Elevating Interviews with Intention: Key Takeaways from Mark Wojcik’s Presentation at Charlotte Area SHRM

I recently had the opportunity to attend a Charlotte Area SHRM event where guest speaker Mark Wojcik delivered a high-impact session on “Intentional Interviewing.” As someone deeply embedded in the hiring and talent strategy space, I found Mark’s approach refreshingly practical — and highly actionable. His framework doesn’t just challenge the way we ask questions during interviews; it empowers us to dig deeper with curiosity, confidence, and clarity.

Mark, a seasoned talent acquisition leader and coach, shared two core tools that hiring professionals can use to unlock richer, more revealing candidate conversations: “Qualifying & Quantifying Candidate Capabilities” and “Addressing the Elephant in the Room.” Here’s a closer look at what he shared and why it resonated with so many of us in the room.

1. Qualifying & Quantifying Candidate Capabilities

Too often, interviews stop at surface-level responses—vague accomplishments, job duties, or generalizations. Mark encouraged us to shift our thinking and our questioning with a powerful framework to help candidates provide vivid, measurable proof of their impact.

• The “Made, Saved, Achieved” Formula
  This section challenges interviewers to uncover concrete contributions:

  • When have you improved a product or service?

  • What resources (time, money, effort) have you saved?

  • What’s an achievement you’re genuinely proud of?

  Follow-up prompts like “What was the magnitude?” or “Who benefited?” are key in transforming broad answers into compelling stories of performance.

• The “Learned and/or Earned” Framework
  Beyond achievements, growth matters. Mark emphasized the importance of identifying how candidates have evolved:

  • What have they learned that changed the way they work?

  • What challenges shaped their resilience?

  • When have they earned more responsibility?

  These questions help you see the trajectory behind the title and the potential behind the resume.

• Professional Parallels
  Not every candidate will have a mirror-match background. That’s where this tool becomes invaluable:

  • What environments have they worked in that resemble your company’s?

  • What skills or scenarios have prepared them for your challenges?

  This encourages candidates to make the connections and helps interviewers assess fit with greater precision.

2. Addressing the Elephant in the Room: The “I Can’t Help But…” Method

Perhaps the most memorable tool Mark shared was how to raise difficult topics with empathy and authenticity. Whether it’s job hopping, resume gaps, title discrepancies, or hesitations about the role — these conversations matter, and they can’t be ignored.

Mark offered a structured, non-confrontational way to surface these topics using phrases like:

• “I can’t help but notice…”

• “I can’t help but think…”

• “I can’t help but feel…”

• “I can’t help but sense…”

• “I can’t help but be concerned…”

Each variation helps the interviewer express observations with neutrality and curiosity, rather than judgment. For example:

“I can’t help but notice you’ve changed jobs every 12–18 months. What’s been driving those moves?”

“I can’t help but feel that we might not be aligned on expectations—where is your head at?”

By framing tough questions this way, you invite honesty and build trust—while still gathering the insight needed to make sound hiring decisions.

Why It Matters

In today’s talent market, hiring decisions can’t be based on instinct or assumptions alone. We need tools that foster deeper connections, more honest conversations, and better alignment between candidates and companies. Mark Wojcik’s approach to intentional interviewing brings just that — and I walked away with techniques I’ll be integrating immediately into intake meetings, interview coaching, and hiring team training.

A huge thank you to Charlotte Area SHRM for hosting such a valuable event, and to Mark for sharing his expertise so generously. If you’re in HR or recruiting and haven’t explored intentional interviewing techniques, now is the time to start.

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