The 5Cs Interview Skills (2024)

The 5Cs Interview Skills (1)

Eddie Law 刘用钿 The 5Cs Interview Skills (2)

Eddie Law 刘用钿

Founder of eLawyer: Connecting lawyers with jobs and empowering lawyers via career and leadership coaching. Director of PeopleLAKE Group - Recruitment , Employer-On-Record (EOR), Payroll Outsourcing, HR Ops Outsourcing.

Published Feb 22, 2023

In the 90s, 5 Cs was a popular acronym serving as guidelines when women are looking for wealthy husband. These 5 Cs stands for Cash, Career, Car, Condominium and Club membership. (Of course, I am totally not agreeable to using such guidelines when selecting a spouse.)

However, as a recruiter, I would use another set of 5 Cs acronym when interviewing a candidate for my clients. These 5 Cs stand for Competency, Character, Communication Skills, Culture Fit and Career Direction.

1. Competency - having the requisite technical skill in performing the task is the key.

Detective Tip: giving technical assessment during interview. Probing the role that the candidate played in a particular project or task. Look out for the words he/she used when describing the experience "we" did this or "I" did this.

2. Characters - a.k.a work attitude. "Hire attitude not skill". Skill can be trained but not attitude. No one like to work with smart people with bad attitude or bad characters.

Detective Tip: probing the reasons of leaving each previous employments and the candidates' perceptions on previous failures encountered. Talking failures allow you to see ones' true colours.

3. Communication Skills - many tensions and crisis from work could be avoided with effective communication skills. In particular when the work require team work to complete.

Detective Tip: asking open-ended questions during interview and see how articulate is the candidate in elaborating his/her thoughts and how sharp he/she could in answering your questions.

4. Culture Fit - a person should feel happy (of course, may not be every day, but at least most of the times) when coming to work. A candidate with the right technical skill, with good working attitude and strong communication skills may not work long in a job if he/she could not fit into to the work culture.

Detective Tip: again probing the reasons of leaving each previous employments will enable you to have an insights into what are important to the candidate in his/her next job. You may also ask what he/she likes and dislikes in the previous employments.

5. Career Direction - a person would be self-motivated if the role that he/she applies to is aligned with his/her career direction and can help to fulfill his/her aspiration. On another hand, if the candidate doesn't think this role is able to bring him/her closer to the ultimate career goal, you may see the lack of commitment or less proactive behaviors. As Cantonese proverb says "Riding a cow looking for a horse".

Detective Tip: understand the true career aspiration of a candidate is crucial in an interview. By asking what has he/she done so far in the pursuit of such aspiration may tell you how serious he/she is.

I hope these 5Cs can help you to assess a candidate in 360 degree during the interview and guiding you to find the right match.

I am happy to hear your thoughts or comments if any, thanks.

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The 5Cs Interview Skills (2024)

FAQs

What are the 5 C's of interviewing? ›

These 5 Cs stand for Competency, Character, Communication Skills, Culture Fit and Career Direction. 1. Competency - having the requisite technical skill in performing the task is the key. Detective Tip: giving technical assessment during interview.

What are the 5 P's of interviewing? ›

In this guide, we'll explore the 5 Ps of interview preparation: Preparation, Practice, Presentation, Posture, and Positivity. We'll also hear from industry experts who share their insights and experiences to help you ace your job interview.

What are the 5 C's employability? ›

The five C's that employers want a candidate to demonstrate are: Capability, and evidence of it, to perform the absolute must deliver tasks; Confidence in their own ability; Concern for others and the organisation; Command and the desire to increase this; and Communication ability at all levels.

What are your skills interview question answers? ›

Personal skills, such as being positive and responsible, learning quickly and working safely. Teamwork skills, such as working well with others, and helping your team with their projects and tasks. Fundamental skills, such as communicating well, managing information, using numbers, and solving problems.

What are the 5 C's explained? ›

It can provide insight into the key drivers of success, as well as the risk exposure to various environmental factors. The 5Cs are Company, Collaborators, Customers, Competitors, and Context.

What do the 5 C's include? ›

Character, capacity, capital, collateral and conditions are the 5 C's of credit. Lenders may look at the 5 C's when considering credit applications.

What is 5 act interview technique? ›

The 5 Act Interview is a structured 1-on-1 interview format developed at Google Ventures as part of their Design Sprint workshop methodology. The moderator builds a narrative arc that walks users through a high fidelity prototype to gain valuable insights.

What are the 3 C's of interviewing? ›

The three C's are basically confidence, communication and common sense. There is an extremely fine line between confidence and over-confidence. So be sure to understand both well.

What are the 5w questions in an interview? ›

Origin of the 5 W Questions

These are translated as: who, what, when, where, why, in what way, by what means.

What are the 5 Cs in the workplace? ›

In conclusion, the 5 Cs of employee engagement—Care, Connect, Coach, Contribute, and Congratulate—are critical for building a motivated and productive workforce. By implementing these strategies, organizations can improve employee satisfaction, retention, and overall performance.

What are the 5 Cs of success? ›

Success in any endeavor, whether personal or professional, often hinges on a combination of essential attributes and behaviors. The 5 Cs - Curiosity, Commitment, Consistency, Clarity, and Collaboration - form a framework that can guide individuals toward achieving their goals and aspirations.

What are the 5 Cs of leadership? ›

Effective leaders can build strong teams on these five principles, the five Cs of great leadership:
  • Collaborate. It may be satisfying to be able to complete a project on your own. ...
  • Communicate. Strong leaders motivate and instruct with confidence. ...
  • (Be) Candid. ...
  • Connect. ...
  • Care.

What is your strongest skill answer? ›

Here are the TOP 15 Strengths that will allow you to STANDOUT in your job interview.
  • 1) Ability to Multitask. ...
  • 2) Effectively Work In HIGHLY Pressurized Situations. ...
  • 3) Attention to Detail. ...
  • 4) Ability to COLLABORATE. ...
  • 5) Resourceful. ...
  • 6) Empathetic. ...
  • 7) Self Motivated. ...
  • 8) Take Initiative.
May 11, 2023

How to explain weakness in an interview? ›

Tips for answering
  1. Be honest and self-aware: Honesty is always the best policy. ...
  2. Provide examples. When discussing your weaknesses, it's essential to provide specific examples from your past experiences. ...
  3. Emphasize what you've learned. ...
  4. Show growth and improvement. ...
  5. Relate your weaknesses to the job.

What is the star technique in interviewing? ›

STAR stands for Situation, Task, Action and Result and it's a technique you can use to not only strengthen your answers but create a narrative and structure as well. We recommend the STAR interview method to candidates who want to tailor direct and concise answers to impress interviewers.

What are the 3 C's of interview questions? ›

In almost all of our training, we at some point focus on these three C's. When it comes to interviewing, confidence, competence, and credibility are essential tools for success and often elude even the most experienced investigators.

What are the five C's used to describe? ›

The five C's, or characteristics, of credit — character, capacity, capital, conditions and collateral — are a framework used by many lenders to evaluate potential small-business borrowers.

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