CIPD - Selection interviewing

Recruitment and talent management

Originally issued January 2007; latest revision January 2008

This factsheet gives introductory guidance. It:

considers the role of the interview in the selection process and its limitations
outlines the forms interviews can take and types of interview question
provides tips for good interview practice
includes the CIPD viewpoint.

Interviews in the selection process

Interviews are very widely used in the selection process, as demonstrated by successive CIPD surveys of recruitment practices. The 2007 survey shows that interviews based on the contents of the curriculum vitae/application form are found to be the most frequently used selection method (77%) followed by competency-based interviews.¹

There is a range of tools which may be used to distinguish between candidates but interviews remain the most common and the interview process is expected by both candidates and managers. This is because as well as providing information to predict performance, interviews also give an opportunity for the interviewer and interviewee to meet face to face and exchange information.

For the candidate, the interview is an opportunity to:

ask questions about the job and the organisation
decide if they’d like to take the job.

For the organisation, the interview is an opportunity to:

describe the job and the responsibilities the job holder would need to take on in more detail
assess candidates’ ability to perform in the role
discuss with the candidate details such as start dates, training provisions and terms and conditions such as employee benefits
give a positive impression to the candidate of the company as a ‘good employer’ (who they'd like to work should they be offered the position).

A poorly conducted interview may leave the candidate with an unfavourable impression of the organisation that they are likely to share with other potential applicants and customers.

Limitations of the interview

Research evidence highlights the limitations of the traditional interview as a poor predictor of a candidate’s performance in the job. Information is gathered from the interview in a relatively unsystematic manner, and judgements may be made on candidates for a variety of reasons.

Anderson and Shackleton² draw on a wide variety of studies to summarise the reasons why interviews have been criticised in this way. These include:

The self-fulfilling prophecy effect. Interviewers may ask questions designed to confirm initial impressions of candidates gained either before the interview or in its early stages.
The stereotyping effect. Interviewers sometimes assume that particular characteristics are typical of members of a particular group. In the case of sex, race, disability, marital status or ex-offenders, decisions made on this basis are often illegal. However, the effect occurs in the case of all kinds of social groups.
The halo and horns effect. Interviewers sometimes rate candidates as ‘good’ or ‘bad’ across the board and thus reach very unbalanced decisions.
The contrast effect. Interviewers can allow the experience of interviewing one candidate to affect the way they interview others who are seen later in the selection process.
The similar-to-me effect. Interviewers sometimes give preference to candidates they perceive as having a similar background, career history, personality or attitudes to themselves.
The personal liking effect. Interviewers may make decisions on the basis of whether they personally like or dislike the candidate.

Bearing in mind their limitations, interviews can be used alongside other selection techniques (see our factsheet on Selecting candidates for more details) in order to build a better picture of the suitability of the candidate for the role.

Go to our Selecting candidates factsheet

Structuring the interview can also help improve its ability to predict performance in the job and a growing number of employers are now taking this approach. A ‘structured interview’ means that:

questions are planned carefully before the interview
all candidates are asked the same questions
answers are scored using a rating system
questions focus on the attributes and behaviours needed in the job.

There is a risk, however, that this means an overly rigid approach in which there is little opportunity to ask the candidate supplementary questions and the candidate does not feel at their ease.

A looser ‘semi-structured’ approach can allow more opportunity for follow up questions for interviewer, and involves them covering a planned series of topics with the candidate.

Interview formats

Interviews can take a range of formats, and can be carried out by one or more interviewers.

One to one interviews have the advantage of putting the candidate more at their ease, but make it more difficult for the interviewer to concentrate on and consider the interviewee’s responses. They also make it more likely for unfair bias to occur as the interviewer will not have to justify their opinions to anyone else.

This can be partly addressed by using two interviewers, or carrying out a panel interview. However, this is more likely to be a formal and intimidating situation where the candidate will find it difficult to act naturally.

It is also possible to carry out a sequence of interviews where several people interview the candidate but never more than one or two at a time. For this to be successful, it is important for interviewers to agree in advance which areas they are planning to cover so the candidate is not asked the same question many times. This requires careful planning and building additional time into the selection process.

Telephone interviewing

Our 2007 recruitment survey¹ found that over half (61%) of organisations now make some use of telephone interviews.

Telephone interviews can be helpful:

as a pre-selection tool when undertaking high volume recruitment
when seeking to fill vacancies where telephone manner and customer contact is a major part of the role
when recruiting for senior positions internationally.

They are frequently used as part of a first stage screen of applications, with a brief series of key questions. But telephone interviewing is generally not a substitute for a face-to-face interview and is rarely used in isolation. It would be very unusual for a final interview to be over the telephone.

Before undertaking telephone interviews, organisations should confirm the validity of telephone interviewing as part of the selection process. They should then monitor the process to ensure that it remains a fair method of selection.

Where companies are recruiting from overseas there are some examples of video link being used as part of the recruitment process.

Interview questions

General tips for asking questions include:

Avoid asking closed questions to which the candidate can simply answer ‘Yes’, ‘No’, or ‘That’s right’.
Ask open questions, such as those starting with ‘what’, when’, why’, ‘where’ and ‘how’.
Avoid asking questions that give away the answer you are looking for.
Ask one question at a time. Asking multiple questions will confuse the candidate.

