Tell me about an error or mistake you made because of a breakdown in communication from you or one of your team members.
USAA is very member focused, especially as they serve military members and their families. It will be important with members and equally as important with team members, to ensure breakdowns in communication are handled and resolved. Mistakes do happen and communication has and will be broken at some point. Talk to the interviewer about a time that this occurