Tell us about a time when you disagreed with a coworker.
The hiring managers at Progressive want to gain an understanding of your conflict resolution skills. The goal of your response is to provide evidence that you can handle and resolve conflict in a professional manner that aligns with the company culture of Progressive.
Conflict happens in any workplace, so the goal of your response is not to deny conflict. Instead, it's to show that you can move through conflict in a constructive way.
Finding common ground with a coworker, despite disagreeing with them, shows hiring managers that your desire to collaborate is stronger than your need to be correct. Overcoming disagreements in the workplace also highlights your ability to problem-solve while facing a difference of opinion.
Even though you may have great relationships with your coworkers, there will be times when you don't 100% agree. Think of a conflict or disagreement you had with a coworker where you responded professionally and worked toward a solution.
When asked to 'Tell us about a time when...,' it's important to remember that the hiring managers at Progressive are looking for a specific story-based example that highlights your professional behavior in challenging interpersonal situations. Using the STAR interview method (Situation, Task, Action, Result), you can form an easy-to-follow and engaging story-based response.
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 Progressive, 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.
"(Situation) Last year, my Account Director and I disagreed on the pending termination of one of my team members. (Task) As a manager, my philosophy is to ensure that I have trained and coached my team members to the best of my ability before I ever consider terminating them. (Action) I expressed my desire to spend additional time training this team member. I mentioned that it would be more costly for the company to replace this person than invest in additional training. The Account Director finally agreed that if the team member missed their targets for another 30 days, we would move forward with termination. After coming to a middle ground, I created a plan to spend five additional hours per week training this team member for three weeks. (Result) Remarkably, his performance improved by over 40%! This team member is still with us and often lands on our divisions' monthly Top 10 list for client satisfaction and performance. Because I respectfully disagreed with the Account Director and stated my case with facts rather than emotion, we were able to move past the disagreement with ease."
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 had issues in the past with a certain teacher trying to handle behavioral students that were not trained. I got called to a classroom to remove a student, and a teacher tried to handle the situation when I got there. I realized who the student was and knew that you had to approach him and the problem a certain way, or things would escalate. I suggested to the teacher that they let me handle the problem, and I would come back to speak with them about the situation.
They were distraught and didn't want to hear anything I had to say. Things escalated, and the student threw a punch at the teacher. After everything was over, I brought the teacher into the office with one of the assistant principals and explained that it was my job to know the students that behave like this. Please do not enter fear next time. I know you were upset, but I could have gotten him downstairs calmly because I have dealt with him many times before, and we have a good relationship. Then I would have come back up and heard your side and put it on the referral. They understood and apologized.
Marcie's Feedback
This is a good example to cite here, and you do a great job of using the STAR method to describe the situation, your task/actions, and the end result. Just make sure that the example you give shows that you also understood the perspective of the other person. In this case, it appears you felt you were right and the other person was wrong. While you may have been more 'right' in this instance, it's important to show the interviewer that you can understand the other person's perspective and come to a compromise. This way they know that in the workplace you will be open to other ideas/opinions and won't always have to get your way. Just some food for thought! Otherwise, great job on being so descriptive and forthright!
Anonymous Answer
When I worked in retail, my manager and I disagreed on the reasoning for why I was not making my sales quota due to unfairness. She did not understand that it was difficult for me to make my sales quota because I had to share a register with another associate when the associate next to us used the register to herself and did not allow us to use it, even though we were in the same department. This means that she would get about twice as many sales as we would. I had to take the time to explain this to her so she could understand and then she delegated a schedule for us to rotate the 3 of us on the 2 registers fairly.
Jaymie's Feedback
This is a great example to use in your response. It highlights your ability to have a professional conversation and use effective communication to resolve a conflict.
Anonymous Answer
Last year, we had an attorney that left our firm. My supervisor sent a detailed email regarding the procedure for contacting the clients and transferring their files to new attorneys in our firm. While I needed to contact the clients, I had ethical concerns regarding my supervisor's procedure as laid out. I spoke with my supervisor regarding my concerns and, together, we reviewed the Ohio Rules of Prof. Conduct and consulted with our malpractice insurance carrier. Based on the rules and the opinion of our carrier, my supervisor was advised that my concerns were valid and that the procedure needed to be altered.
Jaymie's Feedback
This is a really good example to share in your response. You demonstrate that you can disagree, but remain professional, communicate effectively, and lay out the concerns you have in a respectful manner. Sharing the outcome in these situations is critical, and you did an excellent job of that in your response.
Anonymous Answer
A colleague and I disagreed about which task should be completed first. I listened to his points and shared mine. He made valid arguments that proved we should follow his suggestion. I agreed with him, and we prioritized his task.
Jaymie's Feedback
Great! It's important to demonstrate your communication and interpersonal skills as well as your ability to negotiate and compromise.
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