How to Answer: What is your greatest weakness?
Advice and answer examples written specifically for an EY job interview.
14. What is your greatest weakness?
The Goal
The hiring managers at EY are looking for evidence that you know your shortcomings. They also want to see that you embrace opportunities to grow and improve. The goal of your response is to show the decision-makers that you are self-aware, reflective, and can readily identify areas for improvement.
Written by Rachelle Enns on May 23rd, 2022
Pro Tip
Avoid talking about weaknesses that are a red flag or potentially point to a more significant issue. For instance, if time management is a weakness, the interviewer might wonder if you can meet your deadlines or if you are frequently late to work. For this reason, it's best to choose weaknesses that will not impact your ability to succeed in the role.
It's also essential to give a thoughtful response. Avoid cliche or overused statements like:
- I work too hard
- I am a perfectionist
- I am a workaholic
- My weaknesses are also my strengths
- My greatest weakness is chocolate (insert uncomfortable chuckle)
Written by Rachelle Enns on May 23rd, 2022
How to Answer
The hiring company wants you to be honest about your weaknesses. At the same time, they want assurance that you are proactive in improving yourself. On its careers page, EY states, "Here, you define your success. We provide the tools, learning, flexibility and diverse and inclusive culture so that you can become the best version of you, and help others do the same."
When discussing your most significant weaknesses, you must display your interest in professional growth. Perhaps you are watching YouTube tutorials to gain skills in a particular area. Maybe you are reading the latest-and-greatest books on the skills you wish to improve, or perhaps you are taking an online workshop to bridge a skills gap.
Be sure to maintain a positive tone, show confidence in your ability to improve, and demonstrate a desire for improvement.
Written by Rachelle Enns on May 23rd, 2022
What You Need to Know
The average HireVue interview takes approximately 30 minutes to complete. This one-way video interview typically includes 3-5 questions. Depending on the HireVue parameters set by EY, the asynchronous interview platform will generally give you 30 seconds to prepare a response and up to 2 minutes to answer each question. It's important to note that HireVue stops recording as soon as your time limit is up, so it's better to run under time than overtime.
Written by Rachelle Enns on May 23rd, 2022
Answer Example
"When it comes to my professional weaknesses, I struggle with delegating seemingly minor tasks to my team members. If the task is quick, my default is to do it myself because it saves time explaining the task, passing it along, and following up on the completion. Quite possibly, I do this to accommodate my team members, which isn't a negative quality. Still, I can find other ways to be an accommodating manager. I also realize that this approach inhibits my team members' professional growth. To move away from this tendency, I have spent more time training employees to take a task from A to Z. Rather than jumping in, I have started coaching them more often. Since changing my approach, my team members have been much more proactive, and our overtime hours have decreased, which is a pleasant surprise. By improving my ability to delegate, I will be a much better leader for EY. I will come to the firm with a fresh mindset ready to empower others to be the best version of themselves through growing responsibilities and new learning opportunities."
Written by Rachelle Enns on May 23rd, 2022
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