Career

Behavioral interviewing techniques

November 12, 2024

10 min read

As a manager in your organization, you’re tasked with finding and hiring talent that is not only qualified to perform job functions, but will also contribute positively to your team dynamic. Taking the time to assess whether a candidate fits the standards and exhibits behavior that aligns with company values is vital to a new hire’s long-term success.

Behavioral interviewing is a key tool in this process and can be integrated to help you select the best new members for your team.

What is behavioral interviewing?

Behavioral interviewing is a technique that assesses a job applicant’s work history and patterns of behavior in previous positions to predict how that individual will perform in a new role.

Sometimes called competency-based interviewing (CBI) or behavior-based interviewing (BBI), behavioral interviewing relies on the notion that past behavior predicts future behavior and actions. Every role has specific behavioral competencies that the interviewer can ask about and guide the candidate to demonstrate. This can include inquiring as to how the candidate works under pressure, reacts to conflict, previous career wins and losses, etc.

Consider this: you find out through behavioral interviewing that a prospective employee has a history of suing employers for one reason or another. Although these actions may have been warranted, this demonstrates a litigious mindset that may be carried into this employee’s new role if hired. For some employers, this raises a red flag.

While this is an extreme scenario, information like this is not learned on a resume, but through behavioral interviewing. And it could be valuable in determining whether or not the candidate would be a good fit for your organization.

What happens during behavioral interviewing?

During the process of behavioral interviewing, prospective employees are asked about real-life situations that have occurred in their past employment to help assess their knowledge, skills, and abilities to do the job for which they are applying. This role has specific behavioral objectives that mesh with the culture of the company and help define the position. In accounting, this may include how they communicate, being detailed-oriented, problem solving, initiative, and follow-through.

Traits to pinpoint with behavioral interviewing

You should design behavioral interviewing questions that allow candidates to demonstrate specific knowledge and skills.

Technical skills are industry- and job-specific. Examples of technical skills for an accounting role may include:

Demonstrating proficiency at completing case study reports
Investigating erroneous charges that may be impacting the bottom line

Since the accounting industry requires basic technical skills across the board, soft skills and cultural fit can be a major determining factor in a candidate’s suitability for a job position. Some of the most common traits for any role include problem solving, stress management, and credibility. For management roles, this also means having the ability to lead others and being able to persevere when things get tough.

Why is behavioral interviewing important?

Behavioral interviewing helps you select the right candidate the first time. When a bad hire is made, it affects the company in several ways:

Costs of finding a new employee
Costs of training a new employee
Loss of time and productivity
Low morale
Poor customer retention
Reduction in sales

With all these factors affecting the bottom line, using the behavioral interviewing process becomes more important with each good hire. To date, it costs approximately $7,000 to replace a salaried employee, $10,000 to replace a mid-level employee, and $40,000 to replace a senior executive.

In the accounting field, a bad hire may have additional implications, such as:

Tax reporting errors
Financial fraud
Errors in financial statements
Incorrect management reports

If any of these or other consequences occur, it could severely impact the firm’s profits and reputation.

Behavioral interviewing vs. other techniques

Behavioral interviewing is the most effective and recommend way to find your new hire. However, there are two other types of interviews that hiring managers sometimes use. Here’s how each technique stacks up against behavioral interviewing:

Traditional vs. behavioral interviewing

The traditional interview asks questions that usually require a direct answer. This is the most popular form of interview and is easier for interviewers to conduct. The interviewer can be creative with their questions, but answers will usually be generic. There are issues with this type of interview because candidates can rehearse what they will say. Additionally, there is no gauge for a candidate to stand out from the others, and there is no basis for determining the real knowledge, skill, or ability of the candidate.

Situational vs. behavioral interviewing

Managers use situational interviewing techniques to form hypothetical questions, seeking specific answers as to what a candidate would do in certain situations. However, even if the candidate answers “correctly,” situational interviewing can’t predict this action with accuracy. If candidates do not have practical experience in the situation, they are only answering as to what they may do, not what they have done.

