How do you prioritize multiple tasks?
Your interviewer is trying to ascertain your ability to assess the urgency, timing, and commercial importance of competing priorities. Your answer will demonstrate your ability to cope with stress, flexibility, adaptability to change, resourcefulness, and propensity for outside-of-the-box thinking. Talk about the tools and resources you use to plan your work and keep track of your progress while preventing rework and staying organized on the job.
"I consider myself very adept at tracking my progress on any given task so I can effectively pick up where I left off when I need to be flexible and change gears. I'm extremely systems oriented in my approach. Whether they're systems implemented for tracking my work or implementing systems for the office that everyone can use, I'm always developing tips and tricks to do the job easier the right way, right away."
"My job is fast-paced, and it's not uncommon to have multiple projects with conflicting priority levels. Typically, I plan my week and create time blocks to ensure I have time to do certain tasks without interruption. As soon as I feel overwhelmed or fall behind, I meet with my manager to communicate my concerns. We discuss the current projects, and I get their feedback on priority and see if other team members can support some of the work."
