Perceptive Interviewing™
A Practical Workshop
How to ask better questions, hear truthful answers, and make informed decisions
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Trusted by Australia's Leading Organisations
Workshop Overview
Every important decision in leadership, sales, hiring, and performance management is shaped by conversation.
Yet most professionals are never taught how to recognise when information is incomplete, distorted, or influenced by fear, pressure, or self-protection.
The Perceptive Interviewing™ Workshop is a practical, skills-based program that develops one critical capability: the ability to uncover truthful information and make informed decisions without assumption or guesswork.
This workshop is built on Elly Johnson’s Perceptive Interviewing® Framework, a comprehensive model developed and refined since 2001 across policing, government, and business environments where accuracy, trust, and credibility matter.
It forms a core pillar of The Perceptive Advantage™, strengthening leaders’ ability to notice subtle human signals, create conditions where truth can emerge, and respond with clarity and care.
Why Perceptive Interviewing™ Matters
Information gaps in interviews and high-stakes conversations can be costly.
They occur because:
- People do not feel safe enough to tell the full truth
- Questions are asked too narrowly or too quickly
- Behavioural and emotional cues are missed or misread
- Assumptions replace curiosity
Perceptive Interviewing™ teaches participants how to slow the moment just enough to see what is really happening, without turning conversations into interrogations.
The focus is not suspicion.
The focus is perceptiveness, trust, and informed judgment.
What This Workshop Develops
Participants learn how to:
- Pinpoint the real purpose of a conversation before it begins
- Ask questions that encourage openness rather than defensiveness
- Recognise behavioural, emotional, and verbal cues without jumping to conclusions
- Read behaviour through 5 channels to increase accuracy
- Create truth-telling conditions where people feel safe to speak honestly
- Clarify, verify, and test information respectfully and accurately
- Maintain control of conversations without dominating them
- Interpret observations in context rather than in isolation
- Close conversations with clarity and appropriate follow-up
These skills apply equally to leadership conversations, hiring interviews, sales discussions, performance conversations, investigations and enquiries and sensitive workplace matters.
Who This Workshop Is Best For
The Perceptive Interviewing™ Workshop is designed for professionals whose decisions depend on conversation and information gathering, including:
It is particularly valuable in environments where misunderstanding, missed signals, or poor assumptions carry real consequences.
Outcomes and Results
Organisations who participate in The Perceptive Interviewing™ Workshop experience:
- Improved accuracy in decision-making and reduced reliance on assumption
- Stronger trust and credibility in leadership and communication processes
- Greater confidence in hiring, sales, and performance conversations
- Increased ability to recognise inconsistency, stress, and avoidance
- Clearer, calmer, and more productive conversations across teams
Participants leave with practical tools they can apply immediately.
Delivery Format
Perceptive Interviewing™ is delivered as an interactive workshop and can be tailored to suit your requirements.
Workshops can be delivered in person or virtually and are adapted to the context and challenges of the organisation.
TESTIMONIALS
Elly’s content is compelling; she has a unique take on the world of truth and deception and delivers strong take-aways for organisations across all sectors. Audiences are fascinated by her insights and learn skills that can be applied to business and life.
Brian Rogers
Australian Govt Agency
Thanks Elly for your insight, energy, content and presentation skills at our Crown Vetting All Staff Conference. You were able to engage the minds of our staff effortlessly & then you took them on a fast paced journey, jammed packed with facts, wisdom, tools and strategies – and humour. Great job!
Edward Barker
People Risk Manager
Elly’s session was lively and engaging with humour woven through a rich tapestry of tools and techniques. The audience was drawn to participate with Elly leading discussions that highlighted skills that could be applied both in the workplace and in private life. I commend Elly for her commitment and excellence that was so influential she has helped shaped next year’s conference theme.
Marcus Turner
Director — Governance and Risk
Elly is a gifted presenter who uses her intellect, experience and sense of humour to engage the audience.
Marie Baker
Director of Operations — Omni Executive
I have done 3 of Elly’s workshops over the past 10 years and each time I have walked away with new insights about myself and other people. Her enthusiasm about what she does is part of the appeal – I don’t know where she gets her energy from!
Andrew Hanson
Security and Risk Specialist