session for the account executives with a marketing consultant who discussed competitive selling strategies.
Result (R):
We signed contracts with 15 former advertisers for full page ads and five for special supplements. We increased our new advertisers by 20 percent [quantities are always good] over the same period last year.
Examples of a Behavioural Questions
Behavioural questions can be difficult if you are not prepared. Always try to be conscious about what the interviewer is trying to find out about you by asking you a particular question. Setting up a mock interview with an experienced salesperson is an excellent way to practice.
10 Common Behavioural Interviewing Question examples:
Enter your response in the space below each question.
Describe a situation in which you were able to use persuasion to successfully convince someone to see things your way.
Describe an instance when you had to think on your feet to extricate yourself from a difficult situation.
Give me a specific example of a time when you used good judgment and logic in solving a problem.
As in most sales positions, your ability to persuade a customer that we have the best solution will play an important role in your success; can you give me an idea of how you would typically persuade a customer of your ability, to provide quality solutions and service?
By providing examples, convince me that you can adapt to a wide variety of people, situations and environments.
What I would like to discover now is how you would normally spend the day in your current position. Imagine that you have just completed a productive day selling, how would you describe your activities in that day?
Give me an example of an important goal that you had set in the past and tell me about your success in reaching it.
Tell me about a time when you had to go above and beyond the call of duty in order to get a job done.
Negotiating a win-win partnership with our customers is extremely important. Tell me how would prepare prior to going into a negotiation?
Discuss how you would
Give me an example of when you showed initiative and took the lead.
Tell me about how you typically prioritise your daily schedule.
Give me an example of a time when you used your fact-finding skills to solve a problem.