Conducting Interviews (Structured, Behavioral)
Scope
Covers
- Preparing and running structured interviews (screen + loop) with consistent criteria
- Behavioral interviewing mapped to competencies/values
- Getting to “substance over polish” (avoiding “confident but shallow” signal)
- Capturing evidence, scoring consistently, and writing a debrief-ready summary
When to use
- “Help me conduct interviews for a.”
- “Create an interview script / interview question set / scorecard for.”
- “Design an interview loop and structured rubric for.”
- “Improve interviewer consistency and reduce bias.”
When NOT to use
- You need to define the role outcomes or write the job description (use
writing-job-descriptionsfirst) - You need legal/HR compliance guidance or to adjudicate complex employment risk (this skill is not legal advice)
- You need compensation/offer strategy or negotiation coaching
Inputs
Minimum required
- Role + level + function (e.g., “Senior PM”, “Engineering Manager”)
- Interview stage(s) to design/run (screen, hiring manager, panel, etc.) + duration(s)
- Evaluation criteria: 4–8 competencies/values to measure (or your existing rubric)
- Company/team context candidates should know (mission, what’s hard, why now)
- Candidate materials (resume/portfolio) + any areas to probe
Missing-info strategy
- Ask up to 5 questions from references/INTAKE.md.
- If criteria aren’t provided, propose a default criteria set and clearly label it as an assumption.
Outputs (deliverables)
Produce an Interview Execution Pack in Markdown (in-chat; or as files if requested):
- Interview plan (stage purpose, criteria, agenda, timeboxes)
- Question map (questions → competency/value → what good looks like → follow-up probes)
- Interviewer script (opening, transitions, probes, close)
- Notes + scorecard (rating anchors + evidence capture)
- Debrief summary template (evidence-based strengths/concerns + hire/no-hire signal + follow-ups)
- Risks / Open questions / Next steps (always included)
Templates: references/TEMPLATES.md Expanded guidance: references/WORKFLOW.md
Workflow (7 steps)
1) Intake + define the stage
- Inputs: user request; references/INTAKE.md.
- Actions: Confirm role, stage(s), duration, and who else interviews. Identify must-measure criteria and any “must not” red flags.
- Outputs: Interview brief + assumptions/unknowns list.
- Checks: You can state the stage goal in one sentence (e.g., “screen for X; sell Y; decide Z”).
2) Lock evaluation criteria (don’t improvise later)
- Inputs: competencies/values; role context.
- Actions: Choose 4–8 criteria; define 1–2 “strong” and “weak” anchors per criterion. Ensure each criterion is observable via evidence.
- Outputs: Criteria table with anchors.
- Checks: Every criterion has a definition + evidence hints; no criterion is “vibe”.
3) Build the question map (behavioral first)
- Inputs: criteria table.
- Actions: Write 1–2 primary questions per criterion (behavioral: “tell me about a time…”). Add probes that force specifics (role, constraints, trade-offs, results, what you’d do differently). Add two global questions: “How did you prepare?” and “Why here?”
- Outputs: Question map table.
- Checks: Each question maps to exactly one primary criterion; no double-barreled questions.
4) Write the interviewer script (runbook)
- Inputs: question map; timeboxes.
- Actions: Assemble an interview flow: opening (set context + structure), question sequence, note-taking reminders, and a consistent close: “Is there anything else you want to make sure we covered?”
- Outputs: Interviewer script with timestamps.
- Checks: Script fits in time; includes “sell” moments appropriate to stage; includes candidate questions time.
5) Prepare for “substance over polish”
- Inputs: question map; candidate materials.
- Actions: Add “substance checks” for polished communicators (ask for concrete examples, counterfactuals, and specific decisions). Add “structure help” for less polished candidates (rephrase, clarify what’s being asked) without leading.
- Outputs: Substance-vs-delivery guardrails embedded in the script.
- Checks: The plan reduces false positives from confident delivery and false negatives from imperfect structure.
6) Score using evidence (immediately after)
- Inputs: notes; scorecard template.
- Actions: Fill the scorecard with evidence snippets before discussing with others. Rate each criterion with anchors. Write a 5–8 sentence evidence-based summary and list follow-up questions.
- Outputs: Completed notes + scorecard + summary.
- Checks: Every rating has supporting evidence; the overall recommendation is consistent with criterion ratings.
7) Debrief + quality gate + finalize pack
- Inputs: completed scorecard; debrief template.
- Actions: Produce the debrief-ready packet; run references/CHECKLISTS.md and score with references/RUBRIC.md. Include Risks/Open questions/Next steps.
- Outputs: Final Interview Execution Pack.
- Checks: Clear recommendation + uncertainty; fair process; next steps defined (additional interview, reference check, work sample, etc.).
Quality gate (required)
- Use references/CHECKLISTS.md and references/RUBRIC.md.
- Always include: Risks, Open questions, Next steps.
Examples
Example 1 (Screen): “Create a 30-minute phone screen for a Senior Product Manager. I want to evaluate product sense, execution, and collaboration. Output the Interview Execution Pack with a question map and scorecard.” Expected: timeboxed script, behavioral questions, clear anchors, and a scorecard that captures evidence.
Example 2 (Loop): “Design a structured interview loop for a Staff Engineer, including a hiring manager interview and a cross-functional panel. Map questions to our values and include a debrief template.” Expected: stage goals, consistent criteria across interviewers, and artifacts that make debriefs evidence-based.
Boundary example: “Just tell me if this candidate is good; I don’t have criteria or notes.” Response: require criteria + evidence; propose default criteria and ask the user to paste notes or run a structured interview first.