Some different types of questioning styles are given below, but not all questions fit neatly into a category. It can be helpful to ask some more chatty questions at the beginning of the interview to help put the candidate at their ease.

Hypothetical questions

Hypothetical questions involve asking candidates how they would react or behave in specific situations, for example those that might be encountered in the job in question. For example, ‘How would you deal with a customer who is complaining loudly about sloppy service?’

With this type of question there is a danger that candidates will think quickly about the ‘best’ or expected answer: the interviewer has to decide how closely this might match with reality.

Behavioural questions

Behavioural questions focus on past events in a candidate’s life and are designed to focus on ‘critical incidents’. The interviewer is hoping to hear of occasions when the candidate has demonstrated the abilities or behaviours most relevant to the job for which they are applying. For example, ‘Tell me about a time when you had to take a particularly difficult decision’.

The interviewer can then ask more probing supplementary questions to establish, for instance, the circumstances, the candidate’s reaction and what action they personally took.

In posing the question above, the interviewer is looking for evidence that candidates have acted decisively in the past. The assumption is then made that, put in a similar situation, they would display the same behaviour in the future.

It is important that questions of this kind are based on person specifications for the job which have been agreed – and ideally discussions with the current holder of the job.

This type of interviewing can be linked to competencies. For more details, see our factsheet on Competencies and competency frameworks.

Go to our Competencies and competency frameworks factsheet

Stress questions

Stress questions should be used with great caution, as they involve asking a question that is disparaging or aggressive. Some interviewers argue these are necessary in order to see how the candidate reacts in a situation that is stressful or uncomfortable. As the candidate is already in an unfamiliar situation (the interview) this type of question is likely to be unfair, as the candidate will not have been able to prepare for the situation or consider their options in advance. There is also a danger that this style of interviewing could create a bad impression of the organisation on the candidate.

Preparing for interviews

Some of the basic steps that need to be taken in preparing to interview candidates are listed below. While many of the points may seem obvious, they are frequently handled poorly or forgotten altogether. The key points are the need to prepare questions that are clearly relevant to the job for which the candidate is applying, and the need, at all times, to be concerned about the image of the organisation in the potential recruit’s mind.

When inviting candidates to an interview:

Specify the date, time and place of the interview. Also include a location map with details of access for cars and pedestrians, parking and public transport. You should if interview candidates have any special requirements (for example if they have a disability).
Outline the likely duration of the interview and the format the interviewee can expect (such as panel, one-to one).
Include the names and job titles of the interviewers.
Give details of other aspects of the proceedings so that nothing takes candidates by surprise. Will there be other parts of the assessment process they also need to know about, for example tests, in-tray exercise?
State what documents applicants need to bring with them (for example proof of qualifications, driving licence, indemnity insurance certificate, proof of right to work in the UK).
Ask candidates to confirm their intention to attend the interview at the stated time and place.
End by giving a name (not an illegible signature) and methods by which candidates can make contact (address, phone number, email etc).

Preparing for the interview itself:

Base interview questions on a comprehensive, accurate and up-to-date job description.
In framing questions for unstructured and semi-structured interviews, refer to the CV or application form so that any inconsistencies or omissions can be followed up.
Give active consideration to the current environment and to any important business issues of relevance to the vacant job. This background material should be used in the question design and can also be imparted to candidates during the interview so that they can answer questions as effectively as possible.
Consider in advance how information collected at the interview will be used to assess the performance of candidates. Will a scoring system be used to help make comparisons? Will the interview be used alongside other activities as part of the selection process?
Allow time during each interview for candidates to ask questions and make sure that the interviewer has sufficient information about the job to answer any reasonable question.
Take brief notes during the interview but not at the expense of the dialogue; allow time in the schedule to write longer notes immediately after each interview.
Try to let the candidate know the timescale for informing them of the outcomes of the interview.

Legal considerations

It is important that all interviewers are aware of relevant legislation so they do not ask questions or make judgements that are discriminatory. They also need to realise the importance of good quality notes and record keeping (for example in the instance of a discrimination claim from an unsuccessful candidate). CIPD members can find more information in our various discrimination FAQs in the Employment Law at Work area of our website.

Go to Employment Law of Work

CIPD viewpoint

As stated in our factsheet Selecting candidates, CIPD supports the use of a rigorous and structured approach to selecting candidates. This will ensure that the process both is and is seen to be fair to both successful and unsuccessful candidates.

It is important that all those involved in interviewing candidates have received adequate training in conducting interviews have been adequately briefed about the job in question and its requirements. They also need to be aware of the danger of unfair discrimination in the process – which has both legal implications and consequences for the diversity of the organisation (see our factsheet on Diversity: an overview for more information).

References

CIPD’s annual recruitment survey reports are available on the website at http://www.cipd.co.uk/subjects/recruitmen/
general/_recruitretnt.htm
ANDERSON, N and SHACKLETON, V. (1993) Successful selection interviewing. Oxford: Blackwell.

Selection interviewing