At Expedia, we seek to hire leaders. Tell me about a time you took the initiative to improve work-related procedures.
Expedia offers leadership opportunities in a multitude of directions, and they want to ensure that you have what it takes to step up for your team at every turn. Take note of Expedia's ten principles and remember that one of them is to, 'relentlessly strive for better.' Think of a time you took the opportunity to present your employer with potential change. Talk to the hiring manager about taking the initiative in the workplace.
"In my previous role, I recognized that our team needed a training program to bring others in at a quicker rate. I took the initiative to create the training program, playbook, and schedule, incorporating all the work we did in a way that people could easily replicate. The team loved having it and enjoyed having other fully trained employees join us quickly."
"I recently made suggestions to my manager about the team messaging application we were using. I found a team-based app that offered a lower monthly cost with added features. He took the suggestion, and it has worked well for our team! The company was happy with the cost savings as well."
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
With the guest room blocks for Wedding Groups, the hotel provides what is called "Courtesy Agreements." These are contracts that are not held to attrition or cancellation clauses. Often these blocks were not picking up as the Bride/Grooms anticipated.
We made changes to the agreements where we limited the "Courtesy Agreement" to 10 guest rooms per night. Then after the wedding group picks up 80% of the block of 10, we would then add rooms to the block based on availability. The implementation of my suggestion allows the hotel to better forecast and control inventory.
Rachelle's Feedback
Good thinking! I have reworded the response slightly, to help with flow. As a side note - depending on your location, you will want to be aware of using gender specific language such as bride/groom as this excludes other groups of people who may be getting married.
"Our hotel had some issues with wedding guest room blocks not being reserved quickly enough by wedding groups. Rather than blocking off dozens of rooms for specific wedding guests, on a 'courtesy arrangement' I suggested that we begin with ten rooms, with the plan to release another ten once the wedding guests reserved 80% of the initial ten. We would continue to do this, upon availability. My suggestion allowed the hotel to better forecast and control room inventory."
Anonymous Answer
During a group project where I was the leader, the group members weren't able to come up with a collective solution. So, I suggested that they present their ideas to each other to brainstorm and see what would be feasible. Once they started getting into the nuances of their ideas, we understood that some ideas wouldn't work out and moved forward with the idea that we were most sure about.
Lauren's Feedback
This is a great leadership example. I supplemented your answer to provide a general blueprint of who you are as a leader.
As a leader for a group project, I encountered the group's inability to find a collective solution. I spearheaded an effort where each member presented their idea. This allowed members to be heard, thus creating an opening for a more concentrated effort. Our brainstorming session was far less stressful because people didn't feel the need to talk over one another. We were able to pick and choose pieces from several contributions, which was a successful team effort. I welcome leadership roles because I can communicate with varying personalities and make each person feel important and valued.
Anonymous Answer
In my role as sales manager, I recognized that our front desk & reservations team needed training to understand the market segments and how sales team colleagues manage each one. I took the initiative to create the brief training program, playbook, and schedule, incorporating all the work we did in a way that people could easily understand. The front desk and reservations team loved having it, and more so, enjoyed exploring and understanding the business mix which helped them serve guests better both in person and over the phone.
Marcie's Feedback
Great! This is an excellent example of a time when you took the initiative and improved a process. You've done a good job of explaining the situation, what your role was, the actions you took, and how the end result was positive. Nice job!
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