PRESENTATION SKILLS

Particular case of visual aids is the use of data in a presentation.

There are times when using data in a presentation can really help you to tell the story
better. It is, however, important not to blind your audience with statistics. You also need to
remember that many people find numbers difficult to understand. Our page on Presenting Data
gives some hints and tips about using data effectively in a presentation situation

Presenting information clearly and effectively is a key skill in getting your message
across. Today, presentation skills are required in almost every field, and most of us are required
to give presentations on occasions. While some people take this in their stride, others find it
much more challenging.

It is, however, possible to improve your presentation skills with a bit of work. This
section of Skills You Need is designed to help

Preparing for Your Presentation

The guide starts by explaining What is a Presentation?

We define a presentation as a means of communication that can be adapted to various speaking

situations, such as talking to a group, addressing a meeting or briefing a team. Effective
presentations usually require careful thought and preparation—although this preparation need not
take very long.

Preparation is the most important part of making a successful presentation. Our page on
Preparing For A Presentation explains what information you need before you can really start
to plan your presentation and decide what you are going to say. The most important aspects
include the objective of the presentation, the subject, and the audience.

Irrespective of whether the occasion is formal or informal, you should always aim to give a clear,
well-structured delivery. To do so, you need to organize your presentation material. You can
either do this in your head, or use a technique like mind-mapping to help you identify links and
good flow.

By the time you come to write your presentation, you should know exactly what you want to
say and the order in which you want to say it. You may want to use one of the standard
presentation structures, such as ‘What, Why, How?’. You will also find it helpful to consider
how to tell your story most effectively, and to use stories in your presentation to illustrate points.
There is more about this in our page on writing your presentation You also need to decide on.
Presentations range from the formal to the informal. Your choice of presentation method will
depend on many factors, including the audience, the venue, the facilities, and your own
preferences.
Presenting Under Particular Circumstances

You may find that you need to give a presentation under certain circumstances, where your
previous experience is less helpful.

Circumstances that may be new to you include:

Presentations in Interviews
Presenting to Large Groups and Conferences
Giving Lectures and Seminars
Giving a Speech, for example, at a wedding.

One particular special case is attending public consultation meetings.

Our pages on Attending Public Consultation Meetings, and Managing Public Consultation
Meetings provide information to help whether you are a concerned member of the public, or
responsible for organizing a public meeting.

You may also find yourself required to organize or manage a press conference.

Although this may not strictly be what you would describe as a ‘presentation’, it is nonetheless
an event at which you are required to present your organization in a particular light.

Our page on Managing a Press Conference gives some ideas about how best to do that.

Finally, should you be unlucky enough to be involved in a serious crisis or disaster that affects
your organization, our page on Crisis Communications gives some ideas about how to manage
press and public relations on these occasions. On the Day of the Presentation

There are a number of aspects to delivering your presentation on the day.

The practicalities of how you manage your presentation can make a significant difference to its
success, and to your nerves! For example, turning up early means that you have will have a
chance to see the room, and ensure that you can operate all the necessary equipment. There is
more about how to cope, including managing sound systems, audio-visual equipment and
lecterns in our page on Managing the Presentation Event.

Many people also feel very nervous before and during a presentation. This is entirely
normal, and can even be helpful if you can channel it in the right way. There are some tried and
tested strategies and techniques to manage your nerves so that you can concentrate on delivering
an effective and engaging presentation.

See Coping with Presentation Nerves for some ideas that will help.
How you present yourself can also affect how your audience responds to your presentation.

You need to fit with your audience's expectations if they are not going to spend quite a large
chunk of your presentation dealing with the differences between expectations and reality.

For more about aspects of self-presentation, see our page on Self-Presentation in Presentations.

You also need to consider how to manage your presentation notes.

Few people are able to give a presentation without notes. You will need to know your own
abilities and decide how best to make the presentation. You might manage your talk by using full
text, notes on cue cards, keywords on cue cards, or mind maps. There is more about this in our
page on Managing your Presentation Notes.

After the presentation, you may be faced with a question-and-answer session. For many
people, this is the worst part of the event.

