Communicating One-to-One at Work

Institute of Leadership & Mana, Institute of Leadership & Management

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2013
• Print ISBN:
  9780080464381
  9781138454088
• Edition: 5
• eBook ISBN:
  9781136416279
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Business General
• Index: Business

Super series are a set of workbooks to accompany the flexible learning programme specifically designed and developed by the Institute of Leadership & Management (ILM) to support their Level 3 Certificate in First Line Management. The learning content is also closely aligned to the Level 3 S/NVQ in Management. The series consists of 35 workbooks. Each book will map on to a course unit (35 books/units).

Session C

Interviewing

1 Introduction

Most one-to-one communication is relatively informal. It could be a chat in the corridor or in the workplace, or a discussion about what's needed from a task, or perhaps a coaching session. Even if you have arranged to coach someone, the way that you speak to each other will usually be fairly informal. When one-to-one communication takes place as part of a pre-arranged meeting or when it is done formally, it is usually regarded as an interview.

In this final Session we will look at the particular communication skills that are relevant to interviewing, and how the formality of the interview affects how you and the interviewee respond to the messages being communicated. However, we will start by looking at what interviews are, the range of different interviews that can take place and the distinctive qualities that these different interviews can have.

2 What is an ‘interview’?

We use the word ‘interview’ quite freely without always thinking what it really means. What is it that makes normal one-to-one communication turn into an interview?

Most (but not all) interviews are pre-arranged. That means that the interviewer and the interviewee know in advance that the meeting will take place and its purpose. There are occasions when an interview may take place without any pre-agreement or warning, but they are an exception.

An interview implies that one person is leading or controlling the communication process (the interviewer) and the other has to follow his or her lead (the interviewee). In other words, there is an imbalance in the power of the participants, with the interviewer having the greater power. This will obviously affect how each party views the process and interprets the messages being sent.

An interview should take place in private so that others can't overhear what is being said. This is because interviews are often about something important and personal – perhaps selection or promotion, discipline or competence, to find out why someone is leaving a job or to help deal with particular problems.

Of course, not all interviews are purely one-to-one. Selection or promotion interviews, and some disciplinary or grievance interviews, could well involve some panel interviews. However, the principles and practices that we have looked at so far apply just as much, because interviews depend on effective interpersonal communication skills.

Finally, interviews may well have to follow some prescribed procedure. This may be for legal reasons (particularly in relation to employment and anti-discrimination law) or simply to ensure that they are done well to produce the best outcomes.

So, an interview is:

pre-arranged (except in very special circumstances);

controlled by the interviewer;

in private;

draws on the interpersonal communication skills of the participants;

may need to adhere to a defined policy and procedure.

This is what makes interviews ‘formal’. Informality is all about doing things when the need arises, in public view and hearing, unconstrained by specific procedures. Having said that, most people can distinguish between an ‘informal’ and a ‘formal’ interview. How is that possible, if all interviews are ‘formal’?

The distinction is usually made where the interview is not governed by a specific policy or procedure. If someone is thinking of applying for a new position elsewhere, a manager may interview the person informally to find out why they are thinking of leaving and try and influence them to stay, or you may want to use the idea of an interview to add weight to a warning to someone about their performance or behaviour, without going as far as a formal verbal warning. The communication style used will tend to be less formal, in the language used, the non-verbal behaviour (such as the interviewer's posture, how her or she sits) and even how you are addressed (as Mr Smith, James or Jimmy). What's more, informal interviews are less controlled by the interviewer, giving the interviewee some influence over the process.

Activity 23

Think about interviews you have been involved in over recent years (as interviewer or interviewee). Were they formal or informal and did they have any of the qualities described above?

3 Types of interview

We have mentioned several different types of interview so far – recruitment or promotion, disciplinary or competence, exit (when someone leaves) or support (when someone has problems).

Activity 24

Can you think of any other types of interview?

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To some extent the answer to this question depends on where you work. In some organisations interviews may be used with customers, clients or other service users. A housing association may interview prospective tenants to find out what their needs are. A nurse or junior doctor may interview patients and their relatives to obtain information to inform a diagnosis. A college or university may interview potential students to discover if they are suited to a course being offered, or to help them identify the best course for them. All of these will tend to be fairly formal, to ensure that they are conducted fairly and effectively.

In the police service, interviews with victims, witnesses and suspects are very formal, because a failure to adhere to correct procedure may prevent justice being done. Research organisations may undertake very structured interviews as part of their work for clients whilst purchasing staff may interview suppliers as part of their decision-making about sourcing materials or services.

Interviews are also part of appraisal or performance management procedures. Most medium-sized or large organisations have some form of appraisal performance management procedure which...

Table of contents

• Front Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• Series Preface
• Unit Specification
• Workbook Introduction
• Session A One-to-one meetings
• Session B Non-verbal communication
• Session C Interviewing
• Performance Checks
• Reflect and Review