How to Answer: ADP likes to hire over-achievers. Tell me about a time you achieved over and above your given quota or expectations.
Advice and answer examples written specifically for an ADP job interview.
43. ADP likes to hire over-achievers. Tell me about a time you achieved over and above your given quota or expectations.
Why the Interviewer Asks This Question
ADP seeks to hire individuals who will take pride in their work and do more than just the 'bare minimum.' Remember that it's not just about how hard you worked but about the tangible results that followed.
Written by Elisabeth Walter
How to Answer
As you prepare for your interview, you will want to go through your resume to list times when you have exceeded expectations. Think about your accomplishments and any individual accolades you have achieved along the way. It's best if you can provide a specific answer with numbers and percentages.
Written by Rachel Hills on November 13th, 2022
1st Entry Level Example
"I have participated in fundraising for a local 5k that supports Alzheimer's awareness. As a volunteer, my goal was to raise $200. I reached out to every friend and family member in my contact list, posted on Facebook and LinkedIn, and went door to door to fundraise. I ended up raising $1,000 for the race that year, and all for a great cause!"
Written by Jaymie Payne on November 13th, 2022
1st Answer Example
"I went above my everyday responsibilities in my previous role, as I truly enjoyed the work that I was doing and wanted to take every opportunity I could to challenge myself. I volunteered to take on two extra clients to free up time for my boss, who was tied down with a few of our biggest clients. I also worked to create an employee resource group, which required planning and coordination outside of normal work hours."
Written by Rachel Hills on November 13th, 2022
2nd Answer Example
"In my most recent position, my sales team was expected to up-sell to 40% of our customer base. I focused on building relationships with my customers and checking in on them regularly throughout the sales quarter. I made sure they knew about the latest innovations, and I kept track of my numbers closely. By the end of the quarter, I had a 67% up-sell average, making me one of the top salespeople on my team!"
Written by Jaymie Payne on November 13th, 2022
Anonymous Interview Answers with Professional Feedback
Anonymous Answer
Marcie's Feedback
About the Author
When I started my career in business management, branding, and marketing, I mistakenly assumed hard work and integrity alone would get me noticed. Back then, I assumed the harder I worked, the faster I’d rise through the ranks. Yet, even in a meritocracy, this is rarely the case.
The goals of my peers competed with mine, and too often, they were better at getting noticed for their accomplishments. And, some of them were all too happy to watch me working harder, as they worked smarter, rising through the ranks faster than me. At one point, a boss of mine labeled me a stealth worker. They said they had no idea I was the one performing all that great work. If only I’d drawn more attention to what I was doing, maybe I would have gotten rewarded for it. So I learned most of my leadership skills the hard way, and the journey was long.
As a leader, my favorite part of the job came to be coaching others. I took pride in sharing the secrets to my eventual success, and offering my outside-of-the-box view of the role. Where other leaders were only in it for themselves, I was genuinely in it for the company and the team. So I taught those I mentored not only what they needed to do, and how to do the job right, but why each step was important. I spelled out how everything fit into the big picture and shared every trick of the trade that no one shared with me. Every single individual I mentored advanced far ahead of their peers, surpassing those who were only in it for themselves.
Another favorite part of the job was recruiting and building the perfect teams. For me, conducting an interview was an art form. I later volunteered my services at career fairs and trade schools, offering advice, from crafting the perfect CV and resume, to delivering a perfect interview, to negotiating a decent raise. Now I am a full-time writer, and left my management career behind me. Yet, I still love coaching others to succeed, and I love writing for mockquestions.com for this very reason.
Here’s what I said to a friend of mine whom I mentored a long time ago: “Every single thing you do, at every stage, can alter the perception others have of your professional worth. My goal is to make you look like an asset worth fighting for.”
Learn more about Kevin Downey