Competence Based Interviewing as a Tool for Selecting Job Applicants

Introduction 

Employers conduct job interviews which are formal meetings where the applicant responds to questions directed to them. The interviewer is determined to know the suitability of a candidate for the position they applied for. There are different types of interviews ranging from face to face, video or phone interviews. Similarly, it can be a one on one, a panel or even a group interview. All job interviews can be restructured into three ways which include structured interviews, unstructured interviews, and semi-structured interviews. In a structured interview, the interviewer asks predetermined questions that are planned and created in advance. All candidates are therefore asked the same questions and follow the same order. Unstructured interviews, on the other hand, are the types where the interviewer asks questions depending on the situation implying that such questions are not pre-planned or prepared in advance. Questions, therefore, emerge spontaneously from a free-flowing conversation. This approach ensures that all candidates are not asked the same question. Semi-structured interviews involve the use of a few predetermined questions but the rest of the questions appear spontaneously. It is assumed that structured and unstructured interviews can help the employer ascertain the most appropriate candidate for a position by identifying their skills and knowledge in addition to their suitability for the position (Torrington, 2017). The purpose of this proposal is to investigate whether competency-based interviewing is an effective selection tool for the human resources of an organization. 

Research Background 

The need for human resources in an organization has led to the development of different approaches used to screen potential job applicants to determine their suitability. Such techniques have helped recruiters to identify candidates who are best suited for a given position. Human resource managers use competency-based interviews to test the competence of each candidate. Some of the issues considered include past experience, qualifications, and skills. The interviewer is interested to know whether the job applicant has the right skills for the position. Competency-based interviews are often used in case past experience in an industry is not essential for the position. Similarly, they can be used to test how the job applicant will react to a given situation whereby the recruiter will place more emphasis on the behavior of an individual in certain situations. Some of the tasks can include problem-solving, planning, written or oral communication. Employers will also try to look for individual skills like teamwork, communication, responsibility, leadership, decision making, and problem-solving and goal orientation. The interviewer will then ask different questions depending on the role and industry the candidate is applying for. The interviewers ask such question in search of a practical example of the competencies held by the candidate. The questions in a competence base interview require the applicant to demonstrate their ability to satisfy the skills and abilities needed for a position (Torrington, 2017). However, despite their ability to uncover the competence of a job applicant, competency based interviews can also have significant shortcomings. It can omit key competencies due to the limited time frame. Similarly, important information could be missed especially if the interviewer uses structured questions. Additionally, it is difficult to evaluate such interviews unless they are worded correctly. Lastly, the use of competency-based interviews on jobs that require high minimum qualifications can lead to the hiring of overqualified candidates. The identified shortcomings, therefore, raise questions as to the applicability of competency-based interviews in human resource recruiting process and their ability to select the best candidate for a position 

Research Objectives 

The objectives of the study will be to investigate whether competence based interviewing is an effective tool for selecting suitable job applicants in an organization. The study will try to determine whether the use of structure and unstructured interviews can produce competent candidates for a given position. 

Research Question 

The researcher will be guided by the following research question. Is competency based interviewing an effective selection tool? The research question will guide the entire research work and will be useful in identifying gaps in existing literature and therefore help in the analysis of the research findings and drawing a conclusion. 

Literature Review 

Different studies have tried to establish the suitability of competence based interviews on selecting the most appropriate candidate for a position. Similarly, articles have been written concerning the topic with some of the authors pointing out that such interviews are a waste of time and do not achieve the desired goals. According to McClelland (1973), the educational qualification grades or intelligence is unrelated to the vocational success of an individual. However, the author points out that individual abilities and credentials are what determine the success of a person. As the behavior competency of an employee increase so does their ability to perform. It is, therefore, this conclusion that led to the development of competency. Despite the number of years that have passed since the author first came up with the concept, there is still so much debate on what competence and competency are. Different authors have argued that the two terms are one and the same thing while others are of the opinion that the two have significant differences (Moore, Cheng & Dainty, 2002; Ozcelik & Ferman, 2006). According to Draganidis and Mentzas (2006), competency is an identifiable knowledge, skill, and ability that can be measured or other characteristics like physical ability, behaviour, and attitude that an applicant can possess and which is critical for the performance of the assigned activities in an organization. 

Organizations are determined to achieve more results using less in an effort to reduce their cost and face an ever-changing landscape. Increased competition, globalization and a decline in the available talent have forced organizations to rethink their hiring. Schmidt & Hunter (1998) reviewed past studies on selection methods and concluded that interviews can predict job performance. It is for this reason that human resources professionals have devise approaches to formulate useful job-related interviews. According to a federal agency and CPS Human Resources Services, vigorous interview processes should incorporate structured interviews formats, competency-based questions, and behavioral based questions. 

According to an article on completing a competency based application form by HSE, applicants should describe their personal achievement that shows their competencies which are relevant to the position. A job applicant should demonstrate real life situations where their skills and quality were applied. In another article titled measuring the big five personality domains, recruiters should be able to capture the personality traits in a candidate. The five include extraversion agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism and openness to experience. Competency-based interviews should therefore be able to capture as much information as possible that demonstrates some of the traits in the job applicants. According to Weinhardt J., (2014) unstructured interviews rely on the intuition of the interviewer in addition to being the least effective predictor of the success of an applicant. The author points out that the collected information can always digress and the interviewers will have different responses from the candidates. It is therefore difficult to draw comparison given such kind of information. The intuition of the interviewer can also lead to the wrong choice. The author suggested that general mental ability tests in addition with personality and integrity can help select the best candidate if combined with work samples and structured interviews. 

