While there will always be risks in hiring, conducting a behavioral-based interview, which uses a candidate's past job behavior to predict future performance, reduces such risk by focusing the search on the best hire in your candidate pool. Conducting these interviews takes practice, but even if your technique isn't polished, the results will still be worthwhile.

The key to successful behavioral-based interviewing is soliciting answers that demonstrate P-A-R (Problem-Action-Result). This technique is especially useful when hiring sales professionals, as it allows you to break apart the sales cycle, directing the candidates to walk you through their especially difficult sales.

Conducting a Behavioral-Based Interview
Examine the job you're looking to fill. Edit the job description to accurately reflect day-to-day responsibilities. Make a wish list of the experience and intangibles the ideal candidate should offer. Double-check to determine if the experience you seek is realistic for the salary you can afford. Although you may not find the perfect candidate, your wish list helps when it's time to narrow your hiring choices. Then, develop interview questions based on the job description and the wish list. Here are some basic questions to ask:

• Tell me about a difficult sale you made.
• Describe your sales style. How has it helped you win business?
• Talk about your closing skills. How do you determine your closing technique for each sale?
• Recount some successful deals you originated from cold calls.
• Pretend I'm on the other end of your sales call and recite your sales script.

Conducting the Follow-Up Interview
It's a good idea to cover a few of the same questions again. Compare answers to reveal inconsistencies. Have a respected employee interview the candidate to see if there's a good fit for your office. Ask the candidate to bring records of previous sales numbers for the last year and/or give a sales presentation. Inform the candidate when you'll make a decision. Look for a thank-you note in the mail; it may seem old-fashioned, but it's often an indication of genuine interest. Refer to your wish list and see how the applicant scores.

Checking References
When checking references, focus on supervisory references, and verify education, income, and employment dates. Ask the references for specific information supporting a good recommendation and listen for phrases that can raise a red flag. Always ask if they would rehire the applicant. Other background checks to consider are drug testing, criminal, credit, and driving records, especially if you're hiring a salesperson who will use a vehicle.

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR WORKPLACE POSTER REQUIREMENTS FOR SMALL BUSINESSES AND OTHER EMPLOYERS

