Recruitment Interviewing and Selection Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends HR Managers, Recruitment Managers and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 7 Nov 2026 Course code SD-TPM-033

Before you join: Participants should have basic familiarity with recruitment processes and some exposure to interviewing, shortlisting or hiring decisions.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Poor recruitment decisions create avoidable cost, weak performance, delayed delivery and employee relations risk. Many selection processes still rely on unstructured conversations, inconsistent shortlisting and panel decisions based on personal impressions. This course gives participants a repeatable method for defining job requirements, gathering comparable candidate evidence and making defensible appointment decisions. It addresses the points where selection quality commonly fails: vague criteria, weak questions, leading probes, incomplete notes, uncalibrated scores and undocumented decisions.

Participants learn to convert job analysis into a person specification, competency criteria and weighted selection matrix. They design structured interview guides using behavioural, situational and STAR questions; apply behaviourally anchored rating scales; conduct interviews with neutral probing and evidence-based note-taking; and manage panel discussions without allowing seniority or first impressions to determine the outcome. The course also covers screening, work samples, assessment centres, psychometric testing, references, conditional offers, candidate feedback and recruitment metrics. Legal, ethical, data protection and accessibility considerations are addressed throughout.

Teaching combines short instructor briefings with recruitment cases, individual design work, peer review, interview simulations and panel scoring discussions. Participants work with realistic hiring scenarios such as appointing a branch operations manager, a programme officer, a technical specialist or a customer-facing supervisor. They leave with a structured interview and selection toolkit, including a role criteria matrix, interview guide, scoring rubric, panel protocol and decision record template. The five-day format provides approximately 32.5 contact hours, delivered in the classroom or live online, and includes a certificate of completion.

What you will be able to do

  • Define job-related selection criteria using job analysis, critical incidents and person specifications
  • Build weighted selection matrices that distinguish essential, desirable and trainable requirements
  • Design structured interview guides using behavioural, situational and STAR questioning techniques
  • Conduct evidence-based interviews using neutral probes, active listening and defensible notes
  • Score candidate evidence consistently using behaviourally anchored rating scales and rubrics
  • Coordinate panel interviews through defined roles, independent scoring and calibration procedures
  • Select appropriate work samples, tests and reference checks for role-specific assessment
  • Audit selection decisions using documentation, adverse impact indicators and recruitment metrics

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Conduct structured interviews with greater confidence and control
  • Write questions that produce job-relevant behavioural evidence
  • Defend appointment recommendations with documented candidate evidence
  • Contribute effectively to calibrated panel discussions
  • Identify and reduce personal bias in scoring decisions

For your organisation

  • More consistent hiring decisions across managers, teams and locations
  • Clearer evidence trail for appointment, rejection and feedback decisions
  • Reduced risk from discriminatory, inconsistent or undocumented selection practices
  • Improved candidate experience through transparent and professional interview processes
  • Better quality-of-hire data for refining future recruitment decisions

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can define measurable selection criteria from the requirements of a role.

  • Job analysis distinguishes essential duties, outputs, constraints and decision authority
  • Critical incident technique identifies behaviours behind successful and unsuccessful performance
  • Person specification separates essential criteria from trainable or desirable attributes
  • Competency models translate role evidence into observable interview indicators
  • Selection criteria matrix weights requirements before advertising or shortlisting begins
  • Stakeholder calibration resolves conflicting expectations between hiring manager and HR

Participants can plan consistent candidate attraction, screening and communication stages.

  • Recruitment funnel measures applicant volume, conversion, quality and time-to-fill
  • Job advertisements state evidence-based criteria without excluding qualified applicants
  • Application form design collects comparable evidence against published selection criteria
  • CV screening protocol records inclusion and rejection reasons consistently
  • Telephone screening questions test availability, motivation and minimum requirements
  • Candidate communication timelines protect experience, confidentiality and employer reputation standards

Participants can apply fair selection controls while working within policy and legal boundaries.

  • Equal opportunity principles distinguish job-related assessment from unlawful discrimination
  • Protected-characteristic questions and prohibited evidence are identified before interview design
  • Reasonable adjustment requests are handled confidentially and consistently
  • Data minimisation limits collection, access, retention and sharing of candidate information
  • Conflict-of-interest declarations protect impartiality in panel appointments and decisions
  • Local employment law and organisational policy set clear decision boundaries

Participants can create structured interview guides that gather comparable candidate evidence.

  • Structured interviews use identical core questions, probes and scoring anchors
  • Competency-based questions seek past behaviour relevant to role requirements
  • STAR probing elicits situation, task, action and result evidence
  • Situational questions test judgement against realistic role-based scenarios
  • Question funnels move from open prompts to precise behavioural probes
  • Interview guides sequence rapport, questions, candidate questions and close

Participants can score evidence against defined standards rather than personal impressions.

  • Behaviourally anchored rating scales define weak, acceptable and strong evidence
  • Analytic scoring separates competencies rather than relying on overall impressions
  • Anchor statements use observable actions, outcomes and degree of autonomy
  • Calibration samples align panel interpretation before candidate interviews begin
  • Rating errors include halo, horns, central tendency and leniency
  • Scoring rubrics document evidence citations beside numerical ratings

Participants can conduct professional interviews that produce reliable and usable evidence.

