What do employers look for in competency interviews?

• Laura-McGrath
• February 6, 2023
• Competency Interview, Problem Solving, conflict, influencing, communication, Dealing with failure, Leadership skills, working under pressure

Competency questions are still hugely popular and form part of most interviews. Whilst recent research has questioned their value in predicting success in fast moving environments (Harvard Business Review Feb 10th 2016), you’d be well advised to anticipate competency questions and have examples to hand.

Here’s a few things to consider in the lead up to your interview:
Be strategic with your examples:

Review the last 5 years in your job, identify your biggest wins and build your examples around them. Choose examples that most closely align with your target role. For promotion interviews, try to choose examples where you’ve already “acted up” in your role – eg where you’ve deputised for your manager or taken a lead role in a project.