There is nothing more important than hiring the right people into your business. How are you finding these people? How do you test them? How can you be sure they are the best fit for your culture? This is a presentation that will address your concerns. Please feel free to ask me any questions at brent@spillly.com

1. Interview for
success
January 2014

2. Interview for success
It’s difficult to think of any
decision that is more important to
an organization than determining
who it hires.

3. Interview for success
Why are you hiring?
What are you hiring for?
Are you hiring for the right
reasons?
What is your motivation for
hiring?
Will it free up your time to grow
the business?

4. Interview for success
Do you have a defined & clear
job description for the new
position?
Does this job description have
key deliverables and reporting
functions defined?
What are the SKILLS needed
and what are the TALENTS
needed?

5. Interview for success
Define the TALENT. Interview for
talent.
You can teach skills and adapt
behaviour, you cant teach talent

6. Interview for success
What will this position pay?
What are the other costs that the
company will incur by employing
for this position?
How much new business will be
needed to cover this total cost
AND how long with it take to
achieve?
Will this NEW position add
value?

7. Interview for success
Where do you advertise this
“notice of vacancy?”
What will this notice say?
Should I use an agency?
Should I use social media sites
like LinkedIn?
Is it all legal?

8. Interview for success
Should I hire friends or Friends of
friends?
Should I hire family?
Should I hire from within the
business?
DON’T hire for charity

9. Interview for success
What should I look for in a
applicants CV?
What are the absolute “No-
No’s?”
Should I trust my instincts (gut
feel) ?
How many people should I plan
on interviewing?

10. Interview for success
 Whittle down candidates to about
10.
 Get a second opinion on the CV’s
and halve the number to top 5 / 6
 Check references before the
interview is set up
 Google the candidates and write
down the results
 Google their current employers to
understand who they work for and
the size of that business

11. Interview for success
Project work is often better than
interviews
Portfolios and references are
often better than interviews too.
Prepare questions for the
reference calls.
Can you get references via
email?

12. Interview for success
Create a telephone “interview”
questionnaire when calling the
candidates to set up the actual
interview.
Ask simple questions about
availability, where they live,
transport etc.
If they are not able to conduct
themselves over the phone
DON’T interview them

13. Interview for success
Set aside 1 hour for interview.
Confirm date time and address
via email and ask for response
Make sure the candidate brings
all relevant info along to interview
– ID, proof of residence,
references, qualifications & CV
copy

14. Interview for success
Where do you physically hold the
interview?
The room should be quiet and
private
Do not be disturbed.
Have water available for the
candidate on the table before
they arrive.
Do you interview alone?

15. Interview for success
 Set up an interview questionnaire
 Leave space after each question to
write the answer as well as a
percentage or ranking on the
answer according to you – 1/5
 Is this the first of two interviews? If
you want to have a second
interviewee – explain this at the start
of the interview.

16. Interview for success
Don’t ask questions that you
already know the answers to.
Don’t refer directly to the CV in
the interview. You can delve
deeper into what’s already there
if need be
Focus on the candidate and not
selling the position.

17. Interview for success
Outline the role that the
candidate is applying for upfront.
Ask the candidate what their plan
for that role would be
Ask questions that will help
determine what the motivations
are for the candidate wanting to
work for you

18. Interview for success
Simulate work experiences
through role play. Use examples
that have actually happened in
your business
Don’t assume you know
everything about the position you
interviewing for

19. Interview for success
Ask: “What is your greatest
weakness?”
Take the time and make notes
Is the candidate serious about
getting THIS work or just getting
a job? Is the Candidate
“shopping?” for work

20. Interview for success
“What don’t you want to be
doing in 5 years from now?”
“What would you say is the
biggest misconception people
have about you?”
“What is the right attitude for a
role like this?”
Does the candidate have the
right culture for your company?

21. Interview for success
Ask questions that reveal
INTEGRITY, ETHICS and
EXCELLENCE
Find out what their weaknesses
are and make sure you can live
with those in your Company.
Could this candidate be your MD
/ CEO in the future?
Make sure you are hiring your
next MD every time.

22. Interview for success
HIRE SLOW – FIRE FAST
Place candidates on short term
contracts. Explain this in the
interviews
Reviews every month for the first
3-5 months are essential.
DON’T be scared to fire and
mention this in the interview.

23. Interview for success
Do I use psychometric testing?
This helps see if the candidate
can solve problems easily
It also shows the seriousness of
the position to the candidate
For key roles its worth using the
Myers Briggs personality profile
test.

24. Interview for success
Is the candidate passionate
about the industry?
What are the reasons they have
left prior jobs? Is there risk of this
happening within your Co.?
If you are replacing an employee
– what traits of theirs which
worked / didn’t work does the
candidate also display?

25. Interview for success
 Questions to be repeated in cycles as
follows:
1. Fact based / general questions
“How long were you at prior work?”
2. Situational questions “what would
you do if you knew X was stealing
money?”
3. Stress questions “why should we
hire you?
4. Behavioral questions “How did you
feel when you found out that a co
employee earned more than you?”

26. Interview for success
Ask questions in tandem:
get response and then go back to
the question a little later to get
more information and understand
the depth of the candidates
knowledge on the subject

27. Interview for success
Does the candidate have positive
vocabulary or negative?
DON’T fall in “like” with
candidates
Allow the candidate to ask
questions through out the
interview or only at the end.
Stipulate this at the beginning.

28. Interview for success
Study the CV 5 minutes before
the interview. Be prepared.
Be nice. Allow the candidate
some “chit chat” to settle them
before the actual interview starts.
Don’t talk too much. Let the
candidate do the talking. Don’t
overshare

29. Interview for success
Ask some curve-ball questions to
see how the candidate thinks?
“How would you weigh an
airplane without a scale / how do
they get the chocolate inside the
Smarties?”
This tests problem solving skills.
Questions don’t have to have the
correct answer

30. Interview for success
 At the top of your interview
questionnaire ask: WOULD YOU
EMPLOY THIS PERSON?:
 NO
 50%
 80%
 YES
As soon as the interview is over circle
one of these answers

31. Interview for success
At the bottom of the page rank
these out of 10 and add up the
totals:

32. Interview for success
IS HE / SHE:
PUNCTUAL (ATTENDED ON TIME / EARLY)
WELL SPOKEN
PERSISTENT
PATIENT
OUTGOING
METICULOUS
A LITTLE PUSHY
CONFIDENT
GOAL ORIENTED
STABLE
PROBLEM SOLVER
HONEST
FRIENDLY
INTELLIGENT (QUESTIONS)
RESPONSIBLE
STRONG WORK ETHICS
WELL PRESENTED

33. Interview for success
Great candidates should
naturally follow-up on an
interview with a call or e-mail,
making it easy for you to invite
them back for a second meeting
Always contact the candidates
after you have decided who is
getting the position – either way.

34. Interview for success
Top 50 questions to ask a
candidate in an interview?

35. Have you created an
environment where people want
to work for YOU this much?
Interview for success

37. Interview for success
Would they give “an arm & a
leg” to work for you?

38. Interview for success

39. Interview for success
Example of an actual interview
questionnaire?
Questions?