Whetten David A., Cameron Kim S. Developing management skills

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CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS SUPPLEMENT B 637

_______ take notes inconspicuously?

_______ avoid verbal pauses such as uh, uhm, and so forth?

Comments:

Performance-Appraisal Interview with Chris Jakobsen

Background Information for Pat Ginelli

You are vice president of the Commercial Loan Division at Firstbank, a medium-sized,

state-licensed bank. You have been with Firstbank for four years and have conducted a

number of performance-appraisal interviews. During your tenure, you have increased your

division’s proﬁts by 45 percent. Your goal is to increase this level by another 15 percent

before the end of next year. In order to do so, you need to have aggressive, dynamic, and

dedicated loan ofﬁcers working for you.

Chris Jakobsen has been with Firstbank for three years. This will be your ﬁrst review of

Chris’s performance because he was transferred to your department ﬁve months ago to ﬁll a

loan ofﬁcer position vacated by Helen Smith, who had worked in the Personal Loan Division.

You agreed to the transfer after reviewing Chris’s credentials and past performance appraisal

forms. Chris appeared to be qualiﬁed for the position, and the performance appraisal reports

indicated that Chris’s work was rated from above average to outstanding.

Unfortunately, you have been extremely disappointed with Chris’s performance in

your department. For a longtime bank employee, he seems surprisingly unfamiliar with

standard procedures and protocol. Last week, he told a customer there shouldn’t be any

problem getting approval for her loan application. She wanted to open a boutique in a ren-

ovated building downtown. However, the review committee turned it down because the

building hadn’t met code yet.

There are several other deﬁciencies in Chris’s performance. In contrast to Helen, Chris

seems inattentive to detail. He has frequently left out important information on loan appli-

cations, causing needless delays in processing. Furthermore, he doesn’t seem to be able to

keep up with the workload. It takes him twice as long as it should to handle routine paper-

work, and he seems totally ill at ease with your department’s computerized information sys-

tem. Due to a favorable investment environment and the recent opening of a local industrial

park, your group’s workload is up 50 percent from a year ago. You simply can’t tolerate hav-

ing to take extra time to make sure Chris is doing things right the ﬁrst time.

In Chris’s favor, he is extremely punctual and his attendance has been perfect. He also

keeps a very neat work area and takes pride in his own appearance. Furthermore, as a

native of the community and an active civic leader, he has very good contacts in the busi-

ness community. It is also clear that everyone likes Chris. He is jovial and easygoing. He has

a quick wit that livens up even the most routine and dull staff meeting. He loves treating

coworkers during happy hour after work. Unfortunately, he sometimes loses perspective

and gets carried away. Indeed, you’ve wondered at times how this free spirit ended up in a

bank job. Certainly his attitude runs counter to your more formal and reserved personality,

but it’s hard to deny he has charm and class.

In general, Chris seems to have plenty of potential, but at best his current work per-

formance is only average (an “expected” rating on your company’s form). He just hasn’t

applied himself to his new position. You wonder if this is the right work for him or if per-

haps he hasn’t had adequate training. You spent some time orienting Chris to the group

and assigned Jim, a veteran of the department, to act as his mentor. But, in retrospect, the

local business boom has made it difﬁcult for you and Jim to help Chris learn the ropes.

Your days seem to be ﬁlled up with meetings with local investors and city planners. Still,

it bugs you that he never asks questions. If he needs help with the technical aspects of the

job, why doesn’t he ever ask for assistance?

638 SUPPLEMENT B CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS

You have scheduled the interview with Chris for later in the day in your ofﬁce. You

know your review will make him very unhappy and probably put him on the defensive.

He obviously has high aspirations for advancing in the bank and has received pretty pos-

itive feedback in the past. You’ve got to ﬁgure out some way to get him to improve. Your

department is short-handed as it is, and everyone must contribute his or her share.

