Frequently Asked Questions/Scenarios
Briefly describe how your education and work experience relates to this position. What are three adjectives that others would use to describe you? Why would they choose them? What are 3 areas that others would say you need to improve? What is your definition of a team player? Give me an example of when you have participated in a successful team. How do you establish working relationships with new people? How do you handle frustration, stress and change? Give an example. What type of direction or supervision would you expect to receive on an on-going basis in this position? What would you do if your supervisor did not act on what you perceived to be a critical issue? A considerable degree of initiative and independence of action is required in this position. Describe previous work experiences where you have successful exercised these traits. This position deals with a broad range of people from whom cooperation is required. Drawing from your previous experience, tell us how you would achieve this. Give us an example of when you had to meet a critical deadline on short notice. This position requires concentration but is also subject to constant interruptions. Provide us with an example from your previous work experience that tells us that you have been able to handle the interruptions and still get the job done. Describe a time when you had to deal with a person who was in a volatile state and tell us what you did to diffuse the situation and resolve the conflict. Tell us about your experiences delivering excellent customer service. What are some of the ways to measure customer satisfaction? You have a co-worker who always wants to gossip or chat and the more she talks the bigger the pile of work on your desk becomes. How would you address this situation? How do you develop trust and effective work relationships within a multiple person department? What personal attributes do you feel are essential in working successfully with your fellow workers and the public? How do you keep yourself going when everyone else is having a bad day or things seem unorganized? What is your understanding of multi-tasking? Tell us about a time when you were required to multi-task. What aspect of your last position did you most enjoy? Least enjoy? Why? What was your greatest accomplishment in your last position? Why? Please describe your organizational skills. Describe how you go about planning your workday. How would you prioritize the following situation and why? You have an important assignment to word processed, the phone is ringing and there are people at the counter. Tell us about a time when you were assigned a work project and explain how you approached the project (from start to finish).
Describe a situation where you had to use exceptional interpersonal and negotiating skills. Drawing from your previous work experience, describe a situation in which you had to exercise a considerable level of tact and/or discretion (no names… just the incident). Please tell us about a particular project or assignment that you undertook that did not turn out as you anticipated (goal not reached) or failed to meet your level of satisfaction. Why? What communication and people skills will you bring to this position? Recall a time when you tried to improve a workplace situation without your supervisor telling you to? This position will require you to work along most of the time. How do feel about that? What do you feel would be the immediate priorities for this position? Briefly describe your strengths and weaknesses as they relate to this position and tell us what steps you are taking to improve your weaknesses. What in your background or education stands out as something we should especially look at in considering for this position? Why should we hire you? Why do you think you are the best person for this job?