Aparichithudu.....: February 2014

Below is a competency report by SHL. I felt it is worth sharing and a good read for people preparing for HR/Managerial rounds of interviews

Your Competency Potential Report

When considering the description of your competency potential, it is important to remember that it's based on the answers you gave and represents the way you see your own behaviour, rather than how your behaviour might be seen by someone else. The questionnaire is not infallible and, as with all questionnaires, its accuracy depends on how honest and candid you were when you completed it.

This report summarises your potential in 8 broad areas of competence. It gives an indication of your likely strengths and areas which you may require development. It is important to remember that none of these behaviours are static and a low score means that the behaviour is less likely to come naturally to you, but can quite possibly become one of your strengths if you work on it!

Report Key

The overall likelihood of you displaying a strength in each area is shown in the bar graphs on the right hand side of the report as shown below.

1	2	3	4	5

Unlikely to be a strength	Less likely to be a strength	Moderately likely to be a strength	Quite likely to be a strength	Very likely to be a strength

SHL Great 8 Competency areas
Leading and Deciding
Supporting and Co-operating
Interacting and Presenting
Analysing and Interpreting
Creating and Conceptualising
Organising and Executing
Adapting and Coping
Enterprising and Performing

Competency Potential Summary

The table below shows a summary of your competency potential in the 8 competency areas assessed. Descriptions and example interview questions for these 8 competency areas can be found on the next few pages of this report.

Leading and Deciding
	1	2	3	4	5
Quite likely to be a strength

These behaviours are important for roles of increased influence and responsibility, and mostly associated with leadership and management. People in such roles need to be prepared to make difficult decisions and take responsibility for them. When leading other people, it is important to attend to both task- and person- side of issues. The work of others has to be structured, organised and coordinated. At the same time, managers need to support personal development, reward good performance and motivate people to achieve work goals.
Example Roles where these behaviours are important:
- Managers/Supervisors - Judges - Company Directors	- Surgeons - Politicians - Military Officers

What Good Looks Like:
- Acts decisively and takes responsibility. - Is prepared to make difficult decisions and take calculated risks. - Empowers, develops and motivates others. - Defines roles and responsibilities and coordinates others. - Recognises and rewards good performance and builds effective teams.
Example Interview Questions: Outline a situation that required you to take a particularly quick and definitive decision. - What factors did you take into account when making your decision? - How comfortable were you at having to make such a quick decision? - How might your decision have been different if you had had more time to consider the issues involved? Tell me about a time when you had to take charge of a group of people in order to achieve a particularly important outcome. - How did it come about that you took this leadership role? - How did others respond to you in this role? - How would you describe your leadership style in this situation and how effective was it on this occasion? Give me an example of something you have done to bring out the best in another person or when you created a learning opportunity for someone. - How successful were you in your endeavour? - What does empowerment mean to you as a manager? - What skills would you like to improve to aid you to manage and set up learning opportunities?

Supporting and Co-operating
	1	2	3	4	5
Very likely to be a strength

Understanding other people, being tolerant and sensitive to their feelings, and treating them fairly and ethically are important behaviours when working in direct contact with other people, such as colleagues, clients or customers. When working as part of a team it is very important to support others and cooperate rather than compete. Expressing sympathy and considering the emotional needs of others is a key aspect of this behaviour.
Example Roles where these behaviours are important:
- Nurses - Counsellors - General Practitioners - Retail Assistants	- Customer Service Workers - Any job that involves working closely with a team

What Good Looks Like:
- Puts the team first and offers support to other team members. - Consults others and recognises their contributions. - Understands other people, showing sympathy when necessary. - Tolerates other people's views and needs. - Acts ethically and treats people fairly. - Provides service by responding to client needs, showing courtesy and dealing appropriately with dissatisfied customers.
Example Interview Questions: Give me an example of when you had to be particularly supportive to others in a team. - What factors did you consider when trying to decide how best to support them? - How in touch do you think you were with their feelings and concerns? - How did you identify what type of support was needed? Tell me about the last time that you were faced by a moral or ethical dilemma at work. - How did you feel? - How did you resolve the dilemma? - What factors affected how you dealt with the situation? Give me an example of a time when you had to satisfy a particular customer or client need (this could be an internal or external 'customer'). - How did you ensure that you set and delivered to agreed timescales and delivery standards with the customer? - How did you make sure that the client/customer was fully satisfied with your work? - How effectively do you think you satisfied the client's expectations?