Decide in advance how and when you wish to handle questions. Some speakers prefer questions
to be raised as they arise during the presentation whilst others prefer to deal with questions at the
end. At the start of your presentation, you should make clear your preferences to the audience.
See our page on Dealing with Questions for more ideas about how to make the question session
pleasant and productive, rather than something to dread.

Quick Guide to Effective Presentations

If you need to improve your presentation skills quickly, then a really good place to start is with
our Top Tips for Effective Presentations.

This will give you some ‘quick wins’ that will help you improve your presentations. If you’re
already an experienced presenter, this page should be a useful refresher, or even take your skills
from good to great.

Our tips include general ideas about connecting with your audience, information about the
importance of voice and body language, and detailed tips about preparing slide-shows.

The most important tip of all, however, is to remember that it's all about your audience.

Keep that in mind, and your presentation skills will almost instantly improve.

If you have more time to develop your presentation skills…

…then the Presentation Skills section of Skills You Need is designed to help.

Our Presentation Skills section is split into two parts.

  The first gives you a step-by-step guide to putting together and delivering a
professional and effective presentation.
 The second provides more detailed information about presenting and communicating
in particular circumstances.

You can either use our step-by-step guide to walk you through the presentation preparation and
delivery process, or you can focus on particular areas that are an issue for you.
Negotiation is a method by which people settle differences. It is a process by which compromise
or agreement is reached while avoiding argument and dispute.

In any disagreement, individuals understandably aim to achieve the best possible outcome for
their position (or perhaps an organisation they represent). However, the principles of fairness,
seeking mutual benefit and maintaining a relationship are the keys to a successful outcome.

Specific forms of negotiation are used in many situations: international affairs, the legal system,
government, industrial disputes or domestic relationships as examples. However, general
negotiation skills can be learned and applied in a wide range of activities. Negotiation skills can
be of great benefit in resolving any differences that arise between you and others.

Stages of Negotiation

In order to achieve a desirable outcome, it may be useful to follow a structured approach to

negotiation. For example, in a work situation a meeting may need to be arranged in which all
parties involved can come together.

The process of negotiation includes the following stages:

1. Preparation
2. Discussion
3. Clarification of goals
4. Negotiate towards a Win-Win outcome
5. Agreement
6. Implementation of a course of action

1. Preparation

Before any negotiation takes place, a decision needs to be taken as to when and where a meeting
will take place to discuss the problem and who will attend. Setting a limited time-scale can also
be helpful to prevent the disagreement continuing.

This stage involves ensuring all the pertinent facts of the situation are known in order to clarify
your own position. In the work example above, this would include knowing the ‘rules’ of your
organisation, to whom help is given, when help is not felt appropriate and the grounds for such
refusals. Your organisation may well have policies to which you can refer in preparation for the
negotiation.

Undertaking preparation before discussing the disagreement will help to avoid further conflict
and unnecessarily wasting time during the meeting.
2. Discussion

During this stage, individuals or members of each side put forward the case as they see it, i.e.
their understanding of the situation.

Key skills during this stage include questioning, listening and clarifying.

Sometimes it is helpful to take notes during the discussion stage to record all points put forward
in case there is need for further clarification. It is extremely important to listen, as when
disagreement takes place it is easy to make the mistake of saying too much and listening too
little. Each side should have an equal opportunity to present their case.

3. Clarifying Goals

From the discussion, the goals, interests and viewpoints of both sides of the disagreement need to
be clarified.

It is helpful to list these factors in order of priority. Through this clarification it is often possible
to identify or establish some common ground. Clarification is an essential part of the negotiation
process, without it misunderstandings are likely to occur which may cause problems and barriers
to reaching a beneficial outcome.

4. Negotiate Towards a Win-Win Outcome

This stage focuses on what is termed a 'win-win' outcome where both sides feel they have gained
something positive through the process of negotiation and both sides feel their point of view has
been taken into consideration.

A win-win outcome is usually the best result. Although this may not always be possible, through
negotiation, it should be the ultimate goal.

Suggestions of alternative strategies and compromises need to be considered at this

point. Compromises are often positive alternatives which can often achieve greater benefit for
all concerned compared to holding to the original positions.

5. Agreement

Agreement can be achieved once understanding of both sides’ viewpoints and interests have
been considered.
It is essential to for everybody involved to keep an open mind in order to achieve an acceptable
solution. Any agreement needs to be made perfectly clear so that both sides know what has been
decided.

