Have you worked on a team where two people didn't get along? How did you manage that situation?
"Fortunately, I have only worked on teams where everyone got along and worked well together. If I did, however, I would take advantage of my nondefensive communication and mediation skills to uncover the source of any friction."
"I recently worked with a couple of employees with starkly different personalities. One was very bubbly, positive, empathic, and sensitive, and the other was very sardonic, sarcastic, and insensitive. These two often rubbed each other the wrong way. But they both had their strengths. I was well aware of this, and before pairing them together, I found a commonality between them - they were both big soccer fans. So, when I was communicating the aspect of the project they would be paired up on, I communicated the concepts by using the world cup as an analogy. Playing to their strengths, I would often compare their different senses of humor to some familiar sports announcers for the world cup, and they enjoyed those comparisons. Soon they had a rapport that was unique to them, and they created quite a bond."
This question tests your emotional intelligence, ability to empathize with others, and communication and mediation skills. PNC defines conflict management as an "understanding of how to anticipate, recognize, and deal effectively with existing or potential conflicts at the individual, group, or situation level; ability to apply this understanding appropriately to diverse situations. Understanding of effective communication concepts, tools and techniques; ability to effectively transmit, receive, and accurately interpret ideas, information, and needs through the application of appropriate communication behaviors."
When delivering your answers, try to be present in your interview and avoid seeming emotional as you recount your experiences. Being present is a sign of emotional intelligence. So you'll want to practice being in the emotional state you want to exude, that of being relaxed, open, and confident in your skills as a professional.
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 have worked on a team to deliver a project for one of my college courses. I was leading the group in splitting up the workload so I split their two parts up differently but also tried to patch their relationship up in the meantime.
Jaymie's Feedback
This is a good example to use. If you can, highlight skills you used that would be valuable to the interviewer. For example, communication, collaboration, negotiation, facilitating conversations, interpersonal skills, conflict resolution, etc.
Anonymous Answer
In the sports world, there is always more than one person trying to be alpha and on my team, 2 mates were fighting to see who gets the ball in the middle of the game. I mediated their thoughts and found compromising their roles by splitting the quarters in half so each person could have an opportunity.
Jaymie's Feedback
It sounds like you are accustomed to dealing with conflict among team members, and those skills will likely transfer well into the workplace. Taking a mediator approach, hearing out both sides, and finding a solution that pleases everyone is a solid strategy to share with the interviewer!
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