Interacting and Presenting
	1	2	3	4	5
Very likely to be a strength

In order to win people round to a particular point of view, as in sales-related roles, it is important to make a good first impression, be confident, convincing and have good presentation skills. More broadly, to interact successfully with others and build productive relationships, one needs to be adaptable, take time to build and maintain people networks, and deal tactfully with any disagreements.
Example Roles where these behaviours are important:
- Sales Agents - Marketing Managers - Lawyers/Barristers - Recruitment Consultants	- Public Relations Managers - Management Consultants - Estate Agents

What Good Looks Like:
- Quickly establishes lasting and useful relationships with people. - Successfully negotiates, mediates and persuades. - Communicates and presents effectively, adapting style to suit the listener(s).
Example Interview Questions: Tell me about a time when you found it difficult to build an effective working relationship with a customer or colleague. - How did you deal with this? - What efforts did you make to understand the situation from other people's perspective? - To what extent did your relationship change? Describe a situation where you had difficulty persuading someone around to your point of view. - Why did you try to persuade him/her? - How successful were you? - What did you do to try and persuade them and what would you do differently next time? Tell me about a time when you have had to present ideas or information in a formal setting to others (such as a presentation to a group of people). - How did you feel during the presentation? - How did you decide what style to adopt in the presentation? - How do you feel the presentation went, and what feedback did you receive?

Analysing and Interpreting
	1	2	3	4	5
Very likely to be a strength

These behaviours are important for roles requiring good analytical skills. When working with information or solving problems, it is important to evaluate and review critically and produce solutions that are rational, practical and based on evidence. Communicating information and ideas effectively in writing and sharing expertise with others is essential for knowledge to disseminate through an organisation.
Example Roles where these behaviours are important:
- Economists - Physicists - Political Analysts - Engineers - Statisticians	- Computer Scientists - Actuaries - IT Analysts - Business Analysts

What Good Looks Like:
- Gathers information and evaluates it critically - Makes rational judgements and produces solutions to problems. - Writes in an engaging style and adapts writing style to suit the intended reader. - Shares information and expertise with others. - Actively seeks to develop job knowledge and skills and to learn about the organisation and its market.
Example Interview Questions: Describe a judgement that you have had to make that required you to be especially rational and objective. - To what extent did your final judgement differ from your own initial view of the situation? - How typical was this of your usual approach when analysing issues or problems? - What information did you collect to ensure that you remained objective? What type of written documents do you produce in your current (most recent) role? - Which of these do you find most difficult or challenging to produce and why? - How much do you enjoy this aspect of your work? - How do you decide how to structure your written work and the level at which to pitch it? - What feedback have you received about your written communication at work? When was the last time you attended any kind of training? - What did it involve? - How did you apply the information? - What feedback did you receive after the training?

Creating and Conceptualising
	1	2	3	4	5
Very likely to be a strength

Creativity and imagination are crucial for tasks and roles that require producing something new and original. It is not only creativity that drives innovation, but also providing the right environment for new ideas to flourish. All areas of work have emerging knowledge or technology, and it is important to be open to these new ideas and be keen to learn. Concentrating on the big picture and thinking about the long term are also important for achieving ambitious, long term objectives.
Example Roles where these behaviours are important:
- Fashion Designers - Product Designers - Architects - Choreographers - Creative Writers	- Web Developers - Biochemists - Physicists - Strategy Consultants

What Good Looks Like:
- Generates new ideas and readily considers new or unconventional approaches. - Anticipates future trends and imagines future possibilities. - Has a clear vision of long term goals and develops strategy to achieve them.
Example Interview Questions: Give me an example of when you have shown creativity. - Talk me through the processes that you went through when generating ideas or alternatives. How many alternatives did you generate? - How did you decide which idea or alternatives to apply in practice? - How well did your idea(s) work in practice? Give me an example of a time when you used a less common approach to work. - Why did you choose to follow this approach? - Why do you think your approach was different? - What was the end result? To what extent has your current (or previous) role allowed you to think strategically? - Describe the time-scales under which you typically plan and operate. - How much do you enjoy planning in the longer term? - Describe your role in a strategic planning process in which you have been involved. - How do you go about balancing day-to-day issues with those that are more long term?

