Have you ever been faced with enforcing a company policy that you did not agree with? How did you handle it?

How to Answer
1st Answer Example
2nd Answer Example

At a large corporation like Target, you may not always agree with and understand company policies -- but these policies were created for a reason and are likely of vital importance to the success of your store and the company at large. Let the interviewer know that you are a supportive advocate of difficult or inconvenient policies.

"A couple of years ago, I overheard some of my coworkers complaining about a store policy we had recently implemented. They were all really frustrated with the small change and disagreed with the way it was handled. Internally, I agreed with them -- but I also knew that contributing more negativity to the conversation would only bring the team down. Instead, I approached my coworkers and told them that I understood why they were frustrated but that in the long-run the new policy would make the store run more efficiently. I told them that we just had to trust our managers and policy-makers -- we're all on the same team, after all, and the policies are there to ensure great customer experiences."

"At one of my former retail jobs, our return policy changed unexpectedly, which made a lot of our customers really upset. It was a huge inconvenience for me and my coworkers, and we were all frustrated with the way the policy changed. For weeks, we had irate customers coming into the store, frequently yelling at the customer associates, who had no control over the new policy. Even though it would have been easier at times to just return an angry customer's item, I also knew that the policy existed for a reason and that it would be unethical and inappropriate not to follow procedure. On the upside, I got really good at patiently listening to customers' complaints and explaining policies calmly!"

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How to Answer: Have you ever been faced with enforcing a company policy that you did not agree with? How did you handle it?

Advice and answer examples written specifically for a Target job interview.

2. Have you ever been faced with enforcing a company policy that you did not agree with? How did you handle it?

How to Answer

At a large corporation like Target, you may not always agree with and understand company policies -- but these policies were created for a reason and are likely of vital importance to the success of your store and the company at large. Let the interviewer know that you are a supportive advocate of difficult or inconvenient policies.

Written by Jordan Henry on July 6th, 2018

1st Answer Example

"A couple of years ago, I overheard some of my coworkers complaining about a store policy we had recently implemented. They were all really frustrated with the small change and disagreed with the way it was handled. Internally, I agreed with them -- but I also knew that contributing more negativity to the conversation would only bring the team down. Instead, I approached my coworkers and told them that I understood why they were frustrated but that in the long-run the new policy would make the store run more efficiently. I told them that we just had to trust our managers and policy-makers -- we're all on the same team, after all, and the policies are there to ensure great customer experiences."

Written by Jordan Henry on July 6th, 2018

2nd Answer Example

"At one of my former retail jobs, our return policy changed unexpectedly, which made a lot of our customers really upset. It was a huge inconvenience for me and my coworkers, and we were all frustrated with the way the policy changed. For weeks, we had irate customers coming into the store, frequently yelling at the customer associates, who had no control over the new policy. Even though it would have been easier at times to just return an angry customer's item, I also knew that the policy existed for a reason and that it would be unethical and inappropriate not to follow procedure. On the upside, I got really good at patiently listening to customers' complaints and explaining policies calmly!"

Written by Jordan Henry on July 6th, 2018

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