Competency-Based Interviewing (STAR Model)

Fundamentals of Critical Incident Screening

Competency-based interviewing moves away from the traditional biographical approach to focus on eliciting specific behavioral examples.

Its rationale is that past behavior is the best predictor of future performance in similar situations.

This technique requires that the organization has previously defined the cardinal and specific competencies required for the position through a rigorous job analysis.

Unlike a technical examination, this style seeks to capture actual facts, actions and feelings of the individual in the face of past challenges.

By asking for detailed narratives, the evaluator can identify whether the individual possesses the adaptability necessary to develop new skills within the organization.

STAR Breakdown: Situation, Task, Action, Outcome

The STAR Model is the structured tool par excellence for organizing the competency inquiry.

It starts with a Situation where the candidate must describe a specific context: what happened, where and with whom.

Then, the Task is investigated, i.e., the exact role the individual had to fulfill and what was expected of him/her at that moment.

The Action phase is the most relevant, since it describes the concrete steps and behaviors that the subject executed to address the problem.

Finally, the Result is measured, evaluating the effect of these actions and the learning obtained.

This breakdown makes it possible to transform an anecdote into objective and comparable data, facilitating decision making based on behavioral evidence and not on assumptions.

Summary

This approach moves away from the biographical to obtain specific behavioral examples, assuming that past behavior predicts future performance. It requires prior job analysis to capture actual facts and feelings about past job challenges.

The STAR Model organizes the inquiry: first the Situation (context), then the Task (individual's role), the Action (concrete steps performed) and finally the Result obtained.

This breakdown transforms anecdotes into comparable objective data for decision making.Alternative Interviews