USHG Employment
Career Center

• Interview Ideas
• Learn more — Make them sweat
• Before you hire — Analyze them!

Learn more — Make them sweat

Is your kitchen used in the research of ulcer development? Need a chef who loves to stand in the center of a tornado? Consider conducting stress interviews with your next group of candidates. This rarely used tactic can narrow the field by highlighting those candidates who can remain calm, think quickly and inventively, and stand up for themselves.

Manipulating the environment of the interview is one way to put pressure on the candidates. Force the candidate to wait either by arriving late or attending to other duties before starting. Use silence to create stress by not speaking for the first five minutes or by not reacting after a candidate responds to a tough question. Surprise the interviewees with a group interview or ask them to participate in a meeting.

Unusual interview questions will also induce stress. Tell me the worst thing you have heard about our company? Why is your last employer happy that you left? I don't think you are right for this position, what do you think?

Successful candidates will remain poised, take time to consider the difficult questions, and attempt to elicit more information. They will reiterate their qualifications, provide examples to illustrate their points, and challenge you to defend your beliefs.

Before you hire — Analyze them!

Does your new hire only resemble 90% of the candidate you thought you'd hired? Do your impressions of applicants begin to blur during second interviews? Consider formalizing the process by writing down job criteria, personality traits, and other qualities your new employee should possess. Use this criteria and your favorite interview questions to create a candidate analysis form.

General information should be the first section of the form: job title, educational preferences, days needed, physical capabilities, etc. . . These items should be the most minimal requirements necessary to fill the position.

The second section can focus on the next level of candidate qualities. What are the top ten skills needed to be successful in this position? What did the last employee do that you would like to continue? What did the last employee do that you would like to change? These inquires might guide your development of interview questions.

Behavioral and personality traits should be evaluated in the third section. A range such as High/Medium/Low can be helpful in evaluating the reactions of candidates. Do you prefer a temperamental or calm chef? How competitive should the sous chefs be? What level of reliability does your waitstaff need?

Be sure to provide yourself with a section to write down overall impressions or unique talents. By using a candidate analysis form, you can reduce hiring pitfalls by making interviews less subjective.