What are the best practices for assessing global competencies and fit in a job interview?

1 Define global competencies and fit

Global competencies are the skills, knowledge, and attitudes that enable individuals to work effectively across different contexts and cultures. They include aspects such as intercultural communication, global mindset, adaptability, collaboration, and innovation. Global fit is the degree to which a candidate aligns with the values, vision, and goals of your organization and team, as well as the specific requirements and expectations of the role. Defining the global competencies and fit that are relevant and essential for your position will help you create clear and consistent criteria for evaluating candidates.

2 Use structured and behavioral interviews

Structured interviews are interviews that follow a predefined format and use standardized questions and scoring methods. They are more reliable and valid than unstructured interviews, which are more flexible and subjective. Behavioral interviews are a type of structured interview that ask candidates to describe specific situations or scenarios that demonstrate their global competencies and fit. They are based on the premise that past behavior is the best predictor of future performance. Using structured and behavioral interviews will help you reduce bias, increase objectivity, and compare candidates more fairly.

3 Incorporate situational and cultural questions

Situational questions are questions that present hypothetical or realistic scenarios that candidates may encounter in the role and ask them how they would handle them. They are useful for assessing how candidates apply their global competencies and fit to different situations and challenges. Cultural questions are questions that explore candidates' awareness, understanding, and appreciation of different cultural values, norms, and practices. They are useful for assessing how candidates communicate, collaborate, and adapt to different cultural contexts and expectations. Incorporating situational and cultural questions will help you gauge candidates' potential and readiness to work in a global environment.