Business Management and Leadership: Defining the Manager

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1. A list of five to ten questions that you will use during the interview process that go beyond the information you can gain from the candidate's application or resume. These should give you insight into why the candidate can fulfill the requirements outlined by the HR manager.

The job interview is a powerful factor in the employee selection process in most organizations. While the job interview may not deserve all the attention that the job interview receives, it is still a powerful force in hiring. Other background checking and work history references provide much less personalized and more factual information, and hopefully, you have also added these checks to your hiring decisions, too. But the job interview remains key to assessing the candidate's cultural fit. http://humanresources.about.com/od/interviewing/Interviewing_Tips_and_Interviewing_Techniques.htm

The questions would be arranged the job description, qualifications (e.g., someone who can take charge, organize things, and get people motivated and working again), and resume information, such as:

Qualifications:
- Demonstrated leadership and decision making skills
- Strong organizational, communication, and interpersonal skills
- History of academic achievement and participation in school or community activities
- Team-oriented thinking and action
- Desire to grow professionally with enthusiasm for continuous learning
- Flexibility and adaptability to changing situations
- Ability to interpret, understand and relate complex policies and procedures
- Advanced PC skills http://www.job-interview.net/sample/HRManagementTrainee.htm

Traditional Interview vs. Behavioral Interview:

In a traditional interview, you will be asked a series of questions, which typically have straightforward answers like "What are your strengths and weaknesses?" or "What major challenges and problems did you face? How did you handle them?" or "Describe a typical work week."
However, in a behavioral interview, an employer has decided what skills are needed in the person they hire and will ask questions to find out if the candidate has those skills. Instead of asking how you would behave, they will ask how you did behave. The interviewer will want to know how you handled a situation, instead of what you might do in the future.

Behavioral interview questions will be more pointed, more probing and more specific than traditional interview questions:
- Give an example of an occasion when you used logic to solve a problem.
- Give an example of a goal you reached and tell me how you achieved it.
- Describe a decision you made that was unpopular and how you handled implementing it.
- Have you gone above and beyond the call of duty? If so, how?
- What do you do when your schedule is interrupted? Give an example of how you handle it.
- Have you had to convince a team to work on a project they weren't thrilled about? How did you do it?
- Have you handled a difficult situation with a co-worker? How?
- Tell me about how you worked effectively under pressure.
Follow-up questions will also be detailed. You may be asked what you did, what you said, how you reacted or how you felt. http://jobsearch.about.com/cs/interviews/a/behavioral.htm
Some of these questions apply to the HR manager. Can you think of others? Let’s look at other example questions, to understand the link between job requirements and questions posed.

How would I create questions to evaluate interpersonal skills?
This depends on what work habits you include in your definition of interpersonal skills. Do you mean: teamwork; motivation; leadership; problem solving; empathy; adaptability; verbal communication; etc.? It would take about 10 pages of type to respond to your question without more information. There are 35 of these work habits included in the appendix of "High Impact Hiring." Please get a copy of the book and look at the list of work habits there. Then select 10 or 12 questions from the 175 samples included in the book.

What type of questions will tell me if a person is detail-oriented?
Try these questions:
Have the jobs you held in the past required little attention, moderate attention, or a great deal of attention to detail? Give me an example of a situation that illustrates this requirement.

Do prefer to work with the "big picture" or the "details" of a situation? Give me an example of an experience that illustrates your preference.
Tell me about a situation where attention to detail was either important or unimportant in accomplishing an assigned task.
Describe a situation where you had the option to leave the details to others or you could take care of them yourself.
Tell me about a difficult experience you had in working with details.

What type of questions will tell me if a person is self-motivated?
Here are just a few examples: "Tell me about a time when you went out of your way to complete an assignment?" "Give me an example of a time when a project really excited you?" "Describe a time when you were unmotivated to get a job done?" "Tell me about a time when you did more than was expected of you." "Tell me about a time when you were given an assignment that was distasteful or unpleasant." Get the idea? http://www.job-interview.net/beforetheinterview.htm

Let’s look at another example, to understand the link between job requirements and questions posed.

Illustrative Example: Sales Representative
Behavioral Interview Questions
These are examples of behavioral interview questions that were asked of the candidates. Keep in mind that the employer is seeking evidence of the behavioral traits established at the beginning of the hiring process. The applicant may or may not have figured out the behavioral characteristics the employer is seeking. If the candidate read the job posting carefully and prepared for the interview, a savvy candidate will have a good idea about what behavioral traits the employer is seeking.
- Tell me about a time when you obtained a new customer through networking activities.
- Give me an example of a time when you obtained a customer through cold calling and prospecting. How did you approach the customer?
- What are your three most important work related values? Then, please provide an example of a situation in which you demonstrated each value at work.
- Think of a customer relationship you have maintained for multiple years. Please tell me how you have approached ...