What is a Behavioural Interview?
The process of evaluating a candidate's performance based on his behavioural competencies is known as a behavioural interview.
Such interviews lay a greater emphasis on the employees' behaviour, sometimes even more so than their academic achievements. The interviewer is more interested in learning how the candidate has handled difficult situations at work. Similarly, depending on the proposed role, the candidate may be asked how they would react in specific situations.
What are some common Behavioural Interview Questions?
The questions in behavioural interviews are usually direct, penetrating, and specific.
- Tell me about the most essential responsibilities you had in your present or previous career.
- Tell me about your background.
- What aspect of your current employment gives you the most satisfaction? What do you find the most unsatisfactory?
- What is your motivation for quitting your current employer? How did you come to this conclusion?
- What drew you to this field?
- What accomplishments would your boss be proud of? Who are your peers? Who's on your team?
- What would be your ideal job?
- What achievements have brought you the most personal fulfilment and professional advancement?
- How much do you want to earn?
- What characteristics characterise an ideal (your position)?
- How would you rate your professional accomplishments thus far?
- What attributes do you believe have contributed to your success? Please describe a situation that demonstrates these characteristics.
- Tell me about a job where your talents were most closely matched. What about this position appealed to you the most?
How to prepare for a Behavioural Interview?
The STAR Method is a technique that might be the greatest approach to prepare for and answer behavioural questions. The STAR Method is defined as follows, with instructions on how to apply it to behavioural queries:
S stands for Situation. What was the issue, and how did you solve it? Make your statement as specific as possible.
T stands for task. Then figure out what your goal was—what did you need to do?
A stands for action. Describe the steps you took to achieve your aim.
R stands for "result." The ultimate result should be reported. Now is the time to boast about yourself. Take pride in what you've accomplished, and if you can point to many positives, all the better!
For instance, if the question asks, “What is the most difficult challenge you had to face in your past experience?” With the use of STAR method, one must formulate the response in the following manner:
S: In the last quarter of the year, our team's revenue was down.
T: We needed to boost our sales by 10%.
A: I revamped our redundant and unproductive processes and collaborated with my coworkers to create new, more successful methods.
R: We grew our sales by 12% that quarter thanks to systems I reworked and new techniques I implemented.
Because behavioural interview questions might be complicated, it's a good idea to write down your responses. This will assist you in thinking it through more thoroughly. Then practise with someone you trust for their expert advice.
Behavioural interview example:
"How good are your client communication skills?" is a common interview question. The candidate can expound on all of the positive feedback they've had from clients and highlight all of his strong aspects, but this won't assist the interviewer evaluate him in stressful scenarios. This question can also be rephrased as an open-ended, experience-based question: "Tell me about a time when you had to work with an unhappy client and how you dealt with it." The interviewer will be able to determine how the candidate handles pressure, his communication skills, his capacity to adjust to conditions, and whether or not he will be able to meet the work requirement based on the candidate's response to this question.
Why should you use a Behavioural Interview?
Behavioural interviewing is a type of interview that focuses on a candidate's past experiences by asking them to provide concrete examples of how they have displayed various behaviours, knowledge, skills, and talents.
Behavioural interview answers should provide verifiable, concrete proof of how an applicant has dealt with problems in the past. This information typically exposes a candidate's genuine level of experience as well as his or her ability to deal with similar problems in your company.
Advantages of Behavioural Interview:
Behavioural interviews have a number of advantages. The following are some of the benefits of a behavioural interview:
1. The interviewer can better predict how the candidate would behave in the future based on their prior behaviour.
2. It leads to better hiring decisions, resulting in lower costs.
3. Assists in identifying people who are cognitively and emotionally capable of handling work stress.
Many in the business, however, think that in addition to behavioural questions, other questions should be asked to learn more about the candidate, such as their aspirations, career goals, and interest in the position.
The Importance of Conducting a Behavioural Interview :
In the 1970s, a new kind of interviewing called behavioural interviewing evolved. Candidates are asked open-ended questions to explain their reactions to specific situations in the past, with the possibility of further probing to obtain better and more complete responses. This provides the interviewer with a better understanding of the candidate's attitude. The questions in such behavioural interviews are based on the talents, abilities, and characteristics that are essential for the candidate to be successful in the position he or she is applying for inside the firm. Typical interview questions would ask the candidate to describe a situation in which he or she has demonstrated leadership abilities, teamwork, communication skills, or the ability to resolve conflicts in the past, allowing the interviewers to analyse the candidate's behaviour patterns and thus identify his or her core competencies.
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