Interview Style Inventory:
Preparing people for the most
important 60 minutes of a job
search
John Liptak, Ed.D., Associate Director,
Career Services
Radford University
jjliptak@radford.edu
Statements from my students
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“I don’t know what happened….I thought I
did great in the interview”
“I’m not good at the research part…”
“I don’t know why I can’t find a job”
“I don’t think the interviewer liked me”
“The interviewer didn’t give me a chance to
sell myself”
“I’m not good at bragging about myself”
Facts About Employment
Interviews
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People who are effective in employment
interviews utilize a variety of styles and skills
to develop rapport with the interviewer.
Interviewees must understand their
strengths, work to overcome their
weaknesses, & adapt to what happens
Many different sets of communication
behaviors are required.
Prospective interviewees need to be able to
adapt their personalities to the stages of an
employment interview.
Expert Advice
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“The interviewer’s decision about
whether you will be invited back for an
additional interview will probably be
influenced by your attitude and
personality as much as your
qualifications”
Graber, S. (2000). The everything get-a-job book. Avon, MA: Adams Media Corporation.
Stages of An Interview
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Stage 1 (Preparation): Preparing for
the interview mentally, researching
organizations, formulating questions,
and practicing answers to questions.
Stage 2 (First Impression): Developing
rapport and forming a good
impression, being spontaneous,
optimistic, and energetic.
Stages of An Interview
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Stage 3 (Passion/Skills Presentation):
Passionately and convincingly present skills
and qualifications, make sales pitch, and tell
achievement story.
Stage 4 (Closing & Follow-Up): Listening for
verbal and nonverbal cues of end of the
interview, use people skills to close the deal,
ask about process, and follow-up.
Purpose of the ISI
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The ISI is designed to help people
learn about and utilize their primary
personality type in an interview, but
also to integrate aspects of other
personality types throughout the
interview process to succeed in each
stage.
Need for the ISI
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The interview
is the most
complex and
important
aspect of the
job search
Need for the ISI
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A person’s preferred approach to
employment interviewing is based
on his/her personality type
Need for the ISI
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The ability to
match your
personality
type to that of
the interviewer
is a skill that
can be learned
Personality Defined
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A dynamic organization, inside the person,
of psychophysical systems that create a
person’s characteristics patterns of
behavior, thought, and feeling (Carver &
Scheier, 2000).
A consistent way of behaving as a result of
the interaction between temperament
characteristics and social experience
(Deckers, 2005).
Personality Types
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Categories into which people can be
classified to understand and explain human
behavior patterns and predict future
behavior.
The emergence of clear dominant and
auxiliary functions gives our personality
consistency and predictability.
Carl Jung – Sensing, Feeling, Thinking, and
Intuiting
Take the ISI
ISI Interviewer Styles
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I. ACHEIVER: You are action-oriented and hard
working. You are very direct and often do not take
no for an answer. You are self-motivated, confident,
and persistent. You are respected by others
because of your ability to get things done. You may
have trouble getting to know people well. You have
innate leadership qualities and tend to rise to the
top in whatever you do. You are strong-willed and
good at making decisions. You would rather
achieve personal goals than please other people.
ISI Interviewer Styles
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II. INTUITOR: You are highly intuitive about people
and things. You are a good listener and genuinely
care about other people and what they have to say,
making you a good friend and confidante. You are
easy to get along with but are not very forceful in
dealing with others. You handle problems
courteously and efficiently but prefer to keep a low
profile and avoid conflict. You are very productive
in your work, and find creative ways to solve
problems. You often are not very flexible, thus you
may fear change. You tend to be calm and
collected in whatever you do.
ISI Interviewer Styles
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III. ENERGIZER: You are adventurous,
spontaneous, and unstructured. You are outgoing
and tend to get along well with others, though you
try to avoid confrontation. You like to engage in a
variety of tasks and are open to change, but you
are also impulsive and get restless or bored easily.
You trust in your ability to improvise in any situation.
You have a high energy level, but often need
assistance in channeling this energy in constructive
ways. You prefer working with people and do not
want to be bothered with details or paperwork. You
have limited organizational skills, but your
enthusiasm makes you a good motivator.
ISI Interviewer Styles
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IV. ANALYZER: You are very logical in all you do.
You prefer to work with data and ideas and would
rather work by yourself than as part of a group.
You are willing to spend a great deal of energy to
complete projects you have started; however, you
often get bogged down in details and lose sight of
the end results. You are often viewed by others as
a deep thinker, and make decisions only after
having all of the facts. You tend to be objective and
unemotional. You value critical thinking and don’t
often act on impulse.
Using Your Results (Step 4)
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1) Identify your preferred style (aware)
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Strengths
Weaknesses
2) Incorporate the strengths from other
styles – explore all 4 styles
3) Work to improve aspects of your
type
ISI Interview Styles & Jung
Typologies/Keirsey Temperaments
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NF = Intuitor (ENFJ, ENFP, INFJ, INFP) &
Artisans
NT = Analyzer (ENTJ, ENTP, INTJ, INTP) &
Rationals
SJ = Achiever (ESTJ, ESFJ, ISTJ, ISFJ) &
Guardians
SP = Energizer (ESTP, ESFP, ISTP, ISFP)
& Idealists
Adapting Personality to
Interview Stages
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STAGE 1: Preparation = Analyzer
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Research organizations
Prepare questions to ask
Practice responses
Organizing
Have facts and figures
Adapting Personality to
Interview Stages
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STAGE 2: First Impression = Energizer
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Develop rapport
Impression management
Spontaneous
Enthusiasm & Energy
Sociability
Uses stories and personal examples
Adapting Personality to
Interview Stages
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STAGE 3: Passion/Skills Presentation
= Achiever
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Shows passion
Present qualifications/skills
Sales pitch/Self-marketing
Tell achievement story
Action orientation
Uses many examples
Adapting Personality to
Interview Stages
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STAGE 4: Closing & Follow-Up =
Intuitor
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Listening actively
Watches for key signs and signals
Thorough and prepared
Finish interview gracefully
Creative follow-up
Balance patience and assertiveness
Group Activities
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Break the group into smaller groups based
on their strongest style on the ISI. Have
them brainstorm things they can do to
incorporate strengths from other types
Brainstorm a list of television characters that
exhibit a personality style similar to those of
the four types
Have members of the group role play an
employer interviewing a person from each of
the four types