Interview Guide Builder

When to Use

• When preparing questions for a specific role interview
• When standardizing interview practices across hiring managers
• When reducing bias through structured interviewing
• When training new interviewers on behavioral techniques

Procedure

Step 1 — Map Competencies

1. Extract key competencies from the job description
2. Categorize: Core (must-have) vs Nice-to-have
3. Assign competencies to interview stages (phone screen, technical, behavioral, culture)
4. Target 3–4 competencies per 45-minute interview slot

Step 2 — Generate STAR Questions

For each competency, create questions that elicit:

• Situation — Context and background
• Task — What was expected or needed
• Action — What the candidate specifically did
• Result — Outcome and impact

Include 1 primary question + 2 follow-up probes per competency.

Step 3 — Build Scoring Rubric

Score	Level	Description
5	Exceptional	Clear STAR, ownership, measurable impact, learning applied
4	Strong	Good STAR, solid actions, positive result
3	Adequate	Basic STAR, some vagueness, acceptable result
2	Weak	Incomplete STAR, unclear actions, minimal impact
1	Poor	No relevant example, hypothetical response, red flags

Step 4 — Add Bias Safeguards

1. Avoid questions about protected characteristics
2. Score independently before discussing with other interviewers
3. Use the same questions for all candidates at the same stage
4. Focus on behaviors and outcomes, not personality or "culture fit"

Inputs

Input	Required	Format
Job description	Yes	Full JD text
Interview stage	Yes	Phone / Technical / Behavioral / Final
Competency model	Recommended	List of competencies with definitions
Time allocated	Recommended	Minutes per interview

Output

## Interview Guide — [Role] — [Stage]

### Competency 1: Problem Solving

**Primary Question:**
"Tell me about a time you faced a complex problem at work that didn't have an obvious solution. Walk me through how you approached it."

**Follow-up Probes:**
- "What alternatives did you consider before choosing your approach?"
- "What was the measurable outcome?"

**Scoring Rubric:**

| Score | Look For |
|-------|----------|
| 5 | Structured approach, evaluated multiple options, quantified result, applied learning |
| 4 | Clear problem definition, logical approach, positive outcome |
| 3 | Basic approach described, some structure, acceptable result |
| 2 | Vague description, no clear methodology, minimal impact |
| 1 | No relevant example, only hypothetical, blame-shifting |

**🟢 Green Flags:** Uses data, considers stakeholders, shows iterative thinking
**🔴 Red Flags:** Takes all credit in team settings, blames others, can't articulate approach

---

### Competency 2: Stakeholder Management

**Primary Question:**
"Describe a situation where you had to manage conflicting priorities from different stakeholders. How did you handle it?"

**Follow-up Probes:**
- "How did you communicate your decision to the stakeholder whose request was deprioritized?"
- "What would you do differently?"

[...repeat for each competency...]

---

### Interview Evaluation Summary

| Competency | Score (1–5) | Notes |
|------------|-------------|-------|
| Problem Solving | ___ | |
| Stakeholder Management | ___ | |
| Technical Depth | ___ | |
| Leadership | ___ | |
| **Overall** | ___ | |

**Recommendation:** ☐ Strong Hire ☐ Hire ☐ No Hire ☐ Strong No Hire

Definition of Done

• Competencies mapped from JD to interview questions
• STAR-format questions with follow-up probes per competency
• Scoring rubric (1–5) with specific behavioral indicators
• Green/Red flag indicators per question
• Bias safeguard notes included
• Evaluation summary template with recommendation field

Examples

Prompt

I'm interviewing candidates for a Senior Product Manager role.
This is a behavioral interview (45 minutes).
Key competencies: Strategic thinking, Stakeholder management, Data-driven decisions, Cross-functional leadership.
Build an interview guide with STAR questions and scoring rubrics.

Quality Criteria

• All placeholder sections are filled with domain-specific content
• Structure follows the relevant industry standard or framework
• Language matches target audience (technical / executive / legal)
• Output is ready for review — not a rough draft requiring major rework

Verification (4C)

Check	Question
Correctness	Does the draft structure follow the stated framework or industry standard?
Completeness	Are all required sections present with substantive (not placeholder) content?
Context-fit	Does tone, detail level, and terminology match the intended audience?
Consequence	If sent to the intended recipient without further editing, what would fail?

Edge Cases

• No existing template for this type — Use the closest available template and document all customizations made.
• Stakeholder requirements conflict — Flag conflicts explicitly in the draft. Do not silently choose one requirement over another.
• Output required in multiple formats — Produce the canonical format first, then derive others. Note any formatting limitations.

Changelog

• v1.0.0 — Initial release