Leadership & Navigation

Decision-making

Behavioral

• What are some of the most important steps you've used in making business-related decisions?
  
• Give a specific example of a decision you made that was not effective. Why do you think it was not effective, and what did you do when this realization was made?
  
• Describe a time when you had to make a very important and difficult decision that affected everyone in your department.
  
• Recount a time when you were not the authority but had to make a decision about the team's next step(s).
  

Situational

• How would you react if the following situation should occur: A co-worker or customer suddenly collapses on the floor. After a few minutes, a large crowd, speaking loudly and making demands, gathers around.
  
• You have a critical decision to make for your department, and all alternatives will likely be unpopular with your staff. What input do you gather before deciding? What factors do you take into consideration?
  
• What would you do if your assistant needed a computer monitor immediately? His co-worker was on vacation for three weeks and had a compatible unused monitor at his desk, and the purchase order process would take the assistant's new monitor up to three weeks to be delivered.
  

General

• What methods do you use to make decisions? When do you find it most difficult to make a decision?
  
• Managers need good information to be able to make good decisions. Do you tend to gather information up to a deadline to make a better-informed decision or gather just enough information to make a good decision quickly?
  

Initiative

Behavioral

• Can you tell me about a time during your previous employment when, unsolicited, you suggested a better way to perform a process?
  
• Tell me about a career goal that you have accomplished and why that was important to you.
  
• Could you share with us a recent accomplishment you are most proud of?
  
• Describe a time when you performed a task outside your perceived responsibilities. What was the task? Why did you perceive it to be outside your responsibilities? What was the outcome?
  
• Describe a time when you kept from getting bored when dealing with routine tasks.
  
• What was the most creative thing you did in your last job?
  
• Give me an example of a time you were able to take the lead in changing a policy for your department and for the organization.
  

Situational

• When you complete a task early, what do you do with your "extra" time?
  
• You're given an assignment to create "two or three" proposals. Assuming you have more than enough time and resources, how many proposals do you actually create? Why?
  
• The company newsletter editor asks for input from any willing department, but employees think that contributors to the newsletter "talk too much." Do you contribute anyway?
  
• Company policy provides tuition assistance. Should HR employees take advantage of that benefit?
  

General

• When were you able to demonstrate initiative?
  

Leading Others

Behavioral

• Give me an example of a time when you needed to help other employees learn a new skill set. What did you do?
  
• Have you ever been in a position in which you had to lead a group of peers? How did you handle it? Tell me about problems you had and how you handled them.
  
• Have you ever managed a situation in which the people or units reporting to you were in different locations? Tell me how this worked.
  
• Tell me about your experience working with a board of directors. What approach and philosophy did you follow in working with boards?
  
• Tell me about a time when you organized, managed and motivated others on a complex task from beginning to end.
  
• Give me an example of how you have motivated your employees.
  

Situational

• A new policy is to be implemented organizationwide. You do not agree with this new policy. How do you discuss this policy with your staff?
  
• A subordinate regularly questions your authority. What do you do?
  
• The board of directors elects not to reward bonuses this year and tasks you with communicating the board's decision to staff. How do you do this?
  

General

• Describe an ideal supervisor or manager.
  
• Tell us about your management style—people, teamwork and direction.
  
• What is the largest number of employees you have supervised, and what were their job functions?
  
• Tell me about your experience in leading and managing an organization similar to ours.
  
• Tell me about your experiences with staff development.
  
• What is your own philosophy of management?
  
• What do you do to develop employees you manage?
  
• Do you find it more natural to point out what's wrong so employees can accomplish tasks competently or to praise employees for their work and then later point out what may need correcting?
  
• What is the most significant contribution you have made to team cohesiveness?
  
• What is the most significant contribution you have made to unifying a department, division, plant or so forth?
  
• What do you think are the most valuable traits in a good leader?
  

Personal Effectiveness/Credibility

Behavioral

• What strengths did you rely on in your last position to make you successful in your work?
  
• Tell me about a situation you wish that you had handled differently based on the outcome. What would you change (or will you change) when faced with a similar situation?
  
• Describe a time when you had to deal with a difficult boss, co-worker or customer. How did you handle the situation?
  
• Give an example of how you stay organized when juggling multiple tasks.
  
• Tell of a time you had to defend your actions.
  

Situational

• What do you do when you know you are right and your boss disagrees with you?
  

General

• How do you encourage people not under your authority to do work on your project?
  
• How would you describe your abilities as a business developer? As a business maintainer?
  
• How would your co-workers describe your work style or habits?
  
• Who should be responsible for monitoring and managing employee performance?
  

Results Driven

Behavioral

• Tell me about your current or most recent position and how you helped the organization accomplish its goals and mission.
  
• How have you reacted when you found yourself stalled in an inefficient process?
  
• Tell me about a time when you inherited a process that wasn't working and you had limited time to fix it.
  

Situational

• The project is brought to a lull (or worse, a halt) due to a co-worker's lack of productivity. What are your next steps?
  

General

• Tell me about a position you have held in which part of your pay was based on your own performance or results.
  
• Which is more desirable to you: A business that is run in an efficient business-like manner or a business that is run in a personal and friendly way?
  
• Based on what you have read and heard, what ideas do you have about continuing and increasing the success of this company?
  
• How do you procure needed resources outside your direct control?
  
• When you design a process to get something done, how do you establish the steps?
  
• What are some of the most effective ways you use to keep tasks on track?
  
• How would you rate yourself as a closer when you're doing a sales presentation?
  
• Did you have assigned goals, objectives, quotas or targets? What were they, and did you meet them?
  
• How were your incentives structured in your last job?
  
• What were your responsibilities from the commencement to the end of the sales cycle?