73, How to take a good interview, even if you are not a trained interviewer
Interviewing is often treated as an intuitive activity, but in reality it is a specialised skill. Being senior, experienced, or technically strong does not automatically make someone a good interviewer. Effective interviewing requires structure, clarity, and conscious effort.
Interviewing as a Skill
Interviewing is a learned skill, just like any other professional capability. It requires training, practice, and reflection. Individuals do not become good interviewers simply because they hold senior positions or are responsible for hiring decisions.
Organisations frequently place managers in interview situations without providing them with the necessary training, which increases the risk of poor hiring decisions.
The Core Objectives of an Interview
At its core, an interview serves only a few critical purposes. The first is to validate the authenticity and credibility of what a candidate has claimed through their resume and documents.
The second objective is to assess whether the candidate can actually deliver the outcomes required by the role, not just whether they sound confident or impressive.
Assessing Capability and Role Fit
Interviewers must clearly understand what they expect from the role before they begin the interview. This clarity allows them to test whether the candidate’s experience, thinking, and approach align with real job requirements.
Without this clarity, interviews tend to drift into generic conversations that fail to predict actual on‑the‑job performance.
Understanding Motivation and Intent
The third critical aspect of interviewing is understanding a candidate’s motivation for joining the organisation. This goes beyond surface‑level answers such as growth or compensation.
Interviewers must assess whether a candidate’s intent aligns with what the organisation is willing and able to offer, and whether there is a risk of misalignment that could lead to early exits.
Asking the Right Questions
Once expectations from the role are clearly defined, interview questions should be designed to test those expectations. This can be done through competency‑based questions, historical examples, or scenario‑based problem‑solving discussions.
The focus should always remain on outcomes—how the candidate thinks, decides, and acts when faced with real situations.
Evaluating Values and Philosophy
Beyond skills and experience, interviews should explore a candidate’s philosophy towards work, career progression, and organisational commitment.
Patterns in how candidates describe their past job changes, reasons for leaving, and expectations from employers often reveal more than direct answers to motivational questions.
The Role of HR Expertise in Interviewing
Evaluating motivation, values, and long‑term alignment requires experience and judgement. This is why HR practitioners often add significant value to interview panels.
Where HR support is not available, interviewers must consciously spend time probing deeper into a candidate’s thinking rather than relying on surface‑level impressions.
Building Predictability in Hiring Decisions
Good interviewing is ultimately about building predictability. While no interview can guarantee success, structured interviews significantly reduce hiring errors.
When organisations treat interviewing as a skill and invest in improving it, hiring outcomes become more consistent and reliable.
Related Podcast Episode
This article is based on the transcript of the original podcast of the same name featured in India HR Guide.
The transcript has been translated into this article with the support of AI and a human‑in‑the‑loop process.