As you contemplate the unpleasant task ahead, you reﬂect, “Boy, I certainly miss

Helen. I never had to have this type of conversation with her.”

Assignment for Pat Ginelli

In preparation for this interview, complete a draft of the performance evaluation form in

Exhibit 1 (the form is located after Chris’s assignment). In keeping with standard

practice, you have given a blank copy of the form to Chris and asked him to do a self-

evaluation. He will bring his completed form to the interview.

After you have completed your draft, identify the type of performance-appraisal

interview you feel is most appropriate for this situation (see Table B.9). Also, review the

behavioral guidelines at the end of the Skill Learning section. Then formulate a series of

questions consistent with your overall strategy. Finally, anticipate questions and objec-

tions Chris might initiate and prepare responses. Compare your plans in small groups

and make revisions. Use the Interview Checklist in Table B.4 to guide your discussion.

Upon completion of your small-group discussion, prepare to conduct the interview

with Chris. Do not look at the background information for Chris’s role prior to the inter-

view. An observer will use the Observer’s Feedback Form to give you feedback.

Background Information for Chris Jakobsen

You have been with Firstbank, a medium-sized, state-licensed bank, for three years. For

most of that time, you worked in the Personal Loan Division as a loan ofﬁcer. You liked

your job, your clients, and the people with whom you worked. You had hoped your ﬁrst

move at Firstbank would be a promotion within the Personal Loan Division. However, ﬁve

months ago, you were transferred to the Commercial Loan Division to replace a loan ofﬁ-

cer who had worked in that position for 10 years. You did not really want to transfer, but

you realized the move would, in fact, put you in a better position for the next upward

move. Your former supervisor indicated you would not have to stay in this position very

long if you kept receiving good ratings on your performance appraisal forms, and you have

always received outstanding or above-average ratings. He argued you really needed to gain

exposure to other departments in the bank as well as to other managers. Your new boss,

Pat Ginelli, is a real rising star in the bank.

You expect your new supervisor, Pat, is going to be pretty tough on you. You feel

frustrated and upset because you don’t think there has been any change in your effort or

commitment. Since you have been in the department, Pat’s attitude toward you has

seemed very distant and formal. You know Pat thinks the person you replaced was an

excellent worker who contributed greatly to Pat’s goal of achieving a 15 percent

increase in proﬁts this year. But certainly she doesn’t expect you to immediately pick up

where a 10-year veteran left off.

Then there’s the problem of training. She promised to give you a thorough orienta-

tion when you arrived, but instead you were shunted off to Jim. He seemed sincere and

interested in helping out, and he told you to come and ask questions whenever you

needed help. However, when you asked about the department’s loan-application proce-

dure, he made you feel like an idiot for asking such a basic question, and you’ve never

gone back. Furthermore, Pat always seems to be in meetings. You realize she is bringing

in important business for the bank, so you feel it would be inappropriate to distract her

with your basic questions.

CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS SUPPLEMENT B 639

This lack of assistance has caused you to make some mistakes. These have primarily

been due to the change in procedures between the Personal and Commercial Loan

departments. You had much more autonomy and authority over there, probably because

the loans were much smaller. In addition, there are many more government regulations

to worry about over here. Besides, you really miss the close contact with people that was

built into your old job. That’s why you took your ﬁrst job in the bank. You have always

been a very people-oriented person and received great satisfaction from helping them.

Now, you just seem to be buried in paperwork and committee meetings. Some days, you

regret accepting the offer to transfer. You’re not sure this stepping-stone to advancement

is worth the lost enjoyment you received in your former position.

Assignment for Chris Jakobsen

Your interview with Pat is scheduled for her ofﬁce. In preparation for the interview, Pat

has asked you to complete a copy of the performance-appraisal form as a self-evaluation.

Prior to the interview, complete the form in Exhibit 1. Do not review the background

information for Pat’s role.