6. Implementing a Course of Action

From the agreement, a course of action has to be implemented to carry through the decision.

See our pages: Strategic Thinking and Action Planning for more information.

Attitudes

All negotiation is strongly influenced by underlying attitudes to the process itself, for example
attitudes to the issues and personalities involved in the particular case or attitudes linked to
personal needs for recognition.

Always be aware that:

 Negotiation is not an arena for the realisation of individual achievements.

 There can be resentment of the need to negotiate by those in authority.
 Certain features of negotiation may influence a person’s behaviour, for example some
people may become defensive.

Knowledge

The more knowledge you possess of the issues in question, the greater your participation in the
process of negotiation. In other words, good preparation is essential.

Do your homework and gather as much information about the issues as you can.

Furthermore, the way issues are negotiated must be understood as negotiating will require
different methods in different situations.

Interpersonal Skills
Good interpersonal skills are essential for effective negotiations, both in formal situations and in
less formal or one-to-one negotiations.

These skills include:

 Effective verbal communication.

See our pages: Verbal Communication and Effective Speaking.
 Listening.
We provide a lot of advice to help you improve your listening skills, see our page Active
Listening.
 Reducing misunderstandings is a key part of effective negotiation.
See our pages: Reflection, Clarification and The Ladder of Inference for more
information.
 Rapport Building.
Build stronger working relationships based on mutual respect. See our pages: Building
Rapport and How to be Polite.
 Problem Solving.
See our section on effective Problem Solving.
 Decision Making.
Learn some simple techniques to help you make better decisions, see our section:
Decision Making.
 Assertiveness.
Assertiveness is an essential skill for successful negotiation. See our page: Assertiveness
Techniques for more information.
 Dealing with Difficult Situations.
See our page: Communicating in Difficult Situations for some tips and advice to make
difficult communications, easier.
 Why is a Group Discussion Organized ?

In the previous article, we talked about what is group discussion, the basics and how is it
different from a debate. In this article we are going to cover a number of subjects including why
a Group discussion is being conducted, the areas of evaluation during a selection GD and some
more points:

We all know that recruitment process nowadays is not a cake walk process. It is complex than it
used to be in earlier times. Gone are those days, when only basis mark sheets and degree one
used to grab a job. Now selection in a company or even in a management college depends on
how you perform during your Group Discussion and Personal Interview.

While watching many reality shows, singing or dancing contests on television, we get to see that
the judges evaluate the candidates’ skills, not only basis their singing or dancing skill, but an ‘x’
factor is also important. Now, what is this ‘X’ factor? This X factor is determined through the
group discussions. Hence GD plays an important part in letting the recruiters know, identify and
acknowledge your skills other than your educational degrees.

Group Discussion serves several purposes:

 Collecting data
 Breeding fresh ideas and taking inputs from a particular group
 Perception of common people on a particular topic
 Identify a solution to a specific problem or issue
 Selecting candidates after their written test for hiring in a company
 Selecting candidates for admission in an educational institute

The group discussion is a two-way helpful process. A candidate who goes through the process
gains clarity of his/her own thoughts, views and opinion. He/She learns how to evolve thinking
and come to a solution or conclusion for a certain topic. And on recruiter’s part, it is helpful as
they evaluate a candidate’s soft skills through Group discussion.

This also allows people to walk around a concept in greater detail and learn the topic in depth.
This practice is also being applied during campus interviews and selection process. A group
discussion among students is being organized to see and evaluate their thinking skills, listening
abilities and how they are communicating their thoughts. One should learn to control the
conversation through listening attentively and then having the perseverance to mould it towards
his/her own direction.

