INTERVIEWING FOR INFORMATION
SELF-DEVELOPMENT GUIDE
CONTENT DESCRIPTIONS
SUMMARYSECTION 1 / Introduction
· Learning Objectives
· Duration
· Design Principles
SECTION 2 / Interviewing - The Basics
· The Basics - Getting Started
· Initial Practice Scenarios
SECTION 3 / Choosing The Type Of Interview
· Structured and Unstructured Interviews
· Selecting an Interview Type
SECTION 4 / Using An Interview Methodology
· Your Interview Methodology
SECTION 5 / High Value Interviewing Techniques
· The Interview Technique Toolbox
· Applying A Selected Technique
· Organizing Your Interview Results
APPENDICES / · Answers to Exercises
· Sample Memo
INTERVIEWING FOR INFORMATION
SELF DEVELOPMENT GUIDE
SECTION 1
INTRODUCTION
This Self Development Guide provides the information and activities to help you learn to interview clients for information. This module is a starting point in your skills development in this area. Continued practice will be necessary to establish the new skills as a permanent part of your daily work habits.
This module gives a good overview of interviewing for information. It summarizes proven methods and condenses tips and hints in one resource. Additional resources are included for further research.
The program uses two delivery methods: 1) self-instructional materials, and 2) a workshop where the students have an opportunity to practice “interactive” skills, share ideas, and get feedback from experienced instructors.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants should be able to:
· Given an engagement situation,
Þ Select the information you would interview for.
Þ Select who you would interview.
Þ Identify the types of information you might expect to get.
· Describe the difference between a structured and unstructured interview.
· Describe the advantages and disadvantages of structured and unstructured interviews.
· Determine when to use a structured or an unstructured interview.
· Describe the how to use the interview methodology.
· Describe selected interviewing techniques and explain the value of each.
DURATION
Since this is a self-instructional program that may span several weeks, the time will vary based on individual needs and capabilities. Therefore, the elapsed time shown below is an estimate.
Section / Time Estimate1 / 5 minutes
2 / 20 min.
3 / 30 min.
4 / 20 min.
5 / 30 min.
DESIGN PRINCIPLES
This learning program is based on these principles:
¨ Each individual owns his or her own career and skill development.
¨ Adults are capable of independent learning. We don’t need to be in a classroom to read, understand, and recall.
¨ Classroom or workshop time should be devoted to activities that benefit from high interaction among professionals, instruction from a professional leader, or the opportunity to practice in a simulated environment.
¨ Learning takes many forms: much of our success derives from knowing where to find information, or from accessing usable job aids. We do not have to commit everything to memory.
¨ We learn best in small doses, focused on a topic, with the opportunity to practice and apply the information. Practice and application should come as soon as possible after learning.
¨ Adults read, understand, and learn at different rates. Development is most effective when the learner can control the pace.
¨ Feedback must be candid, relevant, usable, and timely to be effective, and all learners need feedback in different forms to know they are making progress.
¨ Hitachi Consulting hires only professionals who have demonstrated a high degree of self-discipline, exceptional work ethic, high intelligence, and self-confidence. The development programs are designed to this profile.
INTERVIEWING FOR INFORMATION
SELF DEVELOPMENT GUIDE
SECTION 2
INTERVIEWING - THE BASICS
Interviewing - The Basics
Objectives
After successfully completing this section, you should be able to
· Given an engagement situation,
Þ Select the information you would interview for.
Þ Select who you would interview.
Þ Identify the types of information you might expect to get.
Why Learn This?
To get the “right” information, you need to be able to select the information you’re looking for, the people you think would know that information, and be able to classify it so you can organize the information and make it useful.
Overview
“Inter . . . view” – exchanging views, information, ideas, feelings. Sometimes between just two people, other times, among many people at once. Interviewing skills are fundamental to a consultant’s success. Why? Because success so frequently depends upon gaining insights and knowledge from others. Though we use other means to gather information (e.g. surveys, document reviews), our focus here is the Information Gathering (IG) interview. Rare is the engagement that will not require this approach.
Interviews come in many flavors:
· Employment· Counseling
· Terminations
· Information Gathering / · Coaching
· Depositions
· Performance Reviews
· Corrective Action
However, our focus is on “Information Gathering (IG),” specifically to aid in diagnosing a problem, or gaining the information needed to help you move to the next step in an engagement.
Within the IG Interview category, a consultant may use several types of interviews and many different techniques to achieve the information-gathering goal. This module explains the different types of IG interviews and techniques.
You’ll also explore some special circumstances (i.e. thorny situations and people, and how to deal with them), and you’ll have the chance to apply some of what you learn in several Application Exercises. Over time, you will develop your own interviewing style, and techniques that work best for you. This entire module is meant as only your primer.
TYPICAL GOALS
Our business is a knowledge business, and each situation presents us with people who have knowledge we need. That is your most common goal when interviewing: get information. Information comes in many forms:
Ø FactsØ Opinions
Ø Feelings / Ø Statistics
Ø Ideas
Ø Anecdotes
But, whatever the form, your goal is to recognize and get the high-value information needed to make progress in the engagement.
Professional consultants know that interviews offer an opportunity to accomplish other important goals beyond just getting information. Which of these do you think may also be goals in different interview situations?
a) Marketing yourself, establishing your credibility
b) Marketing the company
c) Identify potential future engagements related to other issues and opportunities
d) Building relationships, with the individual interviewee and with his/her company
Yes, they may all be worthwhile goals in selective situations. Interviews, then, are one of our most valuable “tools-of-the-trade.”
Activity
What’s Really Important?
This is an experiential exercise. Pick one of the three situations that best matches the service you deliver. Use your best judgment and past experience to answer the questions. Thinking through the situation will help you reinforce your analytical and planning skills for interviewing. Check your answers with the proposed answers in the appendix. If you review the answers with your Coach, focus on the rationale behind the recommended answers.
