Nine Questions Used to Assess a Candidate’s Emotional Intelligence

The interview process is an important tool in HR for many reasons. While it helps narrow down the candidate pool based on their responses, it can also be used to assess a candidate’s emotional intelligence(EI). EI can show itself in the form of empathy and honesty, and candidates with high EI often make for excellent employees, according to Business Daily.

An applicant tracking system (ATS) can do wonders when it comes down to efficiently selecting candidates from a job posting based on their résumé. Résumés deliver tangible insight to provide HR with information on exactly how a candidate will do when it comes to the work, but they don’t always convey EI as well as interviews do. Using an ATS in tandem with interview questions directed at revealing EI levels can drastically improve a company’s hiring process and help it find the right hire.

1. Honesty
Honesty is one of the most valued EI traits, as employees who are honest are usually emotionally mature. An honest employee will provide an impact in the office atmosphere: It might be the difference between someone who owns up to past mistakes or diverts the blame. Here are a few questions that can reveal a candidate’s level of honesty:

• “What are some of your weaknesses and how do you work through them?”
• “What makes you angry?”
• “When is the last time you were embarrassed and how did you handle it?”

Use the interview process to figure out if a candidate will facilitate collaboration at the office.

2. Collaboration
Emotional intelligence has a lot to do with knowing how to deal with people in a group setting, and work with them efficiently on projects, according to Monster. These questions can help narrow down your candidates to those who work well with their co-workers:

• “Do you ask for help when you need it?”
• “Would you prefer to work alone, or with a group?”
• “How do you handle irritation and anger in a group project?”

3. Perseverance
While consistency can be considered a soft skill, perseverance is more or less the ability to keep a calm, collected head when things aren’t going right. Consider asking these questions to figure out if potential candidates can withstand some of the flack they may take in the future for their work:

• “What makes you passionate about your work?”
• “What projects give you energy and get you the most involved?”
• “How do you find balance in your life?”

An ATS allows you to efficiently narrow down your candidate pool, and it becomes an even better tool when paired with EI questions that work towards understanding how compatible the candidate is with the staff.