leadership competency interview guide - hewitt of colleagues together to promote and nurture...

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Last Updated 6/2016

Leadership Competency

Interview Guide

Interview Questions

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Introduction

The purpose of this interviewing guide is to provide the user with the tools to accurately assess the

leadership skills of candidates, both internal and external, as they interview for roles with CVS Health.

The competency-based questions provided here are samples only, and do not encompass the full range

of questions that can be used to assess leadership skills and experiences.

Goals of Guide

By using this guide, you will be able to leverage questions aligned to CVS Health’s Leadership

Competency Model:

o Sets Direction

o Delivers Results

o Leads Others

o Thinks Enterprise

Please note – behavioral interviewing best-practices can be found in the companion guide – Process and

Instructions.

When to use this Guide

Please note that this guide is intended to be used when interviewing candidates for Leadership

positions, as well as high-level Individual Contributor roles. Please use the ‘Interview Questions for

Hourly Colleagues’ guide when interviewing candidates for positions that are paid hourly, or for entry-

level Individual Contributor roles. The suggested methodologies are the same, but the content of the

interview questions themselves has been tailored to meet the needs of the appropriate audiences.

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Leadership Competencies

Leadership competencies communicate the expectations of leaders at CVS Health. They are aligned to

CVS Health’s purpose of helping people on their path to better health. By understanding and using these

competencies for assessment of talent – both internal and external – we ensure that CVS Health

recognizes and promotes leadership that will help to drive our business and our purpose forward.

For a copy of the Leadership Competency model, visit the mySuccess tool.

https://federation.cvs.com/affwebservices/public/saml2sso?SPID=www.successfactors.com

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Thinks Enterprise – Applies Growth Mindset Actively seeks new ways to grow and be challenged for the better of the enterprise

Suggested Questions

Tell me about a time when you sought out a new challenge at work. o Why did you choose that challenge? What did you learn? Were you able to gain

support for this challenge? How?

Tell me about the biggest mistake you made in a project or assignment. How did you apply what you learned?

o What contributed to the mistake? What did you do to try to turn it around?

Tell me about a time when you either approached or were approached by another area of the business to partner on a project.

o How did you collaborate to ensure a beneficial outcome? How did you contribute to the work of the other team? How did they contribute to your team’s work?

Describe to me a time when you had to challenge a widely-held assumption in order to move the business forward.

o How did you go about it? What was the result?

Give me an example of how you have gained the confidence and trust of your colleagues. o Has this had an effect on your work?

Notes

Key Behaviors

Shares knowledge of all parts of the business to enable self and others to see enterprise opportunities more clearly

Seeks broader perspectives and gathers information to understand business issues, priorities and the culture of how we operate across various stakeholder groups

Contributes to the performance of other units/teams; and leads his or her team to do the same

Respectfully pushes boundaries and creates tensions to produce enterprise results

Demonstrates resilience and resourcefulness when faced with challenges and obstacles

Shows intellectual curiosity, is an agile learner, and applies learning from failures

Demonstrates humility and self-awareness by recognizing own limitations and allowing others to contribute or lead

Gains the confidence and trust of others through honesty, integrity, and authenticity

= N/A Insufficient Evidence Not Assessed

= 1 Little Evidence Did not demonstrate behavioral examples

= 2 Some Evidence Demonstrates a few or weak behavioral examples

= 3 Strong Evidence Demonstrates many and strong behavioral examples

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Sets Direction – Demonstrates a Deep Understanding of the Business and Market

Applies knowledge of our business to best serve our customers and clients

Suggested Questions

Give me an example of what you have done to learn about the business and customer? o What steps did you take? What was the outcome? How did you apply your learning?

Tell me about a time when you used market data or information from a competitor to guide a plan or strategy.

o How did you come across the data? How did you apply it?

Market changes occur on a continual basis. Describe how you stay up to date on market developments.

o What external factors do you think are important when considering your company’s position in the marketplace? What publications do you read?

Tell me about a time when you had to change strategic direction due to potential impact on another part of the business.

o When did you realize the potential impact? How did you come to a solution?

Notes

Key Behaviors

Has a strong understanding of customers’ needs and expectations across multiple market segments we serve

Understands how we differentiate from our competitors to deliver value for our customers and shareholders

Regularly digests market data to create insights that promote new products and services for our customers/clients

Understands the links and connections between functional areas/business units, and factors them into decisions and plans

Recognizes the levers and assets we can use to align CVS Health and customer/client strategies with our purpose of helping people on their path to better health





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Sets Direction – Thinks and Acts Strategically Sees ahead to future possibilities and translates them into breakthrough strategies

Suggested Questions

Describe to me a project where expectations or timelines shifted. How did you alter your approach and why?

o What effect did it have?

