Practice 35 UNICEF interview questions covering humanitarian values, global development, and child rights advocacy.
Question 24 of 35
Why the Interviewer Asks This Question
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Example Answer 2
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Isaiah Swanson is a volunteer recruitment professional who has interviewed, trained, and supervised thousands of volunteers supporting dozens of nonprofit programs helping families in crisis, homebound seniors, and victims of natural disasters.
Disagreement is a fact of working life, and it is guaranteed to happen at some point in any industry. Although nonprofit employees are mission-driven, they do not always agree on the best ways to work towards advancing that mission. The interviewer wants to see that you can handle disagreement professionally.

Isaiah Swanson is a volunteer recruitment professional who has interviewed, trained, and supervised thousands of volunteers supporting dozens of nonprofit programs helping families in crisis, homebound seniors, and victims of natural disasters.
"Part of my role working with a private foundation is to read through grant proposals and choose a finalist group that followed the proposal guidelines and closely aligned with our foundation's mission to fund organizations addressing mental health issues. There are several mental health-focused nonprofits in our city, so my supervisor wanted me to focus on the ones addressing men's mental health issues. However, the vision of our founder explicitly stated his desire to improve the lives of children dealing with these kinds of struggles. I requested a private meeting with my supervisor and politely shared my belief that letting the mission and vision guide our selections would give our foundation clear direction and allow us to share legitimate reasons for any proposal rejections. My supervisor agreed with this, and I was able to filter for children's groups."

Isaiah Swanson is a volunteer recruitment professional who has interviewed, trained, and supervised thousands of volunteers supporting dozens of nonprofit programs helping families in crisis, homebound seniors, and victims of natural disasters.
"Every year, my organization hosts an inter-faith gathering that brings together faith leaders and religiously-affiliated agencies from around the city to discuss their community work and engage in thoughtful discussions about how to properly address increasing violent crime. My manager was responsible for procuring panelists for a conversation about oversight for local law enforcement and had selected individuals primarily representing the Protestant Christian faith. During a planning session, I respectively voiced my suggestion that we include Jewish, Catholic, Muslim, Mormon, Buddhist, and other representatives to accurately reflect the demographics of our city, as well as our supporters. My manager liked this idea, and I met with him privately later to share some specific suggestions for individuals I knew who might like to be involved with this event."

Isaiah Swanson is a volunteer recruitment professional who has interviewed, trained, and supervised thousands of volunteers supporting dozens of nonprofit programs helping families in crisis, homebound seniors, and victims of natural disasters.
Avoid negativity when answering this question. Simply explain the steps you took to bring your disagreement to your manager or supervisor's attention. Then, share how your manager or supervisor reacted and how you worked together to address the situation.

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Anonymous Answer
When I was with Save the Children I led WASH programs at the country level. There was a call for a proposal from AHF. I was assigned by the program quality unit of WASH to lead the proposal development process. During the proposal development process, I was asked by the supervisor to include CLTS components in the proposal. I showed my disagreement because I was part of the AHF CRC committee and I was fully aware of the nature of AHF funds. Therefore, I disagreed and explained to him that CLTS is a more developed activity and AHF is more of an emergency fund for life-saving activities. After a long discussion and explanation, he agreed with me to not include this activity in the proposal and that the proposal should design and focus more on the emergency component to reduce the possible risk of rejection of the proposal by the review committee.
Marcie's Feedback
Great example! It shows that you're willing to express your disagreement with a manager but will do so in a respectful and thoughtful way. Consider, however, eliminating or explaining the acronyms used throughout your response. Remember that the interviewer might not know what they all mean, and it's your responsibility to make sure your answer is as clear and direct as possible. Good job!
Anonymous Answer
NURSE MANAGER'S OUTBURST OF ALL STAFF CONTRACTING COVID
PRESS RELEASE TO ADDRESS THIS AND THERE WAS DISAGREEMENT WITH MY MANAGER,

Jaymie's Feedback
This is a good example to use in your response. Be sure to speak about what aspect you disagreed with and then answer the second part of the question regarding how you addressed the situation. Demonstrate that you can disagree in a respectful and professional manner, collaborate, and communicate to resolve conflicts. These are highly sought-after skills in candidates.
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Written by Isaiah Swanson
35 Questions & Answers • UNICEF

By Isaiah

By Isaiah