Exhibit 1 Interview with Chris Jakobsen

Employee Performance Appraisal

DATA COMPLETED

NAME Chris Jakobsen

DATE OF BIRTH 6/22/65

YEARS OF EMPLOYMENT 3

OFFICE LOCATION BRANCH 4 DEPARTMENTAL 9

DEPARTMENT Commercial

PRESENT JOB TITLE Loan Ofﬁcer

CONVERSION CODE 32

YEARS IN PRESENT POSITION 6 months

SOC. SEC. NO. 555–33–9999

EDUCATION B.A.—Business

Select the statement under each of the following categories that best describes the

individual.

Quality of Work

General excellence of output with consideration to accuracy—thoroughness—

dependability—without close supervision.

Exceptionally high quality. Consistently accurate, precise, quick to detect errors

in own and others’ work.

Work sometimes superior and usually accurate. Negligible amount needs to be

redone. Work regularly meets standards.

A careful worker. A small amount of work needs to be redone. Corrections

made in reasonable time. Usually meets normal standards.

Work frequently below acceptable quality. Inclined to be careless. Moderate

amount of work needs to be redone. Excessive time to correct.

640 SUPPLEMENT B CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS

Work often almost worthless. Seldom meets normal standards. Excessive

amount needs to be redone.

Quantity of Work

Consider the amount of useful work over the period of time since the last appraisal.

Compare the output of work to the standard you have set for the job.

Output consistently exceeds standards. Unusually fast worker. Exceptional

amount of output.

Maintains a high rate of production. Frequently exceeds standards. More than

normal effort.

Output is regular. Meets standards consistently. Works at steady average speed.

Frequently turns out less-than-normal amount of work. A low producer.

A consistently low producer. Excessively slow worker. Unacceptable output.

Cooperation

Consider the employee’s attitude toward the work, the employee’s coworkers, and super-

visors. Does the employee appreciate the need to understand and help solve problems

with others?

Always congenial and cooperative. Enthusiastic and cheerfully helpful in

emergencies. Well-liked by associates.

Cooperates well. Understands and complies with all rules. Usually demonstrates

a good attitude. Liked by associates.

Usually courteous and cooperative. Follows orders but at times needs reminding.

Gets along well with associates.

Does only what is speciﬁcally requested. Sometimes complains about following

instructions. Reluctant to help others.

Unfriendly and uncooperative. Refuses to help others.

Knowledge of the Job

The degree to which the employee has learned and understands the various procedures of

the job and their objectives.

Exceptional understanding of all phases. Demonstrates unusual desire to

acquire information.

Thorough knowledge in most phases. Has interest and potential toward personal

growth.

Adequate knowledge for normal performance. Will not voluntarily seek

development.

Insufﬁcient knowledge of job. Resists criticism and instruction.

No comprehension of the requirements of job.

Dependability

The reliability of the employee in performing assigned tasks accurately and within the

allotted time.

Exceptional. Can be left on own and will establish priorities to meet deadlines.

Very reliable. Minimal supervision required to complete assignments.

Dependable in most assignments. Normal supervision required. A profitable

worker.

CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS SUPPLEMENT B 641

Needs frequent follow-up. Excessive prodding necessary.

Chronic procrastinator. Control required is out of all proportion.

Attendance and Punctuality

Consider the employee’s record, reliability, and ability to conduct the job within the unit’s

work rules.

Unusual compliance and understanding of work discipline. Routine usually

exceeds normal.

Excellent. Complete conformity with rules but cheerfully volunteers time during

peak loads.

Normally dependable. Rarely needs reminding of accepted rules.

Needs close supervision in this area. Inclined to backslide without strict

discipline.

Unreliable. Resists normal rules. Frequently wants special privileges.

Knowledge of Company Policy and Objectives

Acceptance, understanding, and promotion of company policies and objectives in the area

of the employee’s job responsibilities.

Thorough appreciation and implementation of all policies. Extraordinary ability

to express objectives and encourage others to meet them.