Benefits of Group Discussions

 It is a good way to engage the participants in a fruitful discussion

 Group discussion generates a creative thinking in all participants, something beyond the
obvious answers and solution to a specific problem
 Generate more ideas and a structured presentation of a topic
 Improves analytical abilities to think on a particular given topic
  Enables profound and in-depth understanding of the subject
 Provides different approaches to a topic
 Helps to come to a concluding point or at least near solution to a problem
 Gives a chance to listen, know and understand diverse opinions on a particular matter
 Improves confidence in public speaking platform
 Can alter our perspectives as well

Areas of Evaluation in a Selection GD

Though a group discussion, many things for a particular candidate can be assessed, such as
his/her mental capacity to think, his creative bent of mind, Analytical abilities, comprehending a
subject and then speaking on it, awareness, attitude, and energy levels. Some of them are detailed
below:

 Understanding of the Subject: During a group discussion, it is being constantly

assessed how deep your knowledge is about the chosen topic and how well you are aware
of each aspect of that topic.
 Assertiveness: You confidence shows up in a group discussion. It is assessed that how
confident you are while putting up your opinion in front of other. Others may certainly
vary or disagree to the point but how well and how confidently you bring your thoughts
forward is what matters the most.
 Team Work: While working in an organization or even during management studies, it is
very important to work as a part of the team in a given project or any assignment. This
skill is really important and it is evaluated through GD as well. You not only put your
own points but also listen to others and then come to a concluding point. This shows how
ready you are to listen to other’s opinion, give value to that and also at the same time
stand by your own convictions.
 Willingness to Take the Initiative: This skill plays a very important part in professional
and personal life. Employers highly regard it. They want that you just do not stick to your
own work but also should be able to take extra initiative whenever it is required. When
you start a topic, you have to be very cautious so as to put the right point forward and
give the entire discussion a right direction.
 Listening Skills: This is again an important skill which gets evaluated during a group
discussion. So, you should learn to listen not to reply back, but pay full attention to what
the other person is trying to say. Generally, people get biased to their own thoughts and
ideas and do not want to look beyond that. So listening to other person is also essential.
 Adaptability: In today’s dynamic and ever-changing environment, it is essential to keep
yourself flexible and adaptable toward the situation. During a group discussion,
sometimes you need to agree to some point and also it happens that in due course some
views change your mind as well. So being rigid and stubborn is not going to be very
helpful
 Leadership Qualities: Group discussion demonstrates clearly who amongst them is
taking the lead and who is a passive contestant. A good leader gives the entire discussion
a good direction and takes it forward whenever it is deviating from the main topic. But
while taking the lead, one has to be double sure whether his / her points are valid or not,
 else it will give the other person a golden opportunity to snatch the lead away and negate
his/her points.
 Communication Skills: As communication is a medium of expressing your thought, it is
more important in today’s interactive world. Hence communication skills are yet again
important skills which are evaluated through a structured group discussion.
Skills & Keywords

 College Grad Skills

 Listed by Job

Job Searching Skills & Keywords

Important Teamwork Skills That Employers Value

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By Alison Doyle

Updated November 24, 2019

Candidates with strong teamwork skills are sought out by employers for many reasons—they
demonstrate leadership, collaboration, and good communication, among other things. Employers
expect employees to be team players. Teamwork is required for almost every industry, ranging
from business solutions to information technology to food services.

This is true even if it seems like your job is best suited for an independent worker. You may
perform the bulk of your job duties alone, but you should be able to think of your work in the
context of the company’s broader goals and communicate your accomplishments to other people
within the organization.

What Are Teamwork Skills?

Regardless of your role, you need to be able to work well with others and convey your teamwork
skills to hiring managers, recruiters, and prospective employers. Scan any job listing, and you’ll
see that even ads that seek “self-starters” also inevitably use the phrase “team player.” Those
who have teamwork skills like communication and a positive attitude can help a team be more
productive.

Types of Teamwork Skills

© The Balance, 2018

Below is a list of the most important teamwork skills that employers seek in candidates. Develop
these skills and emphasize them in job applications, resumes, cover letters, and interviews. Make
sure to emphasize the specific skills that are mentioned in your job description, but feel free to
round out your application by mentioning others that may apply.

To give your examples maximum impact, try to include quantifiable statistics like numbers,
percentages, or dollar figures. This data can show the tangible results of your efforts.

Communication

Being a good team member means clearly communicating your ideas with the group. You must
be able to convey information via phone, email, and in person. You want to make sure your tone
is always professional but friendly. Both verbal and nonverbal communication are important
when working within a group setting.

 Advising
 Collaboration
 Contributing
 Coordination
 Creativity
 Creative Thinking
 Give Feedback
 Goal Setting
 Guidance
 Influencing
 Language
 Management
 Persuading
 Research
 Team Management
 Teaching
 Verbal Communication
 Visual Communication
 Written Communication

How can you develop your teamworking skills at university?

