How clever. When you interview someone for a job you ask them some questions about how they would handle particular tasks, problems, complaints, assignments etc. that might happen regularly and are important part of the job. I never thought of that.
We read the resumes/KASOs then compare it to the "person" standing in front of us. The interview goes horribly and, of course, we do not recommend the applicant for selection.
Ah, yes, here come the complaints, EEOs, Congressionals, FOIAs.
Q: WHY, sir and/or maam, did you consider the person's skin color, age, diability, veteran's preference, etc.?
A: We didn't. The applicant was lousy. He/she stumbled through the, "Please state your name and current occupation" portion.
The settlement allows us to get off easy and just select the person.
Those interview questions were handy.
Times have CHANGEd.
It Works!
Workforce Analyst USAF Tue May 12, 2009 9:01 AM
We have been using structured behavior based interviews for the last 6 months and the results are incredible. We worked with OPM to develop our position competencies and interview questions. Quality of candidates is greatly enhanced.
not all behavioral interviews are competency based
Consultant none Tue May 12, 2009 9:07 AM
"Competency" based interviews are not the same as behavioral interviews. Competency based interviews are a subset of behavioral interviews, but only a small subset.
A behavioral interview question can ask about knowledge, skills, abilities, or previous duties separately. Competency based interviews ask about "competencies," which are more broadly defined combinations of actual duties. So for example "Tell me about a time when you had to reconcile two financial documents and there were some missing or inconsistent pieces of information. What did you do to ensure you had the correct figures?" becomes something like "Tell me about what procedures you have used to ensure the overall quality and accuracy of documents?"
Compentancy based interview
operator department of veterans affairs Tue May 12, 2009 9:23 AM
This article is not useful. I need resources -looking at the KSA and coming up with antidotes is one thing but it which types of antidotes are best.
At one interiview I was asked give me an example of when you had to deal with a difficult patient and how did you handle it. I want to answer the question not give an antidote. What do you mean by difficult? Aurguementative- daily, abusive- frequent, not sure what they want- daily, hard to understand- daily, asjking to speak with one department when what they need is something else- daily. These compentacy questions need to be more specific.
Re: Compentancy based interview
Mr. McFeebee Treetops Tue May 12, 2009 10:21 AM
I suggest taking 2 aspirins and calling your doctor in the morning.
Re: Compentancy based interview
Competency based interview HUD Tue May 12, 2009 10:56 AM
When and where does this happen? Since hiring on at HUD into a position for which I was over qualified, what I have witnessed is the hiring of one person after another who may have had someone else write the text for their application answers which they may have cut and pasted into documents. I say this because I have spent the last many years trying to make what they write coherent: deleting numerous comas, placing a period at the end of sentences and putting an "s" or "ed" at the end of a word for proper tense; inserting "the" or "that" and so on into letters or reports written by these fine GS 11s and 12s. One GS 12er hollers across the office for me, "Hey! Come here and help me find my tool bar! It's disappeared off my screen." This GS 12er rose from a GS 3 to GS 12 position, I am told, because they competed from the outside as an outstanding scholar. I graduated with a 3.6 gpa and dedicated 25 years of service to the Federal government and cannot rise above a GS 7.
Re: Compentancy based interview
Reformed Conservative DFAS Tue May 12, 2009 3:26 PM
Somebody who doesn't know the difference between "antidote" and "anecdote" got an interview at an agency that provides medical care?!??!? Talk about your VA horror stories!
Had to stifle a laugh
Assistant Property Manager GSA Tue May 12, 2009 9:38 AM
I must have been way ahead of my time because I've been using these types of questions to interview candidates for years!
Actually - does anyone really use the old method any more?
Still, I'm glad that someone has affixed a name to that process now: Competency Based Interviewing.
On-Line Interview Questions
Retired manager USPS Tue May 12, 2009 11:07 AM
Several private sector companies - generally in sales - are using screening questionnaires to weed out candidates. These are definitely behavioral questionnaires that ask the candidate about his/her attitudes, how they would handle varius situations and work habits. The same basic questions are posed to the candidate in different ways.
Unfortunately, the test is multiple choice and doesn't give the candidate the chance to expand on a choice. Therein lies my objection. A generic questionnaire will not adequately address every candidate's answer - some potentially good people will fall through the cracks.
