Talk about a time when you had to work closely with someone who had a problematic personality. What was essential to handle working with them effectively?
The interviewer wants to know how well you work with others despite a difference in personality. Your ability to adapt to various people, regardless of a positive personality match, shows that you will be mature and professional on the job at Cardinal Health, even when factors are not entirely ideal.
"In my previous job, I had a team member who would scoff at other co-workers' ideas in meetings. As the marketing manager, I knew I could not let this behavior continue. The HR partner and I approached this person to discuss our company culture and how his behavior disrupted the environment. We wanted to create a resolution with this person. It turned out that he did not want to work in our division as he felt the projects were too 'junior' for his experience. He ended up requesting and receiving a transfer. By initiating an open conversation with this person, we were able to uncover his need. We also met the needs of our team by protecting the positive culture we had worked so hard to create."
Behavioral-based interview questions that begin with 'Talk about a time when...' are best answered using the STAR method. STAR is an acronym for Situation, Task, Action, and Result. Organizing your response using this framework will ensure that you provide the interviewer with the right amount of information and detail to form a compelling answer.
Avoid extreme responses that include speaking negatively of others or naming people. Also, avoid telling the interviewer that you always get along with everyone. Most interviewers will interpret a cliche response like that as dodging the question.
Focus on when your work style differed from another person, but perhaps you still had to complete a project together. Discuss, in a positive tone, how you made it work!
"Communication is always the key when working with someone who is challenging. Instead of being upset with that person, I get to know them better to understand their personality. Often, once I get to know someone, I realize they communicate differently than me, and I learn how to adjust my communication to match theirs when I am around them."
Community answers are written by other candidates practicing this set. Reading how others frame the same question is one of the fastest ways to sharpen your own.
Anonymous Answer
I spent the last 9 years working with someone who was notoriously hard to work with. I had no direct influence over them so I had to indirectly influence them to help me as needed. It was extremely difficult and taught me to be patient, be direct, and hold them accountable. For example, I needed this person to help me change a process in his lab in order for us to achieve a strategic objective for the business. He plainly didn't want to make the change, it would take time on his part and he couldn't handle the thought of an extra step taking more time away from his other responsibilities. I ensured I understood his objections and involved him in meetings about the change hoping he would understand what was at stake from a higher level. In the end, I actually worked with the GM of healthcare, HR, my manager, and his manager to add an additional headcount to his lab so that this objective could be accomplished without taking him away from his other responsibilities. This was just one way we worked together.
Jaymie's Feedback
These types of questions can be tricky to answer without seeming overly negative or critical of someone else. It sounds like you had a difficult coworker, but you found ways to communicate effectively, interact professionally, and complete the job!
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