You may have already gained teamwork skills without even realising it. If you haven’t already
got a solid body of evidence to call upon in applications and interviews, it’s never too late to
make a start.

If you are asked to complete a group project as part of your course, this is a great way to try out
working in a team. Be aware, though, that ‘the group project completed on my course’ has
become a cliched answer to teamworking interview questions, so it might be best to provide
other examples if you want to stand out.

Sports clubs are an excellent place to build up teamwork skills. Obviously, it has to be a team
sport, so golf is probably out of the picture. If the sports field is not for you, drama clubs and
choirs can provide similar opportunities to work with others.

However, teamwork skills can be developed in many different extracurricular activities. Joining
the committee of a student society is a perfect way to gain experience of both working as a team
and of managing others. If you volunteer for a charity, you will often be paired with others to
reach a common goal.

Advertise here

Internships and part-time jobs are good places to develop teamwork skills because you will be
working with new people within a professional environment.

You can also practise working in teams in a recruitment environment by attending any mock
assessment centres run by your careers service.

Which graduate employers want teamwork skills?

Teamwork is a high priority for most graduate recruiters. They may be interested in looking for
individuals who can bring different strengths to teams – some graduates may be particularly
good at monitoring or evaluating progress, others may urge the team on when it starts to flag and
others may be great at contributing bright new ideas. But in the vast majority of graduate roles,
being able to work well with colleagues is crucial.
Assertiveness is a skill regularly referred to in social and communication skills training.

Being assertive means being able to stand up for your own or other people’s rights in a calm and
positive way, without being either aggressive, or passively accepting ‘wrong’.

Assertive individuals are able to get their point across without upsetting others, or becoming
upset themselves.

Although everyone acts in passive and aggressive ways from time to time, such ways of
responding often result from a lack of self-confidence and are, therefore, inappropriate ways of
interacting with others.

This page examines the rights and responsibilities of assertive behaviour and aims to show how
assertiveness can benefit you. You may also be interested in our pages on Self-Esteem and
Negotiation.

What is Assertiveness?

The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines assertiveness as:

“Forthright, positive, insistence on the recognition of one's rights”

In other words:

Assertiveness means standing up for your personal rights - expressing thoughts, feelings and
beliefs in direct, honest and appropriate ways.

It is important to note also that:

By being assertive we should always respect the thoughts, feelings and beliefs of other people.

Those who behave assertively always respect the thoughts, feelings and beliefs of other people as
well as their own.

Assertiveness concerns being able to express feelings, wishes, wants and desires appropriately
and is an important personal and interpersonal skill. In all your interactions with other people,
whether at home or at work, with employers, customers or colleagues, assertiveness can help you
to express yourself in a clear, open and reasonable way, without undermining your own or
others’ rights.

Assertiveness enables individuals to act in their own best interests, to stand up for themselves
without undue anxiety, to express honest feelings comfortably and to express personal rights
without denying the rights of others.
Passive, Aggressive and Assertive

Assertiveness is often seen as the balance point between passive and aggressive behaviour, but
it’s probably easier to think of the three as points of a triangle.

Being Assertive

Being assertive involves taking into consideration your own and other people’s rights, wishes,
wants, needs and desires.

Assertiveness means encouraging others to be open and honest about their views, wishes and
feelings, so that both parties act appropriately.

ssertiveness is the quality of being self-assured and confident without being aggressive. In the
field of psychology and psychotherapy, it is a learnable skill and mode of communication.
Assertiveness implies acting in a confident manner. It is important for a person to be assertive, so
that he or she may express his thoughts and feelings effectively. Increasing your assertiveness
can help you both personally and professionally. This article focuses the importance of being
assertive.

Before we go any further, it is important to understand the difference between a person who is
assertive and the one who is not. An assertive person has

the ability to express his feelings, opinions, beliefs and needs directly and honestly while this
ability enables him to be respectful towards the feelings of others, whereas a person who is non-
assertive adopts a passive-aggressive behavior which is the indirect expression of hostility
through procrastination, stubbornness, sullenness or deliberate or repeated failure to accomplish
the requested tasks for which he or she is responsible or is assigned.

