This interview guide accountant template has 12 pages and is a MS Word file type listed under our human resources documents.
Sample of our interview guide accountant template:
INTERVIEW GUIDE ACCOUNTANT Applicant : Date : Recruiter : The goal of an interview is to determine whether a candidate has a good fit for your particular job. This is best accomplished by asking questions about job related competencies to determine whether the candidate has previous experiences successfully using these competencies. Introduction Phase Encourage some small talk to give the candidate time to get settled and to help him/her ease into the conversational flow of the interview. Candidates usually feel more comfortable when they know what to expect in an interview. Share your general format with the candidate. Tell the candidate that you may be writing during the interview and explain why you will be doing this. Assure candidates that two-way questioning is allowed and encouraged. Make it clear that the candidate will have an opportunity to ask questions at the conclusion of the process Interview Phase Have your competency based questions ready for scoring. We recommend a 1 to 5 scoring grid; a score of 1 would mean the candidate has demonstrated no experience using the competency and a score of 5 indicating the candidate has a deep understanding of the competency and has used it successfully in the past with good results. Probing: After asking a planned question, you may want to probe for more information to support a candidate's response. Probes are usually unplanned; you use them when you want the candidate to clarify or expand upon a point or when you want more insight into his/her thoughts, feelings, and behaviours.("Please expand upon that." "Describe how you .") Clarifying Inconsistencies: When a candidate appears to be caught in a contradiction, it may be appropriate to bring the conflicting information to the surface for clarification. ("You mentioned earlier that you were involved in developing a distance education course. You are now indicating that you have limited experience with distance education and need to learn more about it. Please clarify your experience with distance education.") Paraphrasing: When in doubt that you have fully understood a candidate's response, restate what you think you heard in your own words and ask the candidate for feedback. ("You are basically stating that there are several ways to handle this situation depending upon the way in which the client presents the problem. Is that what you meant?") Silence or Pause: Silences or pauses are an effective technique for encouraging the candidate to do the talking. When there is a silence or pause, don't jump in with another question; allow the candidate time to reflect and form a response. Look expectantly at him or her while you wait. Repeating: When the candidate appears to be avoiding a question, come back to it again. While the candidate may have reasons for trying to evade it, she/he may simply have gotten sidetracked or may not fully understand what you mean. Attention to Detail Attention to detail includes the employee's ability to identify and manage important details associated with doing a good job. This includes things such as checking and rechecking work, setting up monitoring systems, noticing missing details, accurately completing forms, following directions, and planning projects to the final detail. Before you ask this question, best practice suggests that you know beforehand the kind of details that are associated with both satisfactory and unsatisfactory job performance. Everyone faces times when we overlook some small, but important detail. Tell me about a time when this happened to you. What happened ? What did you do? How did it work out? 1 2 3 4 5 Minimal ability/NA Average ability Exceptional ability Comments Integrity Integrity is something all employees are expected to demonstrate; however, integrity becomes more critical when the job includes temptations such as handling financial transactions, handling sensitive personal or health records, or working with valuable property and materials. People with high integrity follow rules and regulations associated with the job and are uncomfortable when they are violated. Before you ask this question, best practice suggests that you know beforehand the kind of integrity associated with both satisfactory and unsatisfactory job performance. Some people are willing to break a few rules to get ahead while others refuse. Give me some examples from your experience that show your preferences. 1 2 3 4 5 Minimal ability/NA Average ability Exceptional ability Comments Dependability Dependability involves the employee being reliable, on time, responsible, dependable, and consistently fulfilling commitments. On the job the employees must do what they say and say what they do. A dependable employee can be trusted to give straight answers, follow through, and complete assignments on time and within budget. Their behaviour is predictable and seldom holds any surprises or unexpected reactions. They can be counted on to be honest and upfront with co-workers regardless of the situation. Before you ask this question, best practice suggests that you know beforehand the kind of dependability associated with both satisfactory and unsatisfactory job performance. How do you balance socializing with co-workers with accomplishing the job ? Can you give me some examples? What were the results ? 1 2 3 4 5 Minimal ability/NA Average ability Exceptional ability Comments Analytical Thinking The position requires someone who successfully performs analytical work. They tend to be thoughtful and approach decisions both logically and systematically. Analytical people ask questions to discover issues and do not make decisions without methodically thinking through the consequences. Before you ask this question, best practice suggests that you know beforehand the kind of analysis associated with both satisfactory and unsatisfactory job performance. Please give me some examples that illustrate the kind of problems you have solved. What was the situation ? What did you do? What were the results ? 1 2 3 4 5 Minimal ability/NA Average ability Exceptional ability Comments Cooperation Cooperation requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative work attitude. This trait differs from concern for others in that it not only includes the willingness to empathize, but includes volunteering to actively share their work load or help resolve their problems
