Competency Based Interviews

Competency Based
Interviews
Graduate Recruitment NetReady 5/2007 © 2006 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Cisco Confidential 1
Agenda
 Introduction & some interview basics

 What is a competency?
 Why use competency or behavioural interview
approach?
 Examples of core competencies
 Preparing for the competency interview
 Sample questions
 Q&A
Rule Number 1
Interview Structure
•Introduce yourself, establish rapport
Open the interview •Let your interviewer tell you what the
agenda for the discussion will be
5%
•Listen to the interviewer give you
their expectations of the interview
•Behavioural questions
Gathering Data •Technical screen
70%
•General CV
information
confirmation
•Ask the questions you prepared

•Try to obtain more specific details about the Close the Interview
job description
10%
•Ask the interviewer what the next steps are
and when you can expect to hear back from
them
Body Language
 Defensive
Cross arms or legs, gesture with arm, hand or finger
 Insecure
Biting fingernails, thumb rubbing
 Nervous
Sighs, ear tugging, sweating...
 Frustration
Wringing hands, sharp exhales, rubbing back of neck..
 Suspicion
Stroke the nose, rub the eyes, diagonal stance
 Openness
Opened hands, unbuttoned jacket, uncrossed legs
 Reflectiveness
Rubbing chin, touching cheek, pinching bridge of nose
It’sNot
It’s Not Just
JustWhat
WhatYou
YouSay,
Say,It’s
It’sHow
HowYou
YouSay
SayIt…
It…
Be Prepared
A good interviewer will prepare prior to every interview

with specific questions for each candidate…we expect
the same from you
What does my company do?
Have you checked out our website?
Do you know who our competitors are?
Do you understand the job your applying for?
Why did you apply to this position?
Where do you see your career developing?
Thiscan
This canmake
makethe
thedifference
differencebetween
betweengetting
gettingthe
thejob
jobor
or not
not
Agenda

 Why use competency or behavioral interview
approach?
 Q&A
What is a Competency?
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.
Why do they do it?
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.
Your interview – Behavioural Questions
In general a competency based interview is one in which the
interviewer:
– Focuses on the skills that are critical to

success on the job and
– Focuses on how the candidate has demonstrated these
skills in the past
You, the candidate, will be required to recall and describe a specific

situation or event in which you demonstrated (or failed to
demonstrate) a skill critical for success in the position for which
you are applying.
Behavioural Questions
 A behavioural question is looking for information about:
The details of a specific situation or event
Your specific action or behaviour and
The outcome of the situation
- In other words, what you did.
 A behavioural question is not looking for:

Your opinion
What what you “think” you would do in a situation
Your assessment of your own strengths, weaknesses or performance
- In other words, what you think you would do.
So Why Use this Approach…?
 Advantages of examining past behavior

– Reduces misunderstanding about a your past experiences
– Reduces your effort to “make a good impression”
– Reduces emphasis on the “hypothetical”
– Prevents personal impressions from affecting evaluation
– Provides actual examples of your knowledge, skills and
attributes
– Promotes consistency in interviews and assures all key areas
for success are covered in the conversation
PastBehavior
Past Behaviorisisthe
theBest
BestPredictor
Predictorof
ofFuture
FutureBehavior
Behavior
What is the interviewer looking for? Well, it
has to be REAL
 What was the Relevant Experience? –the situation,

event or project you describe in answering your
question. In describing this experience, you should tell
your interviewer:
– What happened
– How it happened
– What led up to it (or why it came about)
It has to be REAL...cont
 What was your Action? –what you did or how you handled the
situation, event or project. In describing your actions you should
tell your interviewer:
– What (specifically and in detail) you individually did
– How you reacted to the situation
– How you arrived at a solution
 Make sure you focus on what you individually did, you should say
the word “I” a lot. Many people are uncomfortable talking about
themselves. Often candidates will say “We” without making a
distinction between what s/he personally did and what others
involved in the story did.
It has to be REAL...cont
 What was the result to which your actions Led? –the direct result or
outcome of your action. In describing the result, you should tell your
interviewer:
– What happened
– The result/outcome of your action
– How the action affected your relationship with other parties involved. (This is
particularly important when you provides an example of a conflict situation.)
 Candidates will often describe an experience and the related action with
little prompting. However, because the result of the candidate’s action
may be the most critical part of the story, it is important that the candidate
follow through to the result.
 Be sure you have told your interviewer exactly what happened as a result
of your action. Otherwise, the interviewer might misread the example.
Agenda

