Guidelines for Conducting Effective Employment Interviews

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Tips for conducting useful reference checks:• When checking references, consider contacting your professional associates(individuals you know) who also know the candidate, as you may receive moreuseful information.• When speaking to references, listen for clues that you may not be getting the fullpicture of a candidate, and then probe further with specific questions. If theindividual to whom you are speaking hesitates when responding to a question,consider probing further.• If you learn something negative about a candidate (or something positive), try toconfirm the information by speaking with other references. This must be donecarefully, though, so as not to inadvertently spread false information about acandidate.• If you receive information of concern from a reference, ask the candidate questionsduring the interview to try to determine whether the information you received isaccurate.• If unable to obtain references from a candidate's current or former supervisors,consider asking the candidate to provide a copy of his/her recent performanceevaluations.In addition to employment reference checks, Human Resources will verify educationalbackground as well as conduct a criminal background check. Human Resources willassist with reference checks upon request.Formulate interview questions in advance-- Develop interview questions aimed atassessing whether each candidate possesses the skills, abilities, knowledge, andprofessional experience you previously determined are necessary for effective jobperformance. Think about what questions will help you assess whether a candidate willbe able to achieve necessary goals and accomplishment what needs to be accomplished.Sample interview questions can be found athttp://www.fandm.edu/humanresources/article/hiring-procedures-for-professionalstaff-positions(tailor sample questions to the particular skills, knowledge, and abilitiesrequired for the vacant position). In addition, the www.hr-guide.com/ selection.htmwebsite lists numerous sample interview questions, sorted by topic.Past job performance is often one of the best predictors of future job performance.Therefore, interview questions should require candidates to describe things they actuallydid or said in a previous situation and the outcome of their actions. Questions that willforce the candidate to describe specific situations from his/her past may elicit the mostuseful information (i.e., "Please describe a time when you disagreed with a co-worker.How did you handle the situation?" or "Please describe a major project on which youworked during the past year. What did you do to assure you would complete the projecton time?"). Try to avoid hypothetical questions (such as "If you had a problem with a coworker,how would you handle it?"), as candidates may simply give the response theythink you want to hear.Develop an interview guide-- Write the questions you plan to ask candidates, and leaveroom on your paper to record their responses. Writing the questions before the interviewmakes it easier to ask the right questions of each candidate, and documenting eachcandidate's responses makes it easier to assess skills and abilities after interviews. Avoid
writing non-job-related comments on your interview guide (for example, do not writecomments about the candidate's appearance, race, etc.).Explore additional ways to assess candidates' skills and abilities-- Consider whetheradditional information will be required of each candidate before or during the interviewprocess. For example, as appropriate to the vacant position, each candidate may be askedto: give a brief presentation on a relevant topic; provide work samples; prepare a briefwritten report on a current topic in their field or a best practice; compose a letter, etc. Besure to establish the same requirements of all candidates, and be sure you can explainhow the skills and abilities being assessed are related to necessary job skills.Because employment tests may be determined to have an "adverse impact" on aprotected group, managers / search committees must contact Human Resources beforeusing any type of skills assessment, physical fitness evaluation, "personality" test, orother type of employment test during the search process.Develop an evaluation sheet-- A systematic evaluation of candidates' responses tointerview questions and any other assessment methods allows for a fair comparisonacross candidates who are often interviewed by different individuals. A standardizedevaluation process helps assure all candidates are evaluated on the same basis. To makethe interview process more objective, you may want to list all required job skills, abilities,and experience/education requirements on an evaluation sheet. Then, after eachinterview, the search committee or interviewer can rank each candidate from 1 to 5 oneach required job skill and ability. Totaling the rankings for each candidate following allinterviews may help guide your selection decision.Develop the interview agenda and schedule interviews-- After formulating interviewquestions, determine with whom candidates will meet while on campus (student groups,department members, campus committees, etc.). It is generally recommended that atleast a couple staff members who will be supervised by the new employee have theopportunity to meet all candidates, such as by taking the candidates to lunch. Allow thesame amount of time for each candidate's interview.When planning the campus visit:• allow a few minutes between interviews so candidates have time to checkmessages, use the restroom, etc.• assure each candidate receives an interview or campus visit schedule in advance,listing the name and title of each individual with whom he/she will meet• build in time for a campus tour or tour of Lancaster as appropriate• arrange to pick up each candidate from the airport, train station, or hotel asappropriate, and arrange transportation back to the airport, train station, or hotel atthe end of the day• arrange for a search committee member to escort each candidate from interview tointerview, if the candidate will be moving to several locations on campus• arrange to have lunch or dinner with each candidate if interviews will extendthroughout the day• consider giving each candidate a small gift such as a Franklin & Marshall coffeemug
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