How to Nail a Leadership Assesment Interview

Many companies opt to conduct a specific interview to assess a candidates´s Leadership Skills.

Whether it is a form to fill out, a free writing exam, a verbal interview or a combination of those, there are a few important things to remember that will help you prepare and communicate with confidence and clarity why YOU are the right person for the job.

It is important to not just list the skills you feel you have but to show how you put them into practice. Try presenting real workplace examples, communicate what action(s) you took, what the outcome was & perhaps even something you learned.

Reflect on your past experiences and connect them to specific leadership skills.

Apart from assessing your competence, Interviewers will be looking to answer these two questions:

• Motivation: What is driving the candidate to become a strong and effective leader?
• Risks. What are the risks that could prevent the applicant from reaching their potential?

When interviewers ask about leadership skills, they will be looking for data on:

• Strategy, Organization and Decision making skills- Leaders understand & can develop strategy, can manage people and projects productively, and contribute to the company’s commercial goals.
• Vision– Leaders have a clear vision and know where they want to go in their areas. The also know how to translate the overall company’s vision into reality.
• Persuasiveness and negotiation — Leaders can drive action and implement change while at the same time getting people on board to support them.
• Solutions Orientated– Great leaders find implementable solutions to diffuclt problems.
• Manage Numbers, but Lead People- Empath y Active Listening Skills. Listen and understand employees. Help them develop their skills and improve their performance. Recognize others’ achievements
• Ability to innovate — Leaders come up with new ideas. They act as change drivers by encouraging creativity and innovation in the workplace. Promote continuous improvement.
• Self-confidence — Leaders aren’t afraid to take responsibility.
• Self-awareness — Leaders are confident in their abilities but also recognize their limits. Good leaders delegate and trust the professional advice of their co-workers.
• Learning agility. As a leader are you willing to learn from experiences and use this knowledge to improve performance?
• Ability to motivate, influence and inspire — Leaders maximize their employees’ potential and play to their intrinsic motivation. They praise exceptional efforts and lead by example. They include employees in decision making.
• Conflict resolution skills– Leaders support their co-workers through difficult situations and find solutions to interpersonal problems.
• Define expectations. Then delegate. — Leaders set clear expectations that let employees know what is expected from them. Then they let those employees take ownership of their work.
• Provide clarity — Managers communicate with employees to avoid confusion and provide clarity on responsibilities and roles so they can effectively do their jobs and contribute to the organization.
• Build trust and relationships — Effective communication forges lasting relationships, builds trust, supports commitment and encourages teamwork. Encourage open and transparent communication. Build high functioning teams. Develop influential relationships with diverse groups

Demonstrating these abilities will show any interviewer just how suitable you are for the job.