Re: On-Line Interview Questions
average jill (not joe) none Mon Jul 13, 2009 9:29 AM
I totally agree with your comment. I'm a good person with entry level skills looking to get into the workforce (currently unemployed) and agree that you cannot broaden a particular question to your situation. I prefer to have an interview with a person not a questionair that shows my personality along with skills. Its like the online application situation where your resume flies through space and disappears and you never hear from the other end. It's happened to me once already.
Compentancy based interview
Analyst DOD Tue May 12, 2009 12:19 PM
It doesn’t really matter what type of interview is done because prior to the interviews the person to whom the promotion is going has already been selected. All those being interviewed are merely filler interviewees to make the process appear less biased and a little more legal.
Re: Compentancy based interview
Supervisory IT Specialist DON Wed May 13, 2009 9:17 AM
Ahahaha, that is funny. I've seen it happen many, many times!
Re: Compentancy based interview
Computer Specialist VA Wed May 13, 2009 10:58 AM
Agreed with your statement of preselection. Does not matter how one perform in an interview, if the person intended to be selected were given the question prior to the interview, which put the rest of the interviewee at an disadvantage. Plus, the interviewer never communicate what type of interview were given, performance based or otherwise. Those who have no idea of the type of interview and was not prepare failed to win the desire score. Interview is only a way to toute an unfair selection as a fair and none bias hiring. It would be easier for hiring official to come out and say that one has no chance of getting a promotion rather than dangling that carrot in front of you and say work harder and we will see when you know that there is no chance that you will get the promotion.
Need to know answers
Engineer -AF Air Force Tue May 12, 2009 9:16 PM
This seems like a reasonable way to interview, but what do you do when the examples you could give fall in the category of "I could answer that but then I'd have to shoot you" jobs. The best examples I could give, I can't.
inteviews
Retired PM USPS Wed May 13, 2009 9:16 AM
I was a certified interviewer for the USPS for many years. This is how we were trained years ago to do an interview. Really works well, execept most people inteviewed did not know how to answere questins like this. It takes a lot more expertese on the interviewers part to get the information one needs to be a sucessfull interviewer and hire only the best people. As far as EEO and other complaints, I never had one. It is all in how you ask your questions and how you lead your interview. I had interviewed for over 20 years. It does work.
Structured behavioral based interviews
Director of Surgical Services Citrus Valley Wed Jun 3, 2009 3:34 PM
Structured behavioral interviews can be very thought provoking for the interviewee,but the interviewer should have the skills to interpret the answers.Recently I experienced my first interview of this type. After 23 years I was laid off.I had multiple standard interviews with very positive feedback but lukewarm handshakes: ie we have already chosen a candidate.Then came a series of behavioral based form interviews.The very first group I spoke to (before ever meeting with any leadership staff,who would be my peers)was nursing staff reading from this paper form.After a full day of this interview,I felt a great connection to the peers who spoke with me.Then when I was told they would be looking for another candidate,the reply was the lowest scores came from the staff. Based on that,I was rejected for the position.....same difference regardless of interview style!
WEBSITE
PROGRAM SPECIALIST VETERANS ADMINISTRATION Fri Jun 5, 2009 9:18 AM
is there a website for the competency based interview.
Novel Concept
EEOC
Tue May 12, 2009 7:50 AM
How clever. When you interview someone for a job you ask them some questions about how they would handle particular tasks, problems, complaints, assignments etc. that might happen regularly and are important part of the job. I never thought of that.
Re: Novel Concept
Diversity Manager HHS
Tue May 12, 2009 1:24 PM
Ah, yes, here come the complaints, EEOs, Congressionals, FOIAs.
Q: WHY, sir and/or maam, did you consider the person's skin color, age, diability, veteran's preference, etc.?
A: We didn't. The applicant was lousy. He/she stumbled through the, "Please state your name and current occupation" portion.
The settlement allows us to get off easy and just select the person.
Those interview questions were handy.
Times have CHANGEd.
It Works!
USAF
Tue May 12, 2009 9:01 AM
We have been using structured behavior based interviews for the last 6 months and the results are incredible. We worked with OPM to develop our position competencies and interview questions. Quality of candidates is greatly enhanced.
not all behavioral interviews are competency based
none
Tue May 12, 2009 9:07 AM
"Competency" based interviews are not the same as behavioral interviews. Competency based interviews are a subset of behavioral interviews, but only a small subset.