It must be noted that when people are not assertive, they can suffer a lot of problems, such as,
they lose their confidence level. And indeed, having confidence to a satisfactory level is
important in almost all the aspects of life to accomplish the objectives which you want. There is
no doubt about the fact that once the level of confidence decreases, it affects self-esteem and
leads to create many behavioral and emotional disorders. Hence, it is important for a person to be
assertive. Assertiveness means being confident in stating a position or claim or personal rights
and expressing thoughts in a way as needed. It's also about saying what you see, what you want
and how you feel.

The importance of being assertive can be understood due to the fact it helps you improve your
confidence level and self-esteem. Self-esteem is the confidence in your own worth or abilities. In
sociology and psychology, self-esteem reflects a person's overall emotional evaluation of his or
her own worth. It is a judgment
of oneself as well as an attitude toward the self. If a person has a high self-esteem, he will never
be motivated to decrease the self-esteem of others, because he thinks that as he values himself,
others should also be valued in the same way. He would of course want to be polite and
respectful to others always. Another important reason why you need to improve your
assertiveness and behave assertively is that it helps you understand and recognize your feelings,
so that you can express and get your point across to others effectively. So, being assertive can
help boost your self-esteem and earn others' respect.
Definition:

Interview is the widely used (election method. It is a face-to-face interaction between

interviewee and interviewer. If handled carefully, it can be a powerful technique in having
accurate information of the interviewee otherwise unavailable. At the same time, if the interview
is not handled carefully, it can be a source of bias, restricting or distorting the flow of
communication.

Different scholars have defined ‘interview’ differently. According to Scott and others, “an
interview is a purposeful exchange of ideas, the answering of questions and communication
between two or more persons”. Bingham and others define an interview as a ‘conversation with a
purpose”.

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Thus, interview can be defined as an attempt to secure maximum amount of information from the
candidate concerning his/her suitability for the job under consideration.

It tries to achieve an accurate appraisal of the applicant in terms of his/her educational

qualification, training, family background, previous work experience and judge the applicant’s
certain qualities like manners, appearance, conversational ability, meet other people pleasantly,
etc.

Objectives of Interview:

In the selection process, interview serves the following objectives:

1. Verifies the information obtained through application form and tests.

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2. Helps obtain additional information from the applicant otherwise not available.

3. Gives the candidate necessary facts and information about the job and the organisation.

4. Helps establish mutual understanding between the company and the candidate and build the
company’s image.

According to Richard Calhoon, employment interview serves the following three

objectives:

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First, it is the only way to see an applicant in action – how he looks, his manner, his bearing.
Second, it is the only way to witness how he interacts and how he responds, his way of thinking,
the effect of his personality on others.

Third, it is perhaps the best way to get at the ‘will do’ features of a performance- motivation,
initiative, stability, perseverance, work, habits and judgments.

Types of Interviews:

Four types of interviews for selection have been identified.

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These are:

1. Preliminary Interview:

The interviews conducted to screen the applicants to decide whether further detailed interview
will be required are called preliminary interviews. The candidate is given freedom by giving job
details during the interview to decide whether the job will suit him.

One of the drawback associated with the preliminary interview is that it might lead to the
elimination of many desirable candidates in case interviewers do not have much and proper
experience in evaluating candidates. The positive argument, if any, for this method is that it
saves time and money for the company.

2. Patterned Interview:

In this interview, the pattern of the interview is decided in advance. What kind of information is
to be sought or given, how the interview is to be conducted, and how much time is to be allotted
to it, all these are worked out in advance. In case interviewee drifts, he/she is swiftly guided back
to the structured questions. Such interviews are also called standardised interviews.

3. Depth Interview:

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As the term itself implies, depth interview tries to portray the interviewee in depth and detail. It,
accordingly, covers the life history of the applicant along with his/her work experience,
academic qualifications, health, attitude, interest, and hobbies. This method is particularly
suitable for executive selection. Expectedly, depth interview involves more time and money in
conducting it.

4. Stress Interview:
Such interviews are conducted for the jobs which are to be performed under stressful conditions.
The objective of stress interview is to make deliberate attempts to create stressful or strained
conditions for the interviewee to observe how the applicant behaves under stressful conditions.

