Violence In The Workplace
How Asking The Right Questions During the Interview Process Can Make Your Job Easier and Less Stressful
By Brian Norris, ©2000 414-899-1905

   Before going full-time in my speaking and consulting business, I spent many years in the hospitality industry. As a restaurant manager, I wish I had been taught to recognize potentially violent individuals. I quickly learned that careful interviewing, background checks and screenings were paramount to creating a hostile-free environment.

   Screening tools and systems (like multiple interviews, hiring an investigator for high-level positions and asking specific questions) are an important first step in curtailing the violence issues facing corporate America. 90% of us come from dysfunctional families … That makes sanity a valuable commodity!

  I liken the hiring process to a personal relationship. Many times during the courtship phase, neither man or woman is who they say purport to be - not until months or year have passed. We can ascertain, however, through questioning what lies beyond the courtship phase of the relationship. Furthermore, despite our best efforts we can rarely change the other person.

   So, if we discover a history of violence or potentially harmful behavior in the person we're considering, there is a chance that the behavior might be repeated at the most inopportune time. No amount of training, incentives or policy manuals can prevent those negative tendencies from disappearing entirely.

   In addition to screening and background checks, the questions asked during the interview process are imperative. This is where our roles as effective communicators comes into play. If the most appropriate style of questions (those based on behavioral association) are asked, AND we really listen to what's being said, we can discover possible red flags and warning signals.

   We can start with an obvious question - Have you ever been convicted of __________? Obviously, the crime named should be reasonably related to the performance of the job in question. Better statements/questions include:

• Tell me about a time when you had a disagreement with a boss
• Tell me about a time when you had a conflict with a fellow worker.
• Tell about a time you encountered an irate customer (buyer, investor, guest, etc.) How did you eliminate the problem?
• Tell me about a time when you had a disagreement with a boss.
• Tell me about your pet peeves.
• What's your favorite way to deal with stress? Why?
• How did you feel the last time you were passed up for a promotion or didn't get the recognition you thought you deserved? What did you do to correct the oversight?
• Who is the worst boss you ever had? Why?
• Suppose your boss gives your promotion to another employee. What would you be thinking?

     The "wrong" answers to these questions are those that:

• indicate that violence is a standard tool for the candidate
• outright denial that those scenarios ever existed
• lack a cogent explanation of HOW they dealt with the encounter or experience in a positive way.

  It doesn't take a rocket scientist to ask these types of questions or to know a red flag when you hear one. The majority of owners, executives and HR Pros are intelligent people with common sense. They don't have to be psychologists or forensic experts to benefit from asking these structured types of questions. They simply must be aware of the fundamental communications process: Speak -- Exchange - Listen -- Process -- Respond.

   Consider when you ask for the job candidate to describe how he or she handled an irate customer. If they begin to explain in detail how they bullied, physically or mentally abused the customer or how they wish they had a gun to shut that customer up once and for all, most interviewers would quickly disqualify that person. This is where the standard, "I'll keep your resume on file and in six months if you haven't heard from us you may assume the position has been filled" spiel is particularly helpful.

Conversely, if the job candidate acknowledges that he or she has in fact encountered a "difficult" customer and responded by quickly notifying a supervisor or looked for ways to "make it right", then you may have a potential new hire.

   Obviously, those qualifying or disqualifying determinations don't hinge on one single question, but rather, a series of questions designed to look behind the candidate's exterior. The more you get the interviewee to talk and relax, the more accurate a picture you can get on a whole range of characteristics.

   Additionally, you can easily (no psychological training required) watch the contortions on the candidate's face as they mentally relive the situations. Think about an embarrassing moment or a time when you lost your cool. Does your blood pressure rise? Does you face flush? Do you get clammy? These are the same responses that serve as secondary, observable responses to structured questions designed to make the interviewer's job easier and less stressful.

   Ultimately, the interviewer has to be more prepared and come armed with more curve balls than the interviewee.

   A recent survey revealed that job seekers often try to turn the tables by becoming the interviewer. And chances are you've read books packed with techniques on answering questions "correctly." Given these realities we must ask the unexpected and allow ourselves to work outside our traditional comfort zone.

   Done tactfully, these questions may paint a more accurate picture than the candidate's resume and eliminate potential problems before they ever have a chance to infect the given work environment.

   These strategies, combined with others, (ranging from assessments, training, incentive programs, leadership coaching, regular doses of motivation and acknowledgment) will lead to a positive workplace where people work together without fear and stress and communicate openly, productively and profitably.

Brian's 5-Star Recommendations:

1. The Ultimate Corporate Training Video Library

Bonus: More creative interview, pre-hiring techniques include:

• taking the candidate out for a quick round of miniature golf
• asking them to complete a jigsaw puzzle within a certain amount of time (or leaving a few pieces out).
• putting them into a role-playing scenario where other employees perform as mean bosses, rude co-worker or ticked off customers (in person and over the phone).

Brian Norris speaks and consults on creating positivity and productivity in the workplace. His experience as a trainer, advisor and facilitator is often called upon by organizations who need to improve their internal and external marketing, management and motivation.

For more information call 414-899-1905, visit http://www.briannorris.com  or email Brian at info@briannorris.com

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