As a recruitment agency, we know the importance of interview preparation. We’ve mentioned it many times on our blog. Failing to prepare for an interview is a huge mistake, and it is likely to cost you the job.
To help you better prepare for your next interview, we’ve created a short series on interview questions that are likely to come up covering teamwork, client facing skills, adaptability, time management, communication, motivation and values.
Behavioural interview questions require the candidate to share examples of how they’ve used specific skills in work situations. The answer should provide evidence that you have overcome and obstacle or situation with these skills
Teamwork
Very few jobs are solo jobs, so at some point, you will be required to work as a team. A typical teamwork interview question might be as simple as “Can you give an example of when you worked well in a team?” The hiring manager is trying to get a sense of how well you will work with their team.
Employers are looking to hire someone who is a team player, so your answer needs to highlight how well you work with others.
Prepare for teamwork questions by reflecting on times that you have worked as part of a team. Come up with two or three examples that are from your most recent job or the last couple of years.
If you can link the examples to the teamwork required at the job you’re interviewing for if you know that the role is a project team, mention examples of working on a project team and how that went.
If you are an entry-level employee and this is your first job, then use examples of school projects, volunteer work or extracurricular activities.
When answering the question, you want to try and use the STAR interview technique.
– Situation – provide the context of the example. Briefly explain the team set up and your role on the team. You don’t need to give great detail here, just some background information, so your example makes sense.
– Task – Explain the team’s goals, for example, the project that you were working on and what challenges you as a team were facing.
– Action – Outline the steps the team, including yourself, undertook to achieve the goals, whether it was delegation, problem-solving or communications skills.
– Result – Delve into what the team accomplished. Did you achieve the intended goal?
While it is essential to speak about your role, be sure to emphasise the group, and the overall achievements. You are trying to demonstrate how you worked as part of a team and how you work with others, and that includes sharing the group’s success, not just your own.