The common methods used to induce stress include frequent interruptions, keeping silent for an
extended period of time, asking too many questions at a time, making derogatory remarks about
the candidate, accusing him that he is lying and so on. The purpose is to observe how the
candidate behaves under the stressful conditions – whether he looses his temper, gets confused or
frightened.

However, stress-inducing must be done very carefully by trained and skilled interviewer
otherwise it may result in dangers. Emotionally charged candidates must not be subjected to
further stressful conditions. The candidate should be given sufficient chance to cope with such
induced stress before he leaves.

Limitations of Interview:

Research studies have firmly established that, among all selection methods, interview has been
the most researched and carefully documented method.

However, interview suffers from some limitations also.

1. Interviewers may not have a clearly defined technique developed. This results in lack of
validity in evaluation of the candidate.

2. There is always variation in offering scoring points to the candidate by the interviewers.

3. Interview can help judge the personality of the candidate but not his ability for the job.

4. A single characteristic of the candidate found out on the basis of interview, may affect the
judgment of the interviewer on other qualities of the applicant. This is called ‘halo effect’.

5. The biases of interviewers may cloud the objectivity of interview.

6. Finally, interview is a time consuming and expensive device of selection.

The above listed limitations or defects in interview underline the need for observing certain
guidelines to make interviews more effective.

Guidelines for Effective Interviewing:

Below are given some guidelines, if observed, can make interview more effective:

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1. The interview should have a definite time schedule known to both the interviewers and the
interviewee.

2. Interview should be conducted by the competent, trained and experienced interviewers.

3. The interviewers should be supplied with specific set of guidelines for conducting interview.

4. The interviewers should ensure an element of privacy for the interviewee.

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5. A resume for all the candidates to be interviewed should be prepared and the same be made
available to the interviewers before the interview starts.

6. The interview should not end abruptly but it should come to close tactfully providing
satisfaction to the interviewee.

7. The interviewers should show their sensitivity to the interviewee s sentiments and also
sympathetic attitude to him/her.

8. The interviewers should also evince emotional maturity and a stable personality during the
interview session.

Some major findings from research studies on the interview seem worth mentioning:

1. Structured interview are more reliable than unstructured interviews.

2. Interviewers are influenced more by unfavorable than by favorable information.

3. Inter-rater reliability is increased when there is a greater amount of information about the job
to be filled.

4. A bias IS established early in the interview, and this tends to be followed by either a favorable
or an unfavorable decision.

5. Intelligence is the trait most validly estimated by an interview, but the interview information
adds nothing to test data.

6. Interviewerscanexplamwhytheyfeelanapplicantislikelytobeanunsatisfactoryemployee but not

why the applicant may be satisfactory.

7 Factual written data seem to be more important than physical appearance in determining
judgments. This increases with interviewing experience.

8 An interviewee is given more extreme evaluation (positive/negative) when preceded by an

interviewee of opposing value (positive/negative).
9 Interpersonal skills and motivation are probably best evaluated by the interview.

10. Allowing the applicant time to talk makes rapid first impressions less likely and provides a
large behavior sample.

11. Nonverbal as well as verbal interactions influence decisions.

12. Experienced interviewers rank applicants in the same order, although they differ in the
proportion that will accept. There is a tendency for experienced interviewers to be more selective
than less experienced ones.

Objectives of Interview:

So, why are the interviews carried out? In what way does it help the interviewer zero in on the
right candidate? Let us find out what are the objectives or goals of an interview.

 It helps to verify the information provided by the candidate. It helps to ascertain the
accuracy of the provided facts and information about the candidate.
 What the candidate has written in the resume are the main points. What other additional
skill set does he have? All these are known by conducting interviews.
 It not only gives the interviewer information about the candidate’s technical knowledge
but also gives an insight into his much needed creative and analytical skills.
 Helps in establishing the mutual relation between the employee and the company.
 It is useful for the candidate so that he comes to know about his profession, the type of
work that is expected from him and he gets to know about the company.
 An interview is beneficial for the interviewer and the interviewee as individuals, because
both of them gain experience, both professionally and personally.
 It helps the candidate assess his skills and know where he lacks and the places where he
needs improvement.
 The interview also helps the company build its credentials and image among the
employment seeking candidates.