Department of Defense Mock Interview
Master 30 Department of Defense interview questions covering security clearances, mission priorities, and federal hiring protocols.
Question 22 of 30
Describe an experience in which members of your team were in conflict for what you felt were personality-based reasons. How did you intervene in this situation, if you did, and how was the situation resolved?
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Kevin Downey has an extensive background in business management, recruiting, branding and marketing. He's volunteered his career coaching services at job fairs, lecturing on interview techniques and crafting winning resumes and cover letters.
"I worked with a fellow who had issues with another employee. It was a personality conflict, but he was clearly in the wrong. He was fired. Then one day, he showed up acting erratic and aggressive. I stepped in and volunteered to escort him out. He was disgruntled, drunk, and belligerent, trying to stir things up. I escorted him off the premises. It was unfortunate. I knew the guy and liked him, but they let him go, and he came back drunk and wasn't himself that day. He tried to slip past me twice, but I detained him and escorted him out. It was easy to get hold of him without hurting him or myself, and that was the last time I saw him."
Kevin Downey has an extensive background in business management, recruiting, branding and marketing. He's volunteered his career coaching services at job fairs, lecturing on interview techniques and crafting winning resumes and cover letters.
This behavioral question will offer a meaningful glimpse into your personality, as well as your soft skills. The interviewer wants to get a glimpse of your mediation and negotiation skills. They need to know how adept and effective you are at diplomacy and working swiftly towards a communal goal.
Kevin Downey has an extensive background in business management, recruiting, branding and marketing. He's volunteered his career coaching services at job fairs, lecturing on interview techniques and crafting winning resumes and cover letters.
Focus your example on the solution rather than the problem. Focus on the situation and not on any one person as the source of the conflict. Let's say you were working on a group project and you disagreed with someone on your team. Describe the steps you took to work through it. Taking a thoughtful approach by listening to the opinions of others first is always a good place to start. Show that you took the initiative and stayed calm to resolve the situation.
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