Exam 9: Selection III: Interviewing

Several elements contribute to a structured interview. Describe five of these.

Scenario 9-1 Medical Office Assistant Okanagan Medical Clinic (OMC), Kelowna, B.C. We are looking for a Medical Office Assistant (MOA) to join our medical team. The primary focus of the MOA position is to provide office administration support services to two medical doctors. The essential functions and responsibilities include the following: as a primary point of contact, answers phones and gathers patient information, ensuring all patients are greeted professionally while showing respect and patience; and uses health-care software and MS office computer applications to schedule appointments and prepare reports, insurance forms, invoices, financial statements, letters, case histories, transcriptions, and medical records. The incumbent exercises adaptability, initiative, organization, time management, and independent judgment in the performance of assigned tasks. The successful candidate must possess strong written and oral communication skills and an advanced knowledge of computer programs, including Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, Internet Explorer, Access, and PowerPoint. The applicant must be able to work and communicate effectively in a small business team environment and build effective interpersonal working relationships with professional employees and clients. The standard office hours include some evening and weekend work. MOAs are routinely required to lift medical equipment and/or supplies weighing up to 10 kilograms and are regularly exposed to contagious diseases. Required qualifications include completion of Grade 12 plus graduation from either an MOA or office administration certificate program. Bookkeeping and medical industry experience would be considered a highly weighted asset. This is a full-time position effective immediately. The salary is competitive and will depend on education and experience, Please apply in confidence by email to omc@okanagan.bc.ca. -Refer to Scenario 9-1. OMC would like to use a structured interview in which the applicant is asked to describe what he or she did in given situations in the past. What type of interview is this?

Which of the following is NOT included in the major content areas to be covered in an interviewer training program?

Employment interviews are complex interactions between interviewers and applicants that occur in the context of a larger selection system. The outcome of an employment interview can be strongly dominated by the impression that the interviewer has of the applicant. What sources of information create interview impressions that influence the interview process and outcomes? Provide an example of an interview impression error you have experienced and how you would reduce the effects of this inaccurate impression in future interviews.

What is one negative outcome of pre-interview chit-chat?

Scenario 9-1 Medical Office Assistant Okanagan Medical Clinic (OMC), Kelowna, B.C. We are looking for a Medical Office Assistant (MOA) to join our medical team. The primary focus of the MOA position is to provide office administration support services to two medical doctors. The essential functions and responsibilities include the following: as a primary point of contact, answers phones and gathers patient information, ensuring all patients are greeted professionally while showing respect and patience; and uses health-care software and MS office computer applications to schedule appointments and prepare reports, insurance forms, invoices, financial statements, letters, case histories, transcriptions, and medical records. The incumbent exercises adaptability, initiative, organization, time management, and independent judgment in the performance of assigned tasks. The successful candidate must possess strong written and oral communication skills and an advanced knowledge of computer programs, including Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, Internet Explorer, Access, and PowerPoint. The applicant must be able to work and communicate effectively in a small business team environment and build effective interpersonal working relationships with professional employees and clients. The standard office hours include some evening and weekend work. MOAs are routinely required to lift medical equipment and/or supplies weighing up to 10 kilograms and are regularly exposed to contagious diseases. Required qualifications include completion of Grade 12 plus graduation from either an MOA or office administration certificate program. Bookkeeping and medical industry experience would be considered a highly weighted asset. This is a full-time position effective immediately. The salary is competitive and will depend on education and experience, Please apply in confidence by email to omc@okanagan.bc.ca. -Refer to Scenario 9-1. The outcome of an employment interview can be strongly dominated by the impression that the doctors doing the interview have of the applicant. Which of the following would NOT be a source of information that creates impressions that influence the interview process and outcomes?

Scenario 9-1 Medical Office Assistant Okanagan Medical Clinic (OMC), Kelowna, B.C. We are looking for a Medical Office Assistant (MOA) to join our medical team. The primary focus of the MOA position is to provide office administration support services to two medical doctors. The essential functions and responsibilities include the following: as a primary point of contact, answers phones and gathers patient information, ensuring all patients are greeted professionally while showing respect and patience; and uses health-care software and MS office computer applications to schedule appointments and prepare reports, insurance forms, invoices, financial statements, letters, case histories, transcriptions, and medical records. The incumbent exercises adaptability, initiative, organization, time management, and independent judgment in the performance of assigned tasks. The successful candidate must possess strong written and oral communication skills and an advanced knowledge of computer programs, including Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, Internet Explorer, Access, and PowerPoint. The applicant must be able to work and communicate effectively in a small business team environment and build effective interpersonal working relationships with professional employees and clients. The standard office hours include some evening and weekend work. MOAs are routinely required to lift medical equipment and/or supplies weighing up to 10 kilograms and are regularly exposed to contagious diseases. Required qualifications include completion of Grade 12 plus graduation from either an MOA or office administration certificate program. Bookkeeping and medical industry experience would be considered a highly weighted asset. This is a full-time position effective immediately. The salary is competitive and will depend on education and experience, Please apply in confidence by email to omc@okanagan.bc.ca. -Refer to Scenario 9-1. A past MOA applicant's résumé indicated that she had several years' experience as a medical library assistant. She was very personable during the interview, and the interview committee was extremely impressed by her familiarity with medicine and medical research. She was hired and then terminated within three months. What went wrong?