 Why use competency or behavioural interview
approach?
Core Competencies
 Examples of core competencies required in many jobs are:
- Communication skills
- Delivering Results
- Use of Initiative
- Planning and Organizing
- Analytical and/or Strategic Thinking
- Building relationships
- Team Work
In preparation 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 you have those
skills necessary for the job.
Cisco’s Core Competencies – New Graduate
Pre-Sales Role
 Effective Communication
Good listening and presentation skills
Able to explain complex issues in a simplified manner
 Resiliency
Able to deal with change
Able to take constructive feedback
 Team Skills
A good team player and leader
People-oriented
 Sales Personality
Driven to be in sales
 Achievement Oriented
Not risk-averse, uses initiative
Determined to succeed
We Choose these Competencies to Measure if
Candidates will Fit into Cisco’s Culture
• Innovation • Profit contribution

• Continuous improvement • No Technology Religion
• Quality team • Market Transitions
• Giving Back/Trust/Fair/Integrity • Open Communication
• Fun • Teamwork
• Empowerment • Drive change
Agenda

approach?
 Q&A
Preparing for a Competency Based Interview
 The most common type are Behavioral Based Interview

Questions. These are also called Situational and are used as a
tool to discover how your behavior in a previous role or situation
can contribute to your performance in the job being recruited for.
 Examples of Behaviour Based Interview Questions are:
Tell me about a time when you....
Give an example of a <Stressful, Successful, Important> situation you
found yourself in and what did you do?
Describe a situation which caused you a problem and tell me how you
resolved it.
 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.
Yourbest
Your bestpreparation
preparationisisto
toknow
knowyour
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and
knowthe
know thejob
jobdescription
descriptionofofthe
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Agenda

approach?
 Q&A
Let’s Review – Cisco’s Core Competencies
 Resiliency
 Team Skills
People-oriented
Customer orientation
For Example...
 Competency: Customer Orientation
Definition: A willingness to help and serve others and meet their needs
whether they are internal or external customers. Understands urgency.
 Question: Tell me about a time when you felt effective in dealing
with a customer (internal or external). What was the outcome?
How and when did you communicate your findings to the
customer?
Response:
I recently completed my thesis and presented my findings to the
academic review board. I asked my advisor for the background of
the board members and saw that two had a specialization in the
topic of my thesis so I knew to expect a lot of challenging
questions. I made sure that I had double checked all of my data
and knew my sources before the review meeting so I was able to
answer even the most obscure questions. Also my advisor had
mentioned that there was one member of the board who had
problems with his sight so I made sure that all of my documents
were printed in a larger font to make them easier to read.
Now its your turn…
 Resiliency
 Team Skills
People-oriented
Customer orientation

Competency Based Interviews

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Competency Based Interviews

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Competency Based

 Introduction & some interview basics

•Introduce yourself, establish rapport

•Ask the questions you prepared

A good interviewer will prepare prior to every interview

 Introduction & some interview basics

The word competency is widely used in business

Competency based interview questions are used in an

– Focuses on the skills that are critical to

You, the candidate, will be required to recall and describe a specific

 A behavioural question is not looking for:

 Advantages of examining past behavior

 What was the Relevant Experience? –the situation,

 Introduction & some interview basics

In preparation for a Competency Based Interview the experienced

• Innovation • Profit contribution

 Introduction & some interview basics

 The most common type are Behavioral Based Interview

 Introduction & some interview basics

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