Senior Housing Management
Senior Housing Management recommends using behavioral interviewing in the hiring process.
Behavioral interviewing is based on the idea that the best way to predict a job candidate’s future
performance is to examine their past and present performance in a similar situation. Behavioral
interviewing focuses on experiences, behaviors, knowledge, skills and abilities that are job
related.
Before the interview:
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Interviewer should predetermine which competencies and skills are necessary for the
job.
Sample competencies and skills:
Adaptability
Fact Finding
Participation
Analytical Skills
Financial Analysis
Perceptiveness
Assertiveness
Flexibility
Persistence
Attention to Detail
Goal Oriented
Persuasion
Communication
Honesty
Planning
Conflict Management
Independence
Presentation Skills
Continuous Learning
Influence
Problem Solving
Creativity
Initiative
Professional Knowledge
Critical Thinking
Innovation
Proficiency
Customer Service
Insight
Rapport Building
Decision Making
Integrity
Resilience
Delegation
Interpersonal Skills
Risk Taking
Diplomacy
Judgment
Safety Awareness
Discipline
Leadership
Sensitivity
Educable
Listening
Stress Management
Effectiveness
Manageability
Teamwork
Empathy
Motivation
Tenacity
Endurance
Negotiation
Time Management
Equipment Operation
Organization
Trainability
During the interview:
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Interviewer should internally note what competencies or skills they are looking for in the
job candidate.
Job candidate should describe a specific, recent situation (within 3 years) when
responding to the behavioral interviewing questions.
Job candidate should detail their behavior or the actions that they took to resolve the
situation.
Job candidate should have a clear and significant role in the situation.
Job candidate should share the outcome or the results of the situation.
Job candidate should identify examples from work experience, and if applicable - past
internships, classes, activities, team involvements, community service, etc….
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Job candidate should listen carefully to the questions, and if necessary ask for
clarification.
Evaluating the job candidate’s responses:
When evaluating the job candidates responses utilize the STAR Method:
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Situation - Used specific details about a situation?
Task - Told what specifically led to the situation?
Action Taken - Discussed what they did and who was involved in the situation?
Result or Outcome - Communicated the outcome of the situation?
Sample Behavioral Interviewing Questions:
Prepare for behavioral interviewing by reviewing these sample behavioral interviewing
questions:
Adaptability:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you had to adjust to a co-worker’s working
style in order to complete a project or achieve your objectives.
Analytical / Critical Thinking / Problem Solving:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you had to solve an exceptionally difficult
problem.
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Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required critical thinking and
problem solving.
Assertiveness:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required assertiveness.
Attention to Detail:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required attention to detail.
Communication / Listening:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you were able to successfully
communicate with another person even when that individual may not have personally
liked you (or vice versa).
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required excellent listening skills.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you utilized oral communication (e.g.,
speaking directly with co-worker) instead of written communication (e.g., sending a
memo or email).
Conflict Management:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you dealt with conflict.
Continuous Learning:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required continuous learning.
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Creativity / Innovation:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work that you solved in a unique or unusual way. How
did you implement your solution?
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you came up with the best idea. How did
you implement your idea?
Customer Service:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you had a very difficult customer service
experience (e.g., angry or irate customer).
Decision Making:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you made a difficult decision. What types
of decisions are most difficult for you?
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you made a decision without all the
information you needed.
Delegation:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required delegation.
Diplomacy:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you worked with a co-worker who was
difficult to get along with. How was this co-worker difficult? Why was this co-worker
difficult? How did you handle the situation? How did the relationship with this co-worker
progress in the short-term and long-term?
Discipline:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required discipline.
Educable / Trainability:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that shows you are educable or
trainable.
Effectiveness:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you made a job easier or made yourself
more effective.
Empathy / Sensitivity:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required empathy or sensitivity.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when your idea or suggestion was criticized.
What was your idea or suggestion? Who criticized your idea or suggestion? How did you
handle the criticism?
Endurance / Persistence:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required endurance or persistence.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you went above and beyond the call of
duty to get the job done.
Equipment Operation:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required equipment
operation.
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Fact Finding:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you used your fact finding skills to solve a
problem.
Financial Analysis:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required financial analysis.
Flexibility:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you put your needs aside to help a coworker understand a task. How did you assist them? What was the result?
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you dealt with change. How did you
handle the change?
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when a work emergency caused you to
reschedule your work or projects.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you had a lot of patience. When do you
typically have the least amount of patience?
Goal Oriented:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you set a goal. Were you able to meet or
achieve the goal?
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you had a great achievement. Why was
the achievement great?
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you did not meet or achieve a goal. What
steps did you take to meet or achieve the goal? What obstacles did you encounter while
working towards the goal? How did you feel when you did not meet or achieve the goal?
Honesty / Integrity:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you missed an obvious solution to a
problem.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you were forced to make an unpopular
decision.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had to discipline or terminate a co-worker
that was also your friend.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you set your sights too high or too low.
Independence:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required independence.
Influence / Persuasion:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you were able to use influence or
persuasion to successfully convince someone to see things your way.
Initiative:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you anticipated potential problems and
developed preventive measures.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you used your initiative to solve a
problem.
Insight / Judgment / Perceptiveness:
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Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required insight or perceptiveness.
Tell me about a recent situation at work when you used good judgment in solving a
problem.
Interpersonal Skills:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required interpersonal skills.
Leadership:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you motivated others.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you delegated a project effectively to
others.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you had to take the lead or take charge of
the project.
Manageability:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you hade trouble or disagreed with a
supervisor.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when your supervisor told you to do something
the wrong way, but you knew the right way.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when your supervisor manager was in a rush
and did not give you enough attention.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you were impressed or unimpressed by a
supervisor’s behavior or character.
Motivation:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you were motivated to do your best work.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that was enjoyable or got you really
excited.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when your greatest strength or weakness was
revealed.
Negotiation:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required negotiation skills.
Organization / Planning / Time Management:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you had to organize and prioritize your
projects or assignments.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you had many projects or assignments
due at the same time. What steps did you take to get the projects or assignments
accomplished?
Participation:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you did not fully agree with a policy but
still conformed or participated.
Presentation Skills:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you had a successful experience with
presenting or public speaking to small or large group.
Rapport Building:
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Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required rapport building skills.
Risk Taking:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you took a risk and succeeded or failed.
Safety Awareness:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work you had that required safety awareness.
Stress Management:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you had to meet a deadline. How much
advance notice did you have?
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you had to keep up with a fast paced
environment.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you had a great deal of work to
accomplish in a short period of time.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you were dealing with a lot of stress or
anxiety.
Teamwork:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you were able to successfully deal with
another person even when that individual may not have personally liked you (vice
versa).
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you had to deal with a very upset coworker.
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when you had to work as part of a group or team
to achieve a result. What was your role in the group or team?
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when others you were working with on a project
disagreed with your ideas or suggestions.
Tenacity:
 Tell me about a recent situation at work when your tenacity helped to overcome a
problem or obstacle.
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