Structured interviews have been identified by different researchers to be effective in the hiring of job applicants. Its ability to adhere to structure, consistency and a standardized rating process scales give such interviews the power. They are therefore capable of enhancing high levels of validity as well as reliability. Similarly, such interviews are likely to result in applicants who create value to the employer compared to unstructured interviews. According to proponents of behavioral based questions, past performance is the best predictor of future performance. Therefore experienced base interviews are valid predictors of job performance. According to Caldwell & O’Reilly (1990), competency-based approaches are in line with the assumption that the better the fit of the competencies of job seekers and the job requires the higher will the performance and satisfaction be. Job base questions must, therefore, be designed according to the core competency of an organization, the job analysis, and the job description. 

Core competencies are the traits and attitudes required in different occupations in an organization. Professional competencies include the skills, knowledge and professional attributes needed by an employee so that they can perform the assigned tasks. Employees need behavioral traits like self-confidence, integrity, and accountability among others in order to perform in their positions. Similarly, they need leadership, communication, and interpersonal skills in order to be able to make decisions and solve emerging problems. They also need functional competencies in order to carry out the required tasks and activities in specific responsibilities. 

Competency-based recruitment involves all the screening methods employed by the human resources in order to select strong candidates from job applicants in a quick and efficient manner. Such methods begin with the identification of the competencies that are needed by an organization in order to achieve its objectives. Human resource managers, therefore, develop competency models and frameworks depending on the needs of each position and the desired goal (Torrington, 2017). It is therefore critical to determine the competencies required and competencies possessed by an individual. The selection of the best candidate, therefore, depends on the gap of the competencies they hold and those required by the company. Skills, knowledge, capabilities, and behavior are some of the qualities that recruiters look for in order to reduce the said gap. 

Research Methodology 

This study intends to determine whether competency-based interviews are effective tools for selecting the employees in an organization. The researcher will gather relevant data from human resource practitioners and recruitment firms. The researcher will seek an audience with human resource managers from two large organizations, two medium and two small. Similarly, eight human resource recruitment firms will be interviews in order to get an insight into their perspective of competency-based interviews. The researcher will interview the professionals from recruitment firms through personal interviews and focus group discussion where possible in order to acquire as much information as possible and in the shortest time (Cooper & Schindler, 2014). The researcher will seek an audience with the sample three weeks in advance in order to make appropriate arrangement on the best location to conduct the interviews. Similarly, mailed questionnaires will be sent to two recruitment firms in a distant location in order to gather adequate data for comparison and analysis and to help in drawing a conclusion. 

The study will involve qualitative research methods where qualitative data will be collected. The research intends to use this technique in order to gain an in-depth understanding of the phenomenon (Cooper & Schindler, 2014). This study is therefore designed in such a way that bias is eliminated. Data collection tools will be tested three weeks before the actual study is done. The purpose of this exercise is to determine whether the instruments are collecting the required data in addition to identifying any inconsistencies before the actual study can be done. 

Data Analysis 

Different approaches will be used to analyze the collected data including content analysis, narrative analysis, and grounded theory. The textual material will be interpreted and coded through a systematic evaluation of the text in the data collection tools and field notes. This technique is appropriate for the study given that some of the issues are important yet difficult to study. The narrative analysis will be used to analyze data from focus group discussion given that some of it will be collected in the form of stories. Grounded theory analysis will use the existing theories by identifying and integrating categories of meaning from the collected data (Cooper & Schindler, 2014). The researcher will employ the different approaches in order to obtain as much insight as possible. Similarly, the weaknesses in one technique will be overcome by the other. The analyzed data will then be interpreted to come up with a conclusion on whether competence base interviews are an effective tool for selecting human resources. A research report will then be prepared where the findings and conclusions will be incorporated. 

References 

Cooper, D., & Schindler, P. (2014).  Business research methods . New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education. 

Draganidis, F., & Mentzas, G. (2006). Competency-based management: a review of systems and approaches. Information Management & Computer Security ,  14 (1), 51-64. doi: 10.1108/09685220610648373 

McClelland, D. (1973). Testing for competence rather than for "intelligence.".  American Psychologist ,  28 (1), 1-14. doi: 10.1037/h0034092 

Moore, D., Cheng, M., & Dainty, A. (2002). Competence, competency, and competencies: performance assessment in organizations. Work Study ,  51 (6), 314-319. doi: 10.1108/00438020210441876 

Torrington, D. (2017).  Human Resource Management . Pearson Education Limited. 

Ozçelik, G., & Ferman, M. (2006). Competency Approach to Human Resources Management: Outcomes and Contributions in a Turkish Cultural Context.  Human Resource Development Review ,  5 (1), 72-91. doi: 10.1177/1534484305284602 

Weinhardt J., (2014). Why unstructured job interviews are a waste of time.