POSTER	WHO MUST POST	CITATIONS / PENALTY	OTHER INFORMATION
JOB SAFETY AND HEALTH PROTECTION Occupational Safety and Health Administration. 29 USC 657(c), 29 CFR 1903.2 En Español	Private employers engaged in a business affecting commerce. Does not apply to federal, state or political subdivisions of states.	Any covered employer failing to post the poster may be subject to citation and penalty.	Employers in states operating OSHA-approved state plans should obtain and post the state's equivalent poster.
EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY IS THE LAW Employment Standards Administration, Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs. Executive Order 11246, as amended; Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended; 38 U.S.C. 4212 of the Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974, as amended; 41 CFR Chapter 60-l .42; 41 C.F.R 60-250.4(k); 4 1 C.F.R. 60-74 1.5(a)4 En Español	Entities holding federal contracts or subcontracts or federally assisted construction contracts of $10,000 or more; financial institutions which are issuing and paying agents for U.S. savings bonds and savings notes; depositories of federal funds or entities having government bills of lading. Please note that the EEOC* may provide additional posting requirements at Section 2000e-10 [§711].	Appropriate contract sanctions may be imposed for uncorrected violations.	Post copies of the poster in conspicuous places available to employees, applicants for employment, and representatives of labor organizations with which there is a collective bargaining agreement. Also, non construction contractors or subcontractors with 50 or more employees and a contract of $50,000 or more [otherwise required by 41 CFR 60-2.1 (a)] should develop an equal opportunity policy as part of an affirmative action plan and post the policy on company bulletin boards. 41 CFR 60-2.2 1 (a)(9).
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) Minimum wage poster Employment Standards Administration, Wage and Hour Division En Español In Chinese (PDF) Specific posters for: State & Local Gov't Employees (PDF) Agricultural Employees (PDF) American Somoa (PDF) Northern Mariana Islands (PDF)	Every private, federal, state and local government employer employing any employee subject to the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 USC 211, 29 CFR 516.4 posting of notices.	No citations or penalties for failure to post.	Any employer of employees to whom sec. 7 of the Fair Labor Standards Act does not apply may alter or modify the poster legibly to show that the overtime provisions do not apply.
Employee Right for Workers with Disabilities/Special Minimum Wage Poster Employment Standards Administration, Wage and Hour Division. 29 CFR 525.14 En Español	Every employer having workers employed under special minimum wage certificates authorized by section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act.	No citations or penalties for failure to post.	Where an employer finds it inappropriate to post such a notice, the employer may provide the poster directly to all employees subject to its terms.
YOUR RIGHTS UNDER THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT Employment Standards Administration, Wage and Hour Division. 29 CFR 825.300, .402 En Español	Public agencies (including state, local, and federal employers), public and private elementary and secondary schools, as well as private sector employers who employ 50 or more employees in 20 or more work weeks and who are engaged in commerce or in any industry or activity affecting commerce, including joint employers and successors of covered employers.	Willful refusal to post may result in a civil money penalty by the Wage and Hour Division not to exceed $100 for each separate offense.	Where an employer's workforce is not proficient in English, the employer must provide the notice in the language the employee speaks. The poster must be posted prominently where it can be readily seen by employees and applicants for employment.
Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (Notice for use by all employers.) Veterans' Employment and Training Service 38 U.S.C. 4334, 20 CFR 1002.	The full text of the notice must be provided by each employer to persons entitled to rights and benefits under USERRA.	No citations or penalties for failure to notify. An individual could ask USDOL to investigate and seek compliance, or file a private enforcement action to require the employer to provide the notice to employees.	Employers may provide the notice by posting it where employee notices are customarily placed. However, employers are free to provide the notice in other ways that will minimize costs while ensuring that the full text of the notice is provided (e.g., by distributing the notice by direct handling, mailing, or via electronic mail).
NOTICE TO ALL EMPLOYEES WORKING ON FEDERAL OR FEDERALLY FINANCED CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS (Davis-Bacon Act) Employment Standards Administration, Wage and Hour Division. 29 CFR 5.5(a)(l)	Any contractor/subcontractor engaged in contracts in excess of $2,000 for the actual construction, alteration/repair of a public building or public work or building or work financed in whole or in part from federal funds, federal guarantee, or federal pledge which is subject to the labor standards provisions of any of the acts listed in 29 CFR 5.1.	No citations or penalties for failure to post.	The contractor or subcontractor is required to insert in any subcontract the poster requirements contained in 29 CFR 5.5(a)(l). The poster must be posted at the site of work, in a prominent and accessible place where it can easily be seen by workers.
NOTICE TO EMPLOYEES WORKING ON GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS (Service Contracts Act) Employment Standards Administration, Wage and Hour Division. 29 CFR 4.6(e), .184 En Español	Every contractor or subcontractor engaged in a contract with the United States or the District of Columbia in excess of $2,500 the principal purpose of which is to furnish services in the U.S. through the use of service employees.	No citations or penalties for failure to post.	Contractors and any subcontractors engaged in federal service contracts exceeding $2,500 shall notify each service employee or post the minimum monetary wage and any fringe benefits required to be paid pursuant to the contract.
NOTICE: EMPLOYEE POLYGRAPH PROTECTION ACT Employment Standards Administration, Wage and Hour Division. 29 CFR 801.6 En Español	Any employer engaged in or affecting commerce or in the production of goods for commerce. Does not apply to federal, state and local governments, or to circumstances covered by the national defense and security exemption.	The Secretary of Labor can bring court actions and assess civil penalties for failing to post.	The Act extends to all employees or prospective employees regardless of their citizenship status. Foreign corporations operating in the United Status must comply or will result in penalties for failing to post. The poster must be displayed where employees and applicants for employment can readily observe it.
NOTICE MIGRANT AND SEASONAL AGRICULTURAL WORKER PROTECTION ACT Employment Standards Administration, Wage and Hour Division. 29 CFR 500.75, .76 In English/En Español In English/An Ereyôl	Agricultural employers, agricultural associations and farm labor contractors.	A civil money penalty may be assessed.	Each employer covered by the Act who provides housing to migrant agricultural workers shall post in a conspicuous place, throughout the occupancy period, information on the terms and conditions of occupancy of such housing.

Source:  US Dept. of Labor

BUSINESS TERM OF THE WEEK

The mission of the Laredo Chamber of Commerce is to provide vision and leadership to develop, encourage, promote and protect the business, tourism, industry and educational interests of the Laredo metropolitan area; to encourage the orderly development of resources, people, and infrastructure of the area: and to be a politically proactive force to ensure the success of the Laredo metropolitan area.