According to Statistics Canada's Workplace and Employee Survey, what percentage of surveyed firms used interviews in their pre-hiring selection?

Scenario 9-1 Medical Office Assistant Okanagan Medical Clinic (OMC), Kelowna, B.C. We are looking for a Medical Office Assistant (MOA) to join our medical team. The primary focus of the MOA position is to provide office administration support services to two medical doctors. The essential functions and responsibilities include the following: as a primary point of contact, answers phones and gathers patient information, ensuring all patients are greeted professionally while showing respect and patience; and uses health-care software and MS office computer applications to schedule appointments and prepare reports, insurance forms, invoices, financial statements, letters, case histories, transcriptions, and medical records. The incumbent exercises adaptability, initiative, organization, time management, and independent judgment in the performance of assigned tasks. The successful candidate must possess strong written and oral communication skills and an advanced knowledge of computer programs, including Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, Internet Explorer, Access, and PowerPoint. The applicant must be able to work and communicate effectively in a small business team environment and build effective interpersonal working relationships with professional employees and clients. The standard office hours include some evening and weekend work. MOAs are routinely required to lift medical equipment and/or supplies weighing up to 10 kilograms and are regularly exposed to contagious diseases. Required qualifications include completion of Grade 12 plus graduation from either an MOA or office administration certificate program. Bookkeeping and medical industry experience would be considered a highly weighted asset. This is a full-time position effective immediately. The salary is competitive and will depend on education and experience, Please apply in confidence by email to omc@okanagan.bc.ca. -Refer to Scenario 9-1. Why does OMC use an employment interview?

Interviews are best suited to the assessment of noncognitive attributes such as interpersonal relations or social skills, initiative, conscientiousness, dependability, perseverance, teamwork, leadership.

Interviews are most frequently used as preliminary screening devices, as opposed to assisting in making final decisions at the end of a selection process.

Research on employment interviews indicates that structuring an interview appears to increase interview reliability and validity.

Factors such as the applicant's physical appearance and nonverbal behaviours during the interview can affect the interviewer's evaluation of the applicant.

Interviews have been used in the termination of employees during a downsizing or "rightsizing" process.

An organization would like to use a structured interview in which the applicants are asked to describe what they did in given situations in the past. What type of interview will the organization use?

Multiple-Mini Interviews were pioneered by researchers at the University of Toronto in 2002 in order to select applicants to its medical school.

What type of questioning may lead to some interviewees having an unfair advantage?

"You have scheduled a course, hired a teacher, and registered students. On the day of the course, students arrive; however, the teacher does not show up. What do you do?" What type of interview question is this?

Scenario 9-1 Medical Office Assistant Okanagan Medical Clinic (OMC), Kelowna, B.C. We are looking for a Medical Office Assistant (MOA) to join our medical team. The primary focus of the MOA position is to provide office administration support services to two medical doctors. The essential functions and responsibilities include the following: as a primary point of contact, answers phones and gathers patient information, ensuring all patients are greeted professionally while showing respect and patience; and uses health-care software and MS office computer applications to schedule appointments and prepare reports, insurance forms, invoices, financial statements, letters, case histories, transcriptions, and medical records. The incumbent exercises adaptability, initiative, organization, time management, and independent judgment in the performance of assigned tasks. The successful candidate must possess strong written and oral communication skills and an advanced knowledge of computer programs, including Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, Internet Explorer, Access, and PowerPoint. The applicant must be able to work and communicate effectively in a small business team environment and build effective interpersonal working relationships with professional employees and clients. The standard office hours include some evening and weekend work. MOAs are routinely required to lift medical equipment and/or supplies weighing up to 10 kilograms and are regularly exposed to contagious diseases. Required qualifications include completion of Grade 12 plus graduation from either an MOA or office administration certificate program. Bookkeeping and medical industry experience would be considered a highly weighted asset. This is a full-time position effective immediately. The salary is competitive and will depend on education and experience, Please apply in confidence by email to omc@okanagan.bc.ca. -Refer to Scenario 9-1. What are the MOA employment interviews best suited to assess?

What is the difference between a panel and a serial interview?