Reﬂects knowledge of almost all policies related to this position.

Acceptable but fairly superﬁcial understanding of job objectives.

Limited insight into job or company goals. Mentally restricted.

Not enough information or understanding to permit minimum efﬁciency.

Initiative and Judgment

The ability and interest to suggest and develop new ideas and methods; the degree to

which these suggestions and normal decisions and actions are sound.

Ingenious self-starter. Superior ability to think intelligently.

Very resourceful. Clear thinker—usually makes thoughtful decisions.

Fairly progressive, with normal sense. Often needs to be motivated.

Rarely makes suggestions. Decisions need to be checked before implementation.

Needs detailed instructions and close supervision. Tendency to assume and

misinterpret.

Supervisory or Technical Potential

Consider the employee’s ability to teach and increase skills of others, to motivate and

lead, to organize and assign work, and to communicate ideas.

An accomplished leader who can earn respect and inspire others to perform.

An articulate and artful communicator, planner, and organizer.

Has the ability to reach and will lead by example rather than technique. Speaks

and writes well and can organize and plan with help.

Fairly well informed on job-related subjects but has some difﬁculty communi-

cating with others. Nothing distinctive about spoken or written word.

Little ability to implement. Seems uninterested in teaching or helping others.

Careless speech and writing habits.

Unable to be objective or reason logically. Inarticulate and stilted in expression.

642 SUPPLEMENT B CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS

Overall Rating

There are ﬁve alternatives in each category. The ﬁrst alternative is worth 5 points, the last

alternative is worth 1 point. Place a number from 1–5 by each of the selected alternatives

and total the score for all nine categories. Then select the appropriate overall rating.

Outstanding (45–39)

Above Expected (38–32)

Expected (31–23)

Below Expected (22–16)

Unsatisfactory (15–9)

Observer’s Feedback Form

RATING

1 = Low

5 = High

Introduction

1. Did interviewer

_______ use appropriate greeting?

_______ build rapport?

_______ orient interviewee to the interview?

_______ refer to taking notes?

Body

2. Did interviewer

_______ praise individual’s strengths?

_______ focus on speciﬁc concerns?

_______ compare perceptions of the problems?

_______ probe for underlying causes?

_______ reach agreement on performance expectations and goals?

_______ discuss speciﬁc plans of action for improving deﬁciencies?

_______ make speciﬁc references to the appraisal form?

Conclusion

3. Did interviewer

_______ provide opportunity for interviewee to make suggestions and ask

questions?

_______ summarize interview?

_______ specify when next appraisal interview will be held?

Nonverbals

4. Did interviewer

_______ use nonverbal behaviors to maintain open climate and good rapport?

_______ avoid use of uhs and uhms?

_______ maintain good posture?

_______ maintain eye contact?

Comments:

CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS SUPPLEMENT B 643

Employment-Selection Interview at Smith Farley Insurance

Smith Farley is a rapidly growing insurance ﬁrm located in Peoria, Illinois. It offers general

lines of insurance, including auto, ﬁre, life, and health. It prides itself on its competitive

rates, excellent agent relations, and fast claim service. Employees of the ﬁrm appreciate its

no-layoff policy, generous pay and benefits, and family-oriented culture. Next to

Caterpillar, it is the largest employer in the community, a source of employee pride.

Smith Farley has taken the lead in computerizing the insurance business. Agents and

claim handlers conduct much of their business using laptop computers in their ofﬁces and in

the ﬁeld. Furthermore, the agents’ and claim handlers’ ofﬁces are all networked with one

another as well as with the regional ofﬁces. This permits rapid transfer of information,

including rate changes, new applications, and claims.

To support this massive computer system, the ﬁrm has installed state-of-the-art com-

puter hardware in its 10 regional ofﬁce centers. In addition, the company has a large soft-

ware development and maintenance department, which has doubled in size in the past ﬁve

years and now employs 800 programmers. These programmers are generally recruited

directly from college. Although they need no previous experience, any relevant experience

can help new programmers move quickly into management or senior technical positions.

