COMPETENCY BASED INTERVIEWS

WHAT ARE COMPETENCY BASED INTERVIEWS?

Behavioural or competency based interviews are a style of interviewing used so that a candidate can best show how
they would demonstrate certain behaviours/skills in the workplace, by asking questions about how individuals have
reacted to and dealt with previous work place situations. The idea being that by looking at past behaviour is an
indicator of future performance
The interviewer will therefore be trying to evaluate your skills, knowledge, experience and behaviours in key areas
fundamental to the position/s for which you are applying.
A competency is something that can be measured and is now commonly used, not only interviews but in appraisals and
training.
Youwill be asked to give an example of a situation or task that led you to take a certain course of action. Probing
questions will then be used to determine the course of action you took and what changeswere created bythose
actions and the effects of those actions on others (whichis keyto remember when discussing your answer). When
answering, remember that the interviewer wants to know what YOU as an individual delivered and achieved so avoid
over-using examples of ‘we’.
For example, for a Project Manager role, an organisation may be seeking to focus on the following types of
competencies;
• planning and organising
• communication
• strategic thinking

PREPARING FOR A COMPETENCY-BASED INTERVIEW

First of all read the Job Description.
This shows what competencies, both behavioural and technical, that the person who will be successful in the
role will require.
For each criteria/competency try to think of specific examples of when you have evidenced those behaviours but do
not prepare specific answers prior to your interview as this is likely to mean that you provide answers that do not
fully answer the question.
When answering competency style questions, it is best to adopt the STARmodel, which will allow you to structure your
answer in a logical and concise manner.
Situation - Describe the situation/problem you were faced with (try and keep your examples recent) Task – what did
you have to do?
Action – what action did you take and why. Were there any challenges/obstacles and how did you overcome them?
Results – highlight the outcome

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Common competencies
To help you we have listed below some common competencies. Please note that these definitions are not the same as
those as listed in the Job Description and are just to give youan idea of what to expect.
Drive for results
This competency is trying to assess personal motivation and how you approach challenges. Example
Questions:
What achievement are you most proud of?
Give me an example of a time when you have had to achieve a specific result What opportunities have
you identified and used to achieve success?
Tell me about a time when you have ‘made things happen’ for yourself/your team?

Communication
This competency is looking for the ability to communicate effectively and to influence others to act and/orcommit
support to one’sown goals or objectives. Many roles are looking to establish that you understand the need to adapt your
communication methods depending on the situation and individuals that you are facing.
Communication methods for example can include: 1-2-1 discussions (formal and informal), group presentations,
telephone, email etc. Different ‘audiences’ may include peers, subordinates, senior management, customers,
suppliers.
Example Questions:
Can you please give a specific example of when you have had to influence a colleague to your way of
thinking? Tell me about a particularly difficult issue you had to communicate.

Influencing or Persuading Others

You may have strong verbal skills, but can you influence another person to change their thinking or take some action –
perhaps a colleague follows your advice, or a client decides to buy a service or product. At management level have you the
skills to persuade and involve rather than coerce and punish? Are you ethical in your dealings with people?
Example Questions:
Tell me about a time when you were able to change someone’s viewpoint significantly? Tell me about a
time when you were asked to do something that you disagreed with?

Interpersonal and Team Skills

The desire to build and maintain relationshipsin and beyond the workplace is critical. Many workplaces
function on the basis of project teams. Those who are highly collaborative and co- operative are most likely to
thrive in this type of environment.
Example Questions:
What skills and personal qualities have you contributed to the teams you have been part of?

A few important points to remember when answering competency based questions:

• Be concise, a long-winded story can be more detrimental than beneficial.
• Present your examples as naturally as possible, and don’t rely too much on a pre-prepared script.
• Be ready to adapt to the tone of the interview. You may need to adapt, or emphasise, different parts of a skills
example.
• If one of your examples covers more than one competence, don’t be tempted to use the same example twice.

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Preparation is essential. Youneed to identify the key points that you want the interviewer to learn about you, how
you are going to get them across, what key ‘examples’ will illustrate them and how you will respond to likely
questions.
The following hints may also help:
• Listen to the question and ensure that you understand it before replying.
• If you do not know the answer, say so - don’t attempt to improvise.
• Try to use I rather than we to describe what you did, even as a part of a team.
In addition, try to avoid falling into the following traps:
• Using textbook answers or clichés - avoid phrases such as “I like to be challenged” or “my greatest
weakness is that I’m a perfectionist.”
• Inconsistency-ensure that the image youhave of yourself matches the one you wish to project.

Scoring
At interview candidates are scored against some or all of the criteria / competencies that are outlined inthe job
descriptions. Eachscoreachievedforeach criteria/competenceistotalledandthenall individuals are ranked.
An outline of the scoring is provided below.

Technical
Score

A grasp of the basics. Understands the main principles and techniques and can
1 Entry Level apply them in standard situations, with guidance and supervision from
others.
Seen as a proficient practitioner in this area. Understands the majority of the skills
2 Proficient and knowledge sufficiently to take responsibility for applying them in typical
situations.
Regarded as an expert in this area and able to coach others. Understands the
3 Expert area thoroughly and is able to apply their experience, knowledge and skills to a
range of novel and complex situations.
Develops, uses andchampions best practicein the field. Drives the area of expertise
4 Strategic forward by pioneering new techniques or applications of existing techniques.
Applies expertise at a strategic level.

Competencies/behaviours
Each of the competencies/behaviours has a set of descriptors. Individuals must demonstrate these descriptors in the
examples they provide when answering questions. These descriptors are covered with individuals when feedback is
provided at the end of the selection process.

Description

1 Mainly demonstrates level 1 descriptors

2 Mainly demonstrates level 2 descriptors

3 Mainly demonstrates level 3 descriptors

4 Mainly demonstrates level 4 descriptors (including levels 1-3)

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