How to do behavioral interviewing

Preparing for a behavioral interview

To be effective at behavioral interviewing, you must first prepare with the following steps:

Job analysis: Interviewers must fully understand the position and the requirements needed to be effective in the role. You should conduct a thorough job analysis to outline the responsibilities, KSAs (knowledge, skills, and abilities), minimum hiring requirements, and qualifications.
Job description: If there is no job description, the analysis should be used to put one together. It should include an overall summary of the position, responsibilities, KSAs, preferred qualifications, and minimum requirements to be considered for the role. A job description is also a legal document and should be co-written by an HR professional or employment attorney.
Identify competencies for the interview: Once you have the analysis and description in place, it is essential to identify the technical skills needed to be successful in the role. For an accounting candidate, a short skills assessment is warranted to determine comfort and proficiency in the work. These tests must be validated to avoid discriminatory practices. Determine the competencies that will be used to select the candidate. They should mirror those of the role and should be in line with the duties that are most essential.
Define positive and negative indicators of the review: Each competency should have a positive and negative indicator that will be used to evaluate each candidate. These indicators should be organization-specific and mirror the values of the organization.
Create a rating scale: Rating scales help determine the best candidates based on competencies and assist in avoiding discriminatory practices.
Write the questions: The most effective formula for behavioral interview questions is:
1. Use an opening starter, for example “Tell me about a time when you…” or “Describe a situation in which you…”
2. Add a competency-based action, like “how you faced a problem”
3. Include any needed qualifiers, such as “…in order to respond to the needs of a client, customer, or your manager.”

It is key to ask questions based on competencies needed to be successful in the role. They should be situations that are likely to occur on the job, so you’re able to effectively process how the candidate would react in that situation. Questions should not be asked that are not related to the position.

For management positions, the types of questions being asked should be more detailed to fully assess experienced candidates. In most cases, you can use the STAR method. Each letter of the acronym represents a part of the response from the candidate that will help the interviewer determine their KSAs. If the candidate does not reveal that response, the interviewer can probe deeper.

Here is what STAR means:

S-Situation: This is where the candidate gives an overview of the situation
T-Task: The candidate should fully explain the tasks needed to be done in the situation
A-Action: The candidate should speak in specifics about actions they took in the situation
R-Results: The candidate should be able to provide results of their actions Before the interview itself, be sure to study the candidate’s resume and have formulated your behavioral interviewing questions.

During the behavioral interview

During behavioral interviewing, ask the questions you prepared. Be sure to ask the same questions to every candidate for fairness and transparency. After the candidate answers, feel free to probe for more details and offer follow-up questions to gather additional insight. When evaluating candidate responses, you should use both positive and negative indicators.

Use the STAR method for candidates with and without experience, using the same behavioral interview questions. This provides consistency across the board. For candidates without past experiences in the role, they should be encouraged to draw from other experiences such as internships, volunteer work, activities in school, etc.

Take organized notes to distinguish one candidate from the other. If using a rating scale, make clear notes to support the rating. Do not write notes on resumes, but on a separate pad of paper. It is important to let the candidate do most of the talking. Standard interviews take about an hour, with at least six to eight behavioral interview questions.

In behavioral interviewing—and in any interview process—you should put candidates at ease by greeting them warmly, making eye contact, and engaging in small talk prior to the interview. Avoiding discriminatory questions is key; stray away from anything about family life, native language, or religious clothing. Offer something to drink, be positive, and have a relaxed demeanor.

Behavioral interview agenda:

Introduction to the organization
Explanation of the interview process
Details about the position
Candidate questions

Learn more about effective management strategy

Understanding how behavioral interviewing can provide insight and assist in selecting the right candidate help your organization save time and money. Do it right the first time, and you’ll notice the benefits!

Learn more about behavioral interviewing and other effective management tips through Becker CPE courses for managers—available through our all-access 12-month Prime CPE subscription!