Was there a situation you could've handled better/differently?
Getting asked "Is there a situation you think you could've handled better or differently?" in an interview can be a bit overwhelming.
It is a behavioral interview question, which means you have to give an example of a time you handled a situation. Most people don't do well here because they go blank.
If you want tips on how to word your answer, continue reading to post we gave a few examples of the STAR interview question.
I was in charge of a project that was due to be completed within a few weeks
S - In this situation, I was in charge of a project that was due to be completed within a few weeks.
T - The task was to create a PowerPoint presentation for an upcoming conference.
A - The action I took was to delegate the task to my team members and then go over it with them afterward. The result was that they did not fully understand what needed to be done or how long it would take them, so they ended up staying longer than expected and working through the weekend.
R - If I were to do this again, I would probably take on more responsibility myself as opposed to delegating it, because then it is easier to keep track of how much work is getting done and make sure deadlines are met without sacrificing quality workmanship or effectiveness.
As a newbie, I had to learn about the products and services that we sold
S - The situation I think I could’ve handled better or differently happened when I was working at my first job as a salesperson. As a newbie, I had to learn about the products and services that we sold, which meant that I had to go through training with one of our senior salespeople. We went through everything from how to talk about our products to how to handle objections.
T - The task was to learn about the products and services that we sold, which meant that I had to go through training with one of our senior salespeople. We went through everything from how to talk about our products to how to handle objections.
A - I handled this situation by making sure that I took notes during the training sessions and by asking questions if there were any details that didn’t make sense or weren’t clear enough for me.
R - The result was successful because after going through this training process, I felt confident enough in my knowledge of the product line so that when customers asked questions or made objections, I knew what they were talking about and could answer their questions confidently
When my manager asked me to take over a project I could've handled better
S - I think I could've handled a situation better or differently when my manager asked me to take over a project. The project was originally assigned to another employee, but they weren't able to finish it.
T - They gave me the task of finishing the project, but I wasn't given much time to do so.
A - I decided to take over the project by doing some research online and talking with other coworkers. This allowed me to learn more about what was needed for this particular project and how to get it done quickly.
R - The result was that I was able to finish the project within a week's time frame, which allowed my manager and other coworkers time for other tasks in addition to theirs.
We were working on a new product that was meant to be released in 6 months, but we hit some snags
S - The situation was a long-term project for my team. We were working on a new product that was meant to be released in 6 months, but we hit some snags. We needed to come up with a plan for how to get back on track and make sure the product would be ready by the deadline.
T - I took on the task of figuring out what had gone wrong and figuring out what we could do differently so that we wouldn't have any more problems like this in the future. I knew that I needed to gather data from the other members of my team so that I could get all of their perspectives on what went wrong, what they thought caused it, and what they thought might help us avoid similar problems in the future.
A - I also spoke with some people outside of our team who had worked on similar products before so they could give me advice on how we could solve our issues more efficiently and effectively than before.
R - The result was that we were able to come up with a plan for moving forward that included both technical solutions (like using new tools) as well as organizational ones (like having weekly meetings about our progress). This allowed us to stay motivated during this difficult period because everyone felt like they knew what was going on.
My manager asked me to take over this project and I had no idea how to do it
S - My manager asked me to take over this project and I had no idea how to do it.
T - The task was to create a report on the company’s progress in terms of diversity goals.
A - I researched online and found out that using the company’s internal data would be easier than compiling new data from scratch. I also realized that there were no standard templates or reports for diversity statistics, so I had to create one myself.
R - The report was delivered on time and well received by management, which resulted in an increase in my responsibilities within the department.
I think I could have handled a situation with my manager better.
S - I think I could have handled a situation with my manager better. At the time, I was still new to the company and had not yet really gotten to know my manager, so it was hard for me to understand what he was thinking or what he wanted from me.
T - I was tasked with creating a new report for our team to use as part of their daily work. The report needed to track how much time each employee spent on different projects, which is something that we don't currently track.
A - I did some research into how other companies tracked this information and also looked at how we could do it within our existing systems. Then I created a prototype of what such a report might look like and showed it to my manager.
R - He seemed pleased with the idea, so I started working on building out the report in earnest. After several weeks of work, though, he told me that he didn't want us to spend any more time on this project because he thought the company already had too many reports!
