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Behavioral interviewing, which involves probing into a candidate's past behavior to predict their future behavior and performance, is hardly a new phenomenon. But despite having been around for decades, behavioral interviewing techniques remain in use today - and have probably never been more vital, for three reasons.
First, in an era of unprecedented transparency (thanks to the rise of Glassdoor, Twitter and numerous other platforms), candidate feedback has made it painfully obvious that most companies do not spend enough time prepping interviewers to do their jobs well. When a candidate comes onsite for an interview panel, they often spend their time in back-to-back sessions with prospective colleagues who have neither had the time to digest their resume nor put sufficient thought into the questions they should be asking. The result: a dreadful candidate experience which can end up being exposed on social platforms, creating a negative impression with future candidates. For heads of recruiting and employer branding, this makes it more imperative that interviewers understand how to effectively evaluate candidates and increases the attractiveness of techniques like behavioral interviewing.
Second, we have recently seen the rise of diversity and inclusion as a hot topic in talent. With it has come a backlash against "culture fit"-type interviews, which can be a dangerous breeding ground for unconscious bias and discrimination. Whether or not an interviewer would enjoy grabbing a beer with a candidate should not be the key screening criterion. By instead giving interviewers the tools to focus on what matters - an individual's suitability for the role, as demonstrated by their past behavior and experience - companies can help nip bias in the bud and increase the chances of qualified candidates getting the appropriate level of consideration, regardless of their background.
Third, behavioral interviewing actually works. Research shows that behavioral interviewing can be 55 per cent predictive of future on-the-job behavior, while traditional interviewing is only 10 per cent predictive. When your candidate describes a particular project or experience in detail, you have the opportunity to ask probing questions such as "What were you thinking when you did that?" or "Why do you think you were successful?". Behavioral interviewing, a far cry from the questions "Tell me about yourself" and "Are you good at X?", is...