Tell me about a situation when you established priorities across the team or organization. How did you set and communicate those priorities?

o What strategies did you use to help people understand the priorities? To gain buy-in from your team?

Tell me about a time when you had to balance short-term wins with longer-term goals. o Which did you do? How did you decide?

Describe to me a plan that you created that had some potential risks involved. o How did you identify the risks? How did you deal with those risks?

Notes

Key Behaviors

Anticipates changes in the market and adjusts strategies and plans to meet shifting priorities

Keeps focused on long-term, strategic goals while executing against short-term objectives

Identifies potential risks and subsequent mitigation strategies when developing plans

Aligns team, department and/or business unit goals with CVS Health imperatives

Creates plans that align the people, culture, communications and processes needed to take action and make decisions

Is adept at working within the realities and constraints of the organization, understanding when to work within an existing framework and when to push for change





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Delivers Results – Fosters Agility and Innovation Easily adapts to change and encourages continuous challenge of the status quo

Suggested Questions

Tell me about a time when you changed the way something was being done. o How did you challenge the status quo? How did you gain support? How did you

overcome obstacles?

Describe a time when you used a non-traditional, creative method to solve a problem. o Why wouldn’t traditional methods have worked? What was the outcome?

Tell me about a time when you were able to bring new thinking regarding a process or tool that impacted the customer/client into the organization?

o How did you identify the new process or tool? What steps did you take to share your insight?

Notes

Key Behaviors

Seeks, evaluates, and applies best practices from inside and outside CVS Health to drive meaningful and impactful solutions

Creates an environment that encourages colleagues to explore and pilot new ways of looking at problems, processes and solutions

Fosters creative thinking by bringing a diverse team of colleagues together to promote and nurture innovation

Manages through ambiguity and complexity to take calculated risks to solve problems, forge new paths for growth and/or achieve challenging goals

Rapidly adjusts strategy and priorities to meet changing business requirements

Conveys a strong sense of urgency to drive issues to closure





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Delivers Results – Ensures Outcomes Collaborates with others to consistently deliver results that make a difference

Suggested Questions

How have you created or contributed to an environment of accountability with your team? o What were the key actions that you took? What was the result?

Tell me about a time when you had two stakeholders who had different and competing priorities. How did you ensure successful outcomes?

o How did you navigate the relationships?

Describe the most difficult challenge you have faced in getting others to follow your lead in completing an assignment or project.

o What obstacles arose? How did you overcome them?

Tell me about a time when you partnered cross-functionally to deliver on a shared goal. o What did you do to partner with the other function?

Notes

Key Behaviors

Works collaboratively to create clear goals, accountabilities and outcomes

Holds self and colleagues accountable for delivering results

Orchestrates the pace and process of change to ensure delivery of outcomes

Ensures that others have the resources, information, authority and support needed to execute initiatives

Partners cross-functionally and across the enterprise to achieve individual, team or shared goals

Knows how to get things done through formal channels as well as relationships with colleagues across the organization





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Delivers Results – Makes Sound Business Decisions Collaborates with others to make timely and well-informed decisions that advance priorities, capitalize

on new opportunities, and resolve problems

Suggested Questions

Tell me about a time when you took a risk to achieve a goal. o Why was it risky? What did you do?

Describe a time when you were asked to address a problem, and found that there was a deeper issue that needed to be addressed first.

o How did you find out about the deeper issue? What did you do?

Tell me about the most difficult business decision you had to make. o What made it difficult? How did you go about making your decision?

Tell me about a time when shifting priorities caused you to adjust your course of action. o What was the hardest part of changing course midstream?

Tell me about a time you had to make a decision without having complete information. o What was the result? What information do you wish you had had at the time?

Notes

Key Behaviors

Asks the right questions to get to the root cause in order to define problems before moving to solutions

Makes fact based decisions that balance analytic insights with personal experience

Seeks input from people with relevant knowledge and expertise to make timely and well informed decisions

Takes risk and shifts courses of action when necessary

Determines course of action even when based on incomplete information, precedent or in the face of uncertainty





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Leads Others – Builds/Contributes to High Performing Teams Creates an environment where team members have the opportunity and freedom to perform at their

best

Suggested Questions

Tell me about the best hire you ever made. How did you identify them as a fit? o What made them stand out?

How have you been able to gain commitment from others to work as a team? o How have you fostered an environment of shared accountability?

Recognition is often a powerful tool in managing/working with others. How have you used recognition with your team/team mates?

o What behaviors or outcomes did you think deserved recognition?

How have you built or re-built your team in the past? What factors did you consider? o How did you ensure diversity of thought and experience on your team?