Organising and Executing
	1	2	3	4	5
Very likely to be a strength

All employers want people who are organised, conscientious, committed, follow rules and can be relied upon to work on a task independently. These qualities are particularly important for busy roles where accurate and reliable execution is the key. When planning and managing projects, or scheduling and organising events, it is important to prioritise, multitask and use time effectively. Delivering work of high quality requires commitment, effort and an eye for detail.
Example Roles where these behaviours are important:
- Auditors - Computer Systems Administrators - Project Managers - Aviation Inspectors - Accountants	- Personal Assistants - Facilities Managers - Health and Safety Inspectors - Production Managers

What Good Looks Like:
- Works towards high standards and constantly monitors and improves own performance. - Develops realistic and achievable plans breaking work down into manageable parts. - Works systematically, setting objectives and prioritising effectively. - Uses time efficiently and monitors progress against deadlines and milestones. - Is committed to excellence and the organisation. - Accepts direction and complies with rules. - Is dependable and works well autonomously.
Example Interview Questions: What is the most challenging project or piece of work that you have had to organise? - How did you structure the project and your planning of it? - What made this project so challenging? - Looking back, how could you have been better prepared or organised? Give me an example of when you had to work to an important deadline. - Why was this deadline so important and what did you do to ensure it was met? - To what extent did you meet the deadline and all that it required? - What feedback did you receive afterwards? Can you tell me about a time when it was essential that you followed clear policies or procedures? - How typical is it for you to follow rules and procedures in a situation like this? - How successful were you in following these policies and procedures closely? - How do you feel when operating in areas that do not have such clear policies and procedures?

Adapting and Coping
	1	2	3	4	5
Very likely to be a strength

Most organisations go through periods of change or high pressure and some jobs are likely to involve uncertain or stressful situations on a regular basis. Adjusting and not feeling threatened in unfamiliar environments requires flexibility and the acceptance of change as a normal part of life. Effectively coping with pressure, setbacks or criticism requires the ability to stay calm, view things positively and switch off from work when relaxing.
Example Roles where these behaviours are important:
- Police Detectives - Umpires/Referees - Mental Health Counsellors	- Sales Managers - Fire Service Worker - Expatriate Workers

What Good Looks Like:
- Adapts and responds well to change. - Remains composed and effective in ambiguous or uncertain situations. - Works productively under pressure and relaxes outside work. - Keeps emotions under control and maintains a positive attitude despite setbacks. - Uses criticism constructively and does not dwell on unfair criticism.
Example Interview Questions: What is the greatest change that you have had to adapt to recently? - How was the need for change identified and what was its impact upon you? - How much variety do you like in your day-to-day work role? - What do you view as the benefits (and any disadvantages) of the changes? Describe a situation when you had to work under a high degree of pressure. - How did you feel while you were under this amount of pressure? - Do you think others would have noticed a change in your behaviour during this time? - What did you do to help you cope with this pressure and what might you do differently if this situation arose again? Tell me about a time when you were unfairly criticised. - Why do you think this happened? - How did you respond? - What was the outcome?

Enterprising and Performing
	1	2	3	4	5
Quite likely to be a strength

Demanding and results-oriented roles need "go-getting" and driven people, who are ambitious and constantly stretch themselves to achieve goals. People who work hard, persist and push themselves to the limit are generally the top performers in any organisation. In addition to drive, thinking commercially is a key behaviour for generating new business and maximising revenues.
Example Roles where these behaviours are important:
- Sales Agents - Stockbrokers - Financial Officers - Retail Buyers	- Treasurers - Bankers - Any target/results orientated job

What Good Looks Like:
- Works energetically and enthusiastically and shows persistence. - Acts on own initiative and seeks new challenges and demanding goals. - Thinks commercially, prioritising financial considerations and actively seeking opportunities for new business.
Example Interview Questions: Describe some particularly stretching targets that you have worked towards. - How were these targets set? - How motivating do you find targets like this? - How successful were you in reaching them? To what extent does your current (previous) role require you to take a commercial view of the organisation’s performance? - What personal targets do you have in relation to commercial success? - How, and to what extent, do you measure your own performance against these kinds of factors? - How important is this in terms of your motivation? Give me an example of a time when you spotted a good business opportunity. - What was this opportunity? - Why did you think it was worthwhile? - What was the outcome?

ABOUT THIS REPORT

The report herein is generated from the results of a questionnaire answered by the respondent(s) and substantially reflects the answers made by them. Due consideration must be given to the subjective nature of questionnaire-based ratings in the interpretation of this data.

This report has been generated electronically - the user of the software can make amendments and additions to the text of the report.

SHL Group Limited and its associated companies cannot guarantee that the contents of this report are the unchanged output of the computer system. We can accept no liability for the consequences of the use of this report and this includes liability of every kind (including negligence) for its contents.

This report has been prepared by SHL as part of an SHL Research project and is not commercially available. It is not intended to provide information for selection procedures.

www.ceb.shl.com