Programmer/analysts use typical programming languages to develop computer appli-

cations for the insurance business (e.g., new claim-handler and customer application

forms), for the corporate headquarters staff (e.g., accounting and personnel records), and

the computer system itself (internal procedures and controls). Data processing positions

range from extremely technical design of complex computer networks to routine mainte-

nance of existing programs.

All new programmers are put through a 16-week school in which they are oriented to

the company and the data processing department, brought up to speed on the relevant pro-

gramming languages and tools, and socialized into the corporate culture. To meet the heavy

demand for computer applications, the data processing department has been authorized to

hire two cohorts of 60 programmers a year.

To attract programmers to the ﬁrm, Smith Farley offers above-average starting salaries

and rapid promotions during the ﬁrst ﬁve years. After that, individuals can continue to

pursue the technical career option, which leads to a senior analyst’s position that pays

about $10,000 above industry average, or they can move into management. The consis-

tently high performance of the ﬁrm and its ongoing expansion of data processing afford

ample opportunity for promotion into senior positions.

You are J. R. Henderson, a 20-year employee of Smith Farley. For the past 10 years

you have been working in the personnel department, primarily interviewing job candi-

dates for the data processing department. You enjoy your work—the constant contact

with young, enthusiastic college graduates is invigorating—but sometimes you ﬁnd the

heavy travel schedule taxing.

For example, during the next week you will be traveling to three cities: ﬁrst to nearby

Bloomington, then to New Orleans and Atlanta. In addition to the regular campus inter-

views you have scheduled in these areas, you have received several résumés in response to

local newspaper ads. In sifting through these inquiries, three résumés caught your interest.

You have made arrangements to interview all three applicants during this trip.

Assignment

Review Exhibits 1 through 5 and prepare a list of questions you would ask these three job

candidates. Using the Interview Guide planning form at the end of the chapter, review

the general questions you should ask all three. In addition, identify several speciﬁc ques-

tions you would like to ask the candidate(s) you are assigned, based on their résumés and

cover letters.

644 SUPPLEMENT B CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS

Review your proposed questions in small groups. What points did you overlook?

What questions need to be reworded or discarded?

Using the questions you think are most appropriate, be prepared to conduct selection

interviews with these job candidates in class. Prior to each interview, think about the

questions each candidate is likely to ask you about the company, the community of

Peoria, and the speciﬁc jobs available. In addition, identify your “selling points”—the spe-

cific features of the company, the community, and the jobs you think each candidate

would ﬁnd most attractive. Also review the general behavioral guidelines and the six-step

PEOPLE approach to selection interviews (Table B.8). Remember: The interviewing

process inﬂuences the content of the information exchanged.

Following the interview, take a few minutes and grade the interviewee on each of

the seven criteria on the Interview Guide (5 = high, 1 = low). Justify your grades with

speciﬁc comments. Then make an oral report to the observer assigned to your interview;

include a recommendation. (Assume the observer is the director of recruiting for your

ﬁrm.) After your report, for those criteria related to the interview itself (as compared with

the background of the assigned role), discuss your observations with the interviewee.

Following this discussion, an observer will give you feedback on your performance as an

interviewer using the Observer’s Feedback Form as a guide.

Exhibit 1 Smith Farley Insurance Job Posting

A. POSITIONS OPEN

1. Programmer/Analyst—Auto & Life Company Data Processing Trainee openings leading

to Programmer/Analyst positions at the conclusion of 16-week training program. The

DP Trainee is trained in the programming skills necessary to either develop new or to

revise data-processing programs that help administer over 10 million auto, life, ﬁre, and

health insurance policies.