Notes

Key Behaviors

Identifies and selects the best talent with a range of diverse backgrounds and experiences

Conveys confidence in others ability and desire to do their best

Gives team members responsibility and accountability and steps back to let them do their work

Reallocates people and resources appropriately to deliver on priorities

Rewards and recognizes colleagues who deliver results and demonstrate our values





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Leads Others – Impacts and Influences Aligns others around the purpose in order to gain support and commitment

Suggested Questions

Tell me about a time you successfully influenced a decision that you did not have the authority to make yourself.

o How did you go about it? Who was involved? What was the outcome?

Give me an example of a time when you needed support from your peers in order to get an idea across/accepted.

o What did you do?

Describe to me how you have built and maintained professional relationships with colleagues in other areas of the business.

o How did you work with them? What were the results of those relationships?

Tell me about a time when you had to find a solution to an issue that worked for multiple stakeholders with differing priorities.

o How did you identify the priorities? How did you reach a consensus?

Notes

Key Behaviors

Actively develops open and trusted relationships across the organization

Involves and creates synergies with others whose input and collaboration is critical to achieving to targeted outcomes

Seeks to understand and appreciate the perspectives of colleagues and stakeholders who have a range of different thoughts and experiences; suspends judgment before taking action

Reads others accurately and addresses their unstated concerns, interests, and levels of commitment

Finds common ground and acceptable alternatives that satisfy the needs of multiple stakeholders





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Leads Others – Engages and Inspires Instills a sense of energy and excitement and fosters pride in CVS Health’s purpose

Suggested Questions

Tell me about a time you rallied your team around a new project or initiative. How did you get them excited about the new work?

o How did you address concerns? What did you do to ensure their success?

Think about the longest-term project you’ve led/worked on in the past. How did you keep/contribute to keeping the team engaged and motivated over that long time span?

o How did you deal with disengaged team members?

Describe to me how you have empowered your team to try new things or look for new opportunities outside of their daily duties.

o How did you encourage team members, even if the ideas weren’t feasible?

Leaders are tasked with creating a vision and purpose for their function/team. How have you gone about doing this?

o What was the result?

Tell me about a time you took action to ensure that a milestone was celebrated, or an accomplishment recognized.

o Who was recognized? What was the outcome for that person? The team?

Notes

Key Behaviors

Listens actively and respectfully to others in a way that makes them feel valued and heard

Empowers others to capitalize on new opportunities to continuously innovate/reinvent

Maintains momentum by continually recognizing and celebrating short-term wins and shared successes

Unifies a culture that promotes energy, enthusiasm and pride

Generates excitement among team members for what can be





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Leads Others – Develops Talent Provides opportunities, guidance, and feedback to develop colleagues and ensure a pipeline of talent for

the future

Suggested Questions

Give me an example of a time you coached a team member. o What was the issue or area of opportunity? What was the outcome?

Give me an example of an employee who you helped get to the next step in their career. o What was your plan? How did you help them stretch or get exposure?

Describe to me how you developed new capabilities within your team. o How did you identify who to develop?

Tell me how you have developed your team in the past. o How did you identify areas of development? How did you hold them accountable for

doing the same for their direct reports?

Tell me how you have gone about retaining talent on your team. o What strategies did you use? Were you successful?

Notes

Key Behaviors

Provides timely and ongoing feedback, both appreciative and developmental

Balances assignments that capitalize on people's strengths with stretch opportunities to enable maximum development in and across the organization

Acts as a trusted coach and mentor both within their line of responsibility and beyond

Formulates a talent strategy that ensures engagement, retention, succession plans and capabilities needed for the future

Holds direct reports accountable for developing their people





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Appendix – Leadership Competency Scoring Sheet

Directions: At the close of your interview, review your notes and assign a ranking to the candidate

based upon their responses and examples provided. Score your rankings. The point values for each

ranking are delineated in parentheses on the chart. Using their total score, as well as considerations

regarding technical skills and other areas that you may have probed on during your interview, give your

recommendation regarding the candidate. If you do not recommend moving forward, please share any

recommendations about where the candidate may be a fit within the organization.

Candidate: ___________________________ Interviewer: ______________________

Role: ________________________________ Date of Interview: _________________

Competency

Insufficient Evidence of Competency (e.g. Not Assessed)

(NA)

Little Evidence – Did not demonstrate behavioral

examples

(1)

Some Evidence - Demonstrates a few or weak behavioral

examples

(2)

Strong Evidence - Demonstrates many and strong behavioral

examples

(3)

Subtotal

Sets Direction

Delivers Results

Leads Others

Thinks Enterprise

Total Score

Notes:

Recommendation:

Do Not Recommend Moving Forward Insufficient evidence of key behaviors

Recommend with Reservations Did not sufficiently demonstrate key behaviors

Recommend Moving Forward Demonstrated some key behaviors

Strongly Recommend Clearly demonstrated many or all key behaviors

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