For the situation you select, assume Information Gathering Interviews will be helpful and your primary goal. Answer these questions in the accompanying space on the pages that follow:
1) Who, or which positions, would you want to interview?
2) What information would you try to get through interviews in this situation?
3) What form(s) might information take coming from the interviewees (i.e. ideas, feelings, statistics, opinions, recommendations, etc.)?
situation one
/ The client engages Hitachi Consulting to custom-design a new Order Entry System for their Customer Service Operators. Speed, ease-of-use, prompting screens that virtually eliminate mistakes – these are some of the characteristics they’ve described as important.1)
2)
3)
situation two
/ ABC Company acquires XYZ Company. ABC asks Hitachi Consulting to help them create an effective integration plan so that XYZ’s organization can be fully absorbed into the ABC Co. This will likely mean a new organization structure for the combined entity. It could also require the elimination of many positions and possibly the creation of several new positions.1)
2)
3)
situation three
/ ABC Company is pleased with our approach to the organization integration issues. They explain they’re inclined to engage us for it, but wonder now whether we shouldn’t also assist with the systems integration effort as well. They ask how we would approach the task of planning an efficient integration of the two different information systems. They’re particularly interested in our “interviewing requirements and approach.”1)
2)
3)
INTERVIEWING FOR INFORMATION
SELF DEVELOPMENT GUIDE
SECTION 3
CHOOSING THE TYPE OF INTERVIEW
Choosing The Type Of Interview
Objectives
After successfully completing this section, you should be able to:
· Describe the difference between a structured and unstructured interview.
· Describe the advantages and disadvantages of structured and unstructured interviews.
· Determine when to use a structured or an unstructured interview.
Why Learn This?
The types of questions you ask in an interview “control” the response and the type and quality of information you get. To get the information you need, you will know the advantages and disadvantages of structured and unstructured interviews so you can select which one or what combination to use.
Interview Types
Generally, there are two types: Structured and Unstructured, with minor variations. Though most expert interviewers mix structured and unstructured styles in an interview (to get the best of both), one technique is generally more dominant and valuable in a given situation. This discussion explores the results of following one technique over another
Structured
In a structured interview, you come with a set list of questions to cover.
You’ll tend to go pretty much in the sequence you’ve planned, allowing for little diversion from the “structured pathway” that leads to the information you want.
Unstructured
In unstructured interviews, the interviewer has goals, but goes after them in an unstructured way – letting the interviewees explore many different issues, across multiple topics.
Asking just a few, very open questions, the interviewer helps the participants to “open up,” sharing lots of information that may not be very focused.
The expert interviewer then sorts through all that’s been offered to find what’s needed.
Before reading the next page, use the space below to list some advantages and disadvantages of each type. Check your answers in the appendix.
Advantages / DisadvantagesStructured
Unstructured
Here is a comparison of the two interview types.
STRUCTURED / UNSTRUCTUREDThe consultant proceeds through a definite sequence of questions. / The consultant primes and prompts with a few questions and key issues, but encourages wide-ranging conversation.
The consultant is in full control of the interview at all times. / The interviewee may lead the consultant through a variety of issues, more at the interviewee’s pace. The interviewer cedes more control to the interviewee.
Virtually the identical track will be followed with the next interviewee, to ensure consistency and completeness. / A complete picture may only come from the total of the interviewees conducted, as different interviewees may cover different issues.
Structured interviews tend to yield factual, specific answers in response to narrow, specific questions – both open and closed questions. / Unstructured interviews are more effective at generating feelings and ideas than facts and data: people “open up” more in an unstructured interview.
Efficient, straightforward, less time-consuming than unstructured. / Relatively inefficient; often many tangents to pursue and “extra listening” to do.
Here is an example of the two interview types applied to the same situation.
Consultant: Do you think the new dress code helps or hurts the company’s results?
I like it. It makes Friday’s something to look forward to.
Consultant: Is the code is clear enough as to what is and isn’t acceptable?
Yes. It should be easy for anyone here to tell what’s “over the line, though a section or two may be a little confusing for some people.”
Consultant: From what you understand, would jeans be within or outside the new code?
Jeans would be outside the new code. It says clearly that denim is not permitted.
Consultant: And how about T-shirts?
Also outside the code. Shirts have to have collars. / Consultant: What do you think of the new dress code?
I like it. It makes Friday’s something to look forward to.
Consultant: And how about clarity. Do you think everyone’s clear about what’s acceptable?
They should be. It seems pretty clearly written to me, except a section or two that might cause confusion.
Consultant: Would you want to elaborate?
Sure. Mary yesterday was a good example. She had on a skirt, but it was denim. I think that’s not allowed, but she said she wore that before the code, and it is a skirt.
Consultant: What do you think is the right interpretation?
Well, I’d say it’s not allowed because it’s denim.
Consultant: Well, is it clear who makes the decision about this? Who sets the rules?
I don’t think so. I’m not sure who I’d ask. But we are going to have to be clear about all this with everyone.
From the above example, you can see that the structured interview will tend to get you specific answers to specific questions, but often it misses the feelings, attitudes, and subtleties in a situation. That may be fine, depending upon what information you are trying to get. Often, multiple forms of information are important to your research, this is why a mix of the two types of interviews may be used in the same session.
Activity
Which Type Should You Use?
You are going to use the same three situations from Section 2. Remember, though most expert interviewers mix structured and unstructured styles in an interview (to get the best of both), one technique is generally more dominant and valuable in a given situation.
This is only a starter exercise. You are not expected to be an expert either before or after this one exercise. Focus on the basics for now. More advanced skills can be acquired after you master the basics.