  • Opening scripts establish purpose, timing, confidentiality and candidate expectations
  • Active listening captures evidence without completing the candidate's narrative
  • Neutral probing tests claims without coaching or leading responses
  • Note-taking records verbatim evidence separately from interpretation and ratings
  • Silence, pace and transitions maintain control while allowing candidate thinking
  • Closing conversations explain next steps without implying an offer

Participants can manage panels that assess candidates consistently and reach evidence-based decisions.

  • Panel roles assign chair, question owners, observer and decision recorder
  • Turn-taking protocols prevent repetition, interruption and unequal candidate treatment
  • Independent scoring precedes discussion to reduce conformity pressure
  • Consensus meetings reconcile evidence differences without averaging unsupported opinions
  • Remote interview controls address identity, connectivity, privacy and accessibility
  • Candidate experience checkpoints assess respect, clarity and professional conduct

Participants can select and govern additional assessment methods appropriate to role requirements.

  • Work sample tests replicate critical tasks under standardised conditions
  • Job knowledge tests measure required knowledge against documented content
  • Assessment centres combine simulations, observers and predetermined scoring criteria
  • Psychometric test use requires validity evidence, trained interpretation and consent
  • Reference checks verify employment facts and job-relevant performance claims
  • Background screening boundaries follow role risk, policy and local law

Participants can make, document and communicate defensible appointment decisions.

  • Selection decision matrices combine interview scores, assessments and essential criteria
  • Adverse impact monitoring compares progression rates across demographic groups
  • Decision records show evidence, dissent, approvals and appointment rationale
  • Conditional offers state checks, terms, deadlines and withdrawal contingencies
  • Unsuccessful candidate feedback distinguishes factual process feedback from subjective commentary
  • Recruitment metrics diagnose quality-of-hire, time-to-fill and candidate withdrawal

Participants can review selection quality and plan targeted improvements to their recruitment process.

  • First-90-day measures connect selection criteria with post-hire performance evidence
  • Probation review data tests whether selection predictions were well founded
  • Candidate and manager surveys identify friction within the selection process
  • Interview audit samples check guide use, scoring quality and documentation
  • Action plans assign owners, milestones and measures for process improvements
  • Personal interview development plans target observed strengths and gaps

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Weighted selection criteria matrix
  2. Structured competency interview guide
  3. STAR probing question bank
  4. Behaviourally anchored rating scale template
  5. Panel interview protocol and decision record
  6. Selection process audit and improvement plan

Who should attend

  • HR Managers — responsible for improving selection quality, consistency and governance
  • Recruitment Managers — accountable for designing and managing hiring processes
  • Talent Acquisition Specialists — need stronger interviewing, screening and assessment methods
  • Hiring Managers — make appointment decisions for operational and professional roles
  • HR Business Partners — advise managers on fair, evidence-based selection decisions
  • Interview Panel Members — require a shared method for questioning, scoring and documenting evidence

Skills and tools covered

Structured interviewingCompetency-based assessmentCandidate scoringPanel decision-makingSelection complianceRecruitment analytics

Tools and standards

Structured interview protocol, STAR interview technique, Behaviourally Anchored Rating Scales, ISO 30405:2016 Human resource management — Guidelines on recruitment

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short briefings to establish methods, followed by case work, group analysis, interview simulations and panel decision discussions. Participants build selection materials from realistic vacancies and review how different assessors interpret the same candidate evidence. Simulations focus on behavioural questioning, neutral probing, note-taking, scoring and panel calibration. Instructor feedback identifies where criteria, questions or ratings are unclear. Each participant completes an application plan for improving an upcoming or existing recruitment process.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have basic familiarity with recruitment processes and some exposure to interviewing, shortlisting or hiring decisions. They should understand the difference between a job description and a person specification, even if they have not written either document themselves. Experience as a hiring manager, HR practitioner, recruiter or panel member is useful. No formal HR qualification, legal qualification, psychometric certification or prior training in competency frameworks is required. The course does not assume expertise in employment law; participants apply their own organisational policy and local legal guidance where required.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants should understand basic recruitment terminology and have some exposure to hiring, interviewing or shortlisting. No formal HR qualification, legal qualification or psychometric certification is required.

Bring an anonymised job description, person specification or current vacancy if you can. These materials can be used to develop selection criteria, interview questions and scoring tools during the course.

It is designed for HR practitioners, recruiters, hiring managers, HR business partners and regular interview panel members. It is particularly useful where different managers currently interview and score candidates in inconsistent ways.

Sourcing courses focus on finding, attracting and engaging candidates. This course concentrates on assessing applicants fairly, gathering valid evidence and making documented selection decisions after candidates enter the process.

Participants can use the templates to redesign an upcoming interview, establish panel roles and introduce evidence-based scoring. The methods also support reviews of existing shortlisting, assessment and appointment procedures.

Each day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and provides about 6.5 contact hours. Time is divided between instructor input, case analysis, design work, interview simulations, scoring discussions and application planning.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

Related courses in Talent & Performance Management