Tutorial 7 – Solutions

Group Activity

1. Prepare and give a short presentation titled, “How to Be Effective As

an Interviewer.” There are several things you can do to prepare to be an
effective interviewer. Some of the responses the students should give
include: structure the interview; prepare for the interview; establish rapport;
ask questions; close the interview; and review the interview. (LO 7.4;
AACSB: Communication Abilities; Learning Outcome: Describe effective
interviewing techniques)

2. Use the Internet to find employers who now do preliminary selection

interviews via the Web. Print out and bring examples to class. Do
you think these interviews are useful? Why or why not? How would
you improve them? The students should use the Internet to search the
Web sites of various companies to find examples of companies that use
the Web for preliminary selection interviews. They should provide the pros
and cons of using the Web for preliminary selection interviews. Challenge
students to identify ways to improve the examples they have presented
based on what has been discussed in this chapter. (LO 7.1; AACSB: Use
of Information Technology; Learning Outcome: Describe effective
interviewing techniques)

3. In groups, discuss and compile examples of “the worst interview I

ever had.” What was it about these interviews that made them so
bad? If time permits, discuss as a class. Based on their experiences,
the students should come up with various examples. They should also
discuss their suggestions for improving the interview. (LO 7.2; AACSB:
Analytic Skills; Learning Outcome: Describe effective interviewing
techniques)

Discussion Questions

1. Explain and illustrate the basic ways in which you can classify
selection interviews. Interviews can be classified according to: (1)
degree of structure. This is the extent to which interviews are, or are not,
structured with previously designed questions so that each candidate must
answer the same questions. (2) purpose. Interviews may be designed to
accomplish several purposes, including selection, performance appraisal,
and feedback. (3) content. The content of the questions may be
situational, job-related, or psychological. (4) the way the interview is
administered. Interviews might be conducted by a panel of interviewers,
sequentially or all at once, computerized, or personally. Students should
also provide some illustrations of each. (LO 7.1; AACSB: Analytic Skills;
Learning Outcome: Describe effective interviewing techniques)
2. Briefly describe each of the following possible types of interviews:
unstructured panel interviews; structured sequential interviews; job-
related structured interviews. In the unstructured panel interview, the
panel of interviewers asks questions as they come to mind. They do not
have a list of questions or points that need to be covered but may follow
many different directions. The structured sequential interview consists of
the candidate being interviewed one by one with several different
interviewers. Each interviewer conducts a structured interview that
consists of pre-determined questions and a structured evaluation form to
complete. The job-related structured interview consists of pre-determined
questions, all of which are designed to assess the applicant's past
behaviors for job-related information. (LO 7.1; AACSB: Communication
Abilities & Reflective Thinking Skills; Learning Outcome: Describe effective
interviewing techniques)

3. For what sorts of jobs do you think computerized interviews are most
appropriate? Why? The computerized interview can be used as a
screening device for virtually any type of position that may generate a
large number of applicants. It is less likely to be used for managerial
positions. However, if there are large numbers of applicants, it could
certainly be just as useful there as in skilled, professional, and unskilled
positions. (LO 7.1; AACSB: Analytic Skills; Learning Outcome: Describe
effective interviewing techniques)

4. Why do you think situational interviews yield a higher mean validity

than do job-related or behavioral interviews, which in turn yield a
higher mean validity than do psychological interviews? The
situational interview allows the candidate to answer situational questions
based on past experiences in which he or she might have made mistakes
but learned from them. The job-related (or behavioral) interview focuses
primarily on past situations, but it does not allow for changes in the
candidate due to the lessons that he or she might have learned from those
experiences. The psychological interview tends to be more speculative
regarding traits that are difficult to measure. (LO 7.3; AACSB: Analytic
Skills; Learning Outcome: Describe effective interviewing techniques)

5. Similarly, how do you explain the fact that structured interviews,

regardless of content, are more valid than unstructured interviews
for predicting job performance? The structured interview helps to keep
the interviewer focused on the types of behaviors, traits, or answers that
are desired and that are good predictors of job performance. Unstructured
interviews allow interviewers to become sidetracked with things like
common interests and other items that are not good predictors of job
success. (LO 7.3; AACSB: Analytic Skills; Learning Outcome: Describe
effective interviewing techniques)

6. Briefly discuss and give examples of at least five common

interviewing mistakes. What recommendations would you give for
avoiding these interviewing mistakes?
  Snap Judgments: This is where the interviewer jumps to a conclusion
about the candidate during the first few minutes of the interview. Using
a structured interview is one way to help avoid this, as well as training
interviewers.
 Negative Emphasis: When an interviewer has received negative
information about the candidate, through references or other sources,
he or she will almost always view the candidate negatively. The best
way to avoid this is to keep references or other information from the
interviewer. If possible, have different people perform the reference
checks and the interviews and not share the information until
afterwards.
 Misunderstanding the Job: When interviewers do not have a good
understanding of the job requirements, they do not make good
selections of candidates. All interviewers should clearly understand the
jobs and know what is needed for success in those jobs.
 Pressure to Hire: Anytime an interviewer is told that they must hire a
certain number of people within a short time frame, poor selection
decisions may be made. This type of pressure should be avoided
whenever possible.
 Candidate-Order (Contrast) Error: When an adequate candidate is
preceded by either an outstanding, or a poor candidate, by contrast he
or she looks either less satisfactory or much better. This can be
countered by training interviewers, allowing time between interviews,
and structuring interviews with structured rating forms.
 Influence of Nonverbal Behavior: Candidates who exhibit stronger
nonverbal behavior, such as eye contact and energy level, are
perceived as stronger by the interviewers. This can be minimized
through interviewer training and structured interviews.
 Telegraphing: An interviewer might "give" the right answers to
candidates that they hope to hire. This can be combated through
structured interview questions, multiple interviewers, and interviewer
training.
 Too Much / Too Little Talking: On either end of these extremes, the
interviewer may not gather all the information that is really needed to
make an appropriate selection decision. Structured interviews help
keep this from happening.
 Playing District Attorney or Psychologist: Some interviewers misuse
their power by turning the interview into a game of "gotcha" or by
probing for hidden meanings in everything the applicants say.
Structured interviews help keep this from happening.
(LO 7.2; AACSB: Communication Abilities; Learning Outcome: Describe
effective interviewing techniques)

7. Briefly discuss what an interviewer can do to improve his or her

performance. The students should refer to the section in the chapter on
designing and conducting the effective interview to form his/her
suggestions for how an interviewer can improve his/her perfomance. (LO
7.4; AACSB: Communication Abilities; Learning Outcome: Describe
effective interviewing techniques)