A behavioral interview question can ask about knowledge, skills, abilities, or previous duties separately. Competency based interviews ask about "competencies," which are more broadly defined combinations of actual duties. So for example "Tell me about a time when you had to reconcile two financial documents and there were some missing or inconsistent pieces of information. What did you do to ensure you had the correct figures?" becomes something like "Tell me about what procedures you have used to ensure the overall quality and accuracy of documents?"
Compentancy based interview
department of veterans affairs
Tue May 12, 2009 9:23 AM
This article is not useful. I need resources -looking at the KSA and coming up with antidotes is one thing but it which types of antidotes are best.
At one interiview I was asked give me an example of when you had to deal with a difficult patient and how did you handle it. I want to answer the question not give an antidote. What do you mean by difficult? Aurguementative- daily, abusive- frequent, not sure what they want- daily, hard to understand- daily, asjking to speak with one department when what they need is something else- daily. These compentacy questions need to be more specific.
Re: Compentancy based interview
Treetops
Tue May 12, 2009 10:21 AM
Re: Compentancy based interview
HUD
Tue May 12, 2009 10:56 AM
Re: Compentancy based interview
DFAS
Tue May 12, 2009 3:26 PM
Had to stifle a laugh
GSA
Tue May 12, 2009 9:38 AM
I must have been way ahead of my time because I've been using these types of questions to interview candidates for years!
Actually - does anyone really use the old method any more?
Still, I'm glad that someone has affixed a name to that process now: Competency Based Interviewing.
On-Line Interview Questions
USPS
Tue May 12, 2009 11:07 AM
Several private sector companies - generally in sales - are using screening questionnaires to weed out candidates. These are definitely behavioral questionnaires that ask the candidate about his/her attitudes, how they would handle varius situations and work habits. The same basic questions are posed to the candidate in different ways.
Unfortunately, the test is multiple choice and doesn't give the candidate the chance to expand on a choice. Therein lies my objection. A generic questionnaire will not adequately address every candidate's answer - some potentially good people will fall through the cracks.
Re: On-Line Interview Questions
none
Mon Jul 13, 2009 9:29 AM
Compentancy based interview
DOD
Tue May 12, 2009 12:19 PM
It doesn’t really matter what type of interview is done because prior to the interviews the person to whom the promotion is going has already been selected. All those being interviewed are merely filler interviewees to make the process appear less biased and a little more legal.
Re: Compentancy based interview
DON
Wed May 13, 2009 9:17 AM
Re: Compentancy based interview
VA
Wed May 13, 2009 10:58 AM
Need to know answers
Air Force
Tue May 12, 2009 9:16 PM
This seems like a reasonable way to interview, but what do you do when the examples you could give fall in the category of "I could answer that but then I'd have to shoot you" jobs. The best examples I could give, I can't.
inteviews
USPS
Wed May 13, 2009 9:16 AM
I was a certified interviewer for the USPS for many years. This is how we were trained years ago to do an interview. Really works well, execept most people inteviewed did not know how to answere questins like this. It takes a lot more expertese on the interviewers part to get the information one needs to be a sucessfull interviewer and hire only the best people. As far as EEO and other complaints, I never had one. It is all in how you ask your questions and how you lead your interview. I had interviewed for over 20 years. It does work.
Structured behavioral based interviews
Citrus Valley
Wed Jun 3, 2009 3:34 PM
Structured behavioral interviews can be very thought provoking for the interviewee,but the interviewer should have the skills to interpret the answers.Recently I experienced my first interview of this type. After 23 years I was laid off.I had multiple standard interviews with very positive feedback but lukewarm handshakes: ie we have already chosen a candidate.Then came a series of behavioral based form interviews.The very first group I spoke to (before ever meeting with any leadership staff,who would be my peers)was nursing staff reading from this paper form.After a full day of this interview,I felt a great connection to the peers who spoke with me.Then when I was told they would be looking for another candidate,the reply was the lowest scores came from the staff. Based on that,I was rejected for the position.....same difference regardless of interview style!
WEBSITE
VETERANS ADMINISTRATION
Fri Jun 5, 2009 9:18 AM
is there a website for the competency based interview.