Knowledge Advocate

Job interviews are well-suited for learning how a person ticks. When my clients ask me to do so, I conduct pre-hire interviews as a “user’s guide.” The process is helpful for the person as well as for the employer because it turns out it helps both understand how the person gets things done and for what reasons.

Here are some of the areas I consider:

Motivations (what makes this person go, particularly when his or her fumes run low);

Goals (what does he or she aim for on the job and what does it look like when he or she gets there);

Behaviors (any particular user instructions worth noting, what standard operating procedure governs);

Fuel/resources (what makes things run right);

Range/flexibility (how far can he or she go, what does “stretch” feel like);

Needs (what feedback, relevance and recognition help this person stay productive);

“Evolvability” (what does change look like for him or her, how hard is it to come by);

Contribution (is he/she a team player or an individual contributor, describe play with others);

Purpose (for what reasons does this person want the job, to what end);

Quality (how does he or she compare himself or herself with others);

Expertise (what are the core talents, skills and competencies of this person and how do they operate).

Questions about past bosses and mentors and their impressions about the person help explore the above topics. When either of those is hard for the person to talk about, what friends and work colleagues think will suffice. Hypotheticals, analogies, and metaphors help delve into these topics too.

What would others who have worked with the person say about them? How does this person’s guidance system work? What does his or her navigation equipment look like? Is it reliable? When the person runs out of gas, has a danger light come on, or has some other calamity happen, what comes next? Folding these type of questions in helps better understand where the person stands on things.

These topics benefit from an exploration of his or her strength and style. Investigating the person’s duties and responsibilities helps explain his or her future potential. Focus on a given topic sheds light as well, for example, “Describe a role where you changed over time and let us both relive the steps you took to get from one place to another?” Always consider how he or she communicates with others and also, when he or she thinks through things alone.

To find the right people it pays to understand how they get things done: a user’s guide is a great start!