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BEC Day 9 Job Interview 2
BEC Day 9 Job Interview 2
Assessment
Person-environment fit
Person-environment fit is often measured by organizations when hiring new employees.
There are many types of Person-environment fit with the two most relevant for
interviews being Person-job and Person-organization fit. Interviewers usually emphasis
Person-job fit and ask twice as many questions about Person-job fit compared to
Person-organization fit. Interviewers are more likely to give applicants with good
Person-job fit a hiring recommendation compared to an applicant with good Person-
organization fit.
An applicant's knowledge, skills, abilities, and other attributes (KSAOs) are the most
commonly measured variables when interviewers assess Person-job fit. In one survey,
all interviewers reported that their organization measures KSAOs to determine Person-
job fit. The same study found that all interviewers used personality traits and 65% of the
interviewers used personal values to measure Person-organization fit.
Despite fit being a concern among organizations, how to determine fit and the types of
questions to use varies. When interview fit questions were examined, only 4% of the
questions used in interviews were similar across the majority of organizations. 22% of
questions were commonly used by recruiters in some organizations. In contrast, 74% of
the questions had no commonality between organizations. Although the idea of fit is
similar in many organizations, the questions used and how that information is judged
may be very different.
Person-job fit and Person-organization fit have different levels of importance at different
stages of a multi-stage interview proves. Despite this, Person-job fit is considered of
highest importance throughout the entire process. Organizations focus more on job-
related skills early on to screen out potential unqualified candidates. Thus, more
questions are devoted to Person-job fit during the initial interview stages. Once
applicants have passed the initial stages, more questions are used for Person-
organization fit in the final interview stages. Although there is more focus on Person-
organization fit in these later stages, Person-job fit is still considered to be of greater
importance.
In a single stage interview, both fits are assessed during a single interview. Interviewers
still put more weight on Person-job fit questions over the Person-organization questions
in these situations as well. Again, Person-job fit questions are used to screen out and
reduce the number of applicants.
Potential applicants also use job interviews to assess their fit within an organization.
This can determine if an applicant will take a job offer when one is offered. When
applicants assess their fit with an organization the experience they have during the job
interview is the most influential.
Applicants felt that they had highest fit with an organization when they could add
information not covered during the interview that they wanted to share. Applicants also
liked when they could ask questions about the organization. They also when they could
ask follow up questions to ensure they answered the interviewer's questions to the level
the interviewer wanted. Interviewer behaviors that encourage fit perceptions in
applicants include complimenting applicants on their resume and thanking them for
traveling to the interview. Applicants like to be given contact information if follow up
information is needed, the interviewer making eye contact, and asking if the applicant
was comfortable.
The Interviewer can discourage fit perceptions by how they act during an interview as
well. the biggest negative behavior for applicants was the interviewer not knowing
information about their organization. Without information about the organization,
applicants cannot judge how well they fit. Another negative behavior is not knowing
applicants’ background information during the interview. Interviewers can also hurt fit
perception by being inattentive during the interview and not greeting the applicant. [33]
There are some issues with fit perceptions in interviews. Applicants’ Person-
organization fit scores can be altered by the amount of ingratiation done by the
applicants. Interviewers skew their Person-organization fit scores the more ingratiation
applicants do during an interview. By applicants emphasizing similarities between them
and the interviewer this leads to a higher Person-organization fit perceptions by the
interviewer. This higher perception of fit leads to a greater likelihood of the candidate
being hired.
Process
Interview phase: The interview phase entails the actual conduct of the interview, the
interaction between the interviewer and the applicant. Initial interviewer impressions
about the applicant before the interview may influence the amount of time an interviewer
spends in the interview with the applicant, the interviewer's behavior and questioning of
the applicant, and the interviewer's postinterview evaluations. Preinterview impressions
also can affect what the interviewer notices about the interviewee, recalls from the
interview, and how an interviewer interprets what the applicant says and does in the
interview.
As interviews are typically conducted face-to-face, over the phone, or through video
conferencing (e.g. Skype), they are a social interaction between at least two individuals.
Thus, the behavior of the interviewer during the interview likely "leaks" information to the
interviewee. That is, you can sometimes tell during the interview whether the interviewer
thinks positively or negatively about you. Knowing this information can actually affect
how the applicant behaves, resulting in a self-fulfilling prophecy effect. For example,
interviewees who feel the interviewer does not think they are qualified may be more
anxious and feel they need to prove they are qualified. Such anxiety may hamper how
well they actually perform and present themselves during the interview, fulfilling the
original thoughts of the interviewer. Alternatively, interviewees who perceive an
interviewer believes they are qualified for the job may feel more at ease and
comfortable during the exchange, and consequently actually perform better in the
interview. Because of the dynamic nature of the interview, the interaction between the
behaviors and thoughts of both parties is a continuous process whereby information is
processed and informs subsequent behavior, thoughts, and evaluations.
Postinterview phase: After the interview is conducted, the interviewer must form an
evaluation of the interviewee's qualifications for the position. The interviewer most likely
takes into consideration all the information, even from the preinterview phase, and
integrates it to form a postinterview evaluation of the applicant. In the final stage of the
interview process, the interviewer uses his/her evaluation of the candidate (i.e., in the
form of interview ratings or judgment) to make a final decision. Sometimes other
selection tools (e.g., work samples, cognitive ability tests, personality tests) are used in
combination with the interview to make final hiring decisions; however, interviews
remain the most commonly used selection device in North America.
For interviewees: Although the description of the interview process above focuses on
the perspective of the interviewer, job applicants also gather information on the job
and/or organization and form impressions prior to the interview. The interview is a two-
way exchange and applicants are also making decisions about whether the company is
a good fit for them. Essentially, the process model illustrates that the interview is not an
isolated interaction, but rather a complex process that begins with two parties forming
judgments and gathering information, and ends with a final interviewer decision.