Is your recruitment partner conducting competency based interviews for the candidates they introduce? Also known as structured, behavioral or situational interviews, they test one or more skills or competencies. The interviewer has a list of set questions, each focusing on a specific skill, and the answers are compared against predetermined criteria and graded accordingly.
Because you are paying recruiters not only to find talent, but also to assess and screen that talent, it makes sense for you to spend time with your recruitment partner and agree on the competencies you want to recruit.
There are two different types of competencies I recommend: functional and behavioral.
Functional competencies are what somebody needs to do the job. For example, if you are hiring someone for your finance team, you might require them to create pivot tables in Excel or they need to demonstrate an understanding of Japanese general accounting principles.
Don’t confuse functional competencies with qualifications - number of years’ experience, their degree, what type of company they’ve worked in. These are not functional competencies. A functional competency is a specific skill or knowledge.
Behavioral competencies are interpersonal skills, for example, perseverance, tenacity, or the ability to collaborate.
Your recruitment partner should be going through your job description with you and the other stakeholders on your team to agree the required functional and behavioral questions you want assessed.
Here are examples of some competency based questions you can employ.
Tell me about a time you have... lead a project from FEED to commissioning
On what occasion have you.. needed to motivate a team
Explain an instance in which you have needed to... monitor quality
Give me an example of a... project you have managed
Tell me about a time you have needed to...
When have you faced challenges involving... balancing different stakeholder’s needs
In what situation have you needed to... adapt your communication style
When your recruitment partner introduces you to a candidate, the answers for these questions should be part of the introduction to help you decide whether to proceed with an interview or not.
If you would like more information about this or to better approach recruitment, please let me know: david.sweet@focuscoregroup.com
