Competency based interviews are becoming increasingly popular as a way to predict a candidate’s future performance. Essentially a series of behavioural questions, the interviewer will ask you to demonstrate a skill using real life examples.
Answering competency based questions
We recommend the STAR technique, describing:
- the Situation
- the Task required as a result
- the Action you took
- the Result of that action
Be positive in your response but resist the temptation to embellish your achievements. If you can’t think of a good example straight away, ask the interviewer for a moment or two.
Here are some typical competency based questions:
- How do you establish your priorities for the day?
- Tell me about a time when you had to change a colleague's mind.
- When did you last solve a problem with decisive action?
- Can you give an example of when you had to multi-task to meet a deadline?
Remember to be yourself when answering competency questions; use real life examples and relate them to your experience, how you reacted or how it made you feel.