2. Analyst—Computer Operations Support Trainee opening leading to Analyst positions

at conclusion of a nine-month training program. Computer Operations Support is

responsible for technical operations support for the Regional Data Processing Ofﬁces,

including: developing operator procedures, developing and administering training,

problem resolution, and coordinating implementation of new systems and major

changes for Regional Data Processing Ofﬁces.

B. MAJORS CONSIDERED

We are recruiting for three Data Processing Departments (Auto Data Processing, Life Data

Processing, and Computer Operations Support), each having different requirements,

which are as follows:

1. Auto Data Processing: Strongly prefer applied computer science, computer technology,

and MIS majors, but will consider other majors with 12–15 hours of computer science

academic background. Strongly prefer 3.0 overall GPA.

Logical analysis, problem-solving skills, and communication skills are important for

expected job performance. Candidates should possess course work in COBOL, C,

C++, and/or Java.

2. Life Data Processing: Most college majors are acceptable (i.e., mathematics, business

or related majors, English, music, and science).

Student must have a sincere interest in and aptitude for data processing. Only students

with a 3.5 overall GPA will be considered.

CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS SUPPLEMENT B 645

3. Computer Operations Support: Most business majors are acceptable (i.e., business,

business administration, ﬁnance, economics, accounting, etc., with 6–10 hours of

computer science academic background). Prefer a 3.0 overall GPA.

Student must have a sincere interest in and aptitude for data processing.

C. CITIZENSHIP REQUIREMENTS

Must be citizens or permanent residents.

D. LOCATION

These positions will be located at the corporate headquarters in Peoria, Illinois.

Exhibit 2 Interview Guide for Data Processing (DP)

APPLICANT’S NAME SCHOOL

INTERVIEW DATE GPA

LOCATION TIME MAJOR

APPLICANT-SPECIFIC

CRITERION FOCUS GENERAL QUESTIONS QUESTIONS

Aptitude/ Determine if exposure Of the DP courses you

Knowledge to and retention of a have had, which was the

high-level computer most beneﬁcial and why?

language and Explain in detail the most

development methods difﬁcult DP assignment

are adequate. you have had. How do

you rate yourself as a

programmer? Why?

Interest/ Determine if interest How did you ﬁrst get

Experience and record of success interested in DP? What

in DP studies or work about it do you like the

has been sustained most? The least? Can you

(2+ years). give me an example of a

DP-related experience

you have had that was

satisfying? Not satisfying?

What is your professional

goal?

Ability to Determine success Do you feel you work

work with of achieving results more effectively on a

others in team effort. one-to-one basis or in a

group? Describe a

situation in which you

worked as a member of a

team. What approach did

you take to get people

together and establish a

common approach to

the task?

(Continued)

646 SUPPLEMENT B CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS

APPLICANT-SPECIFIC

CRITERION FOCUS GENERAL QUESTIONS QUESTIONS

Commitment/ Determine level of What approaches do

Initiative success in achieving you use to get people to

task completion in light accept your ideas or

of task complexity, goals? What is a big

adversity, load, level obstacle you had to

of knowledge, and overcome to get where

so forth. you are today? Do you

consider yourself a

self-starter or are you

better at implementing

the plans of others?

Communi- Determine quality Would you rather write

cation of written/spoken a report or give a verbal

word. report? Why? Do you

think you are a good

listener? What qualities do

you need to be a good

listener? How do you

handle a situation when you

are explaining something and

the other person doesn’t

understand?

Problem Determine if applicant In your opinion, what are

solving/ has a record of the most difﬁcult problems

Decision addressing relatively with which a programmer/

making complex projects. analyst must deal? What

particular strengths do

you have that allow you

to deal with these problems?

What design methods do

you use to create a program?

Describe how to use them.

Describe the most complex

program you have ever

written.

Other: Stability

Maturity

Leadership

Personal appearance

Exhibit 3 Résumé

William L. Henderson II

Campus Home

700 North Camden #107 1915 Western Hills

Normal, IL 61761 Arlington Heights, IL 60004

(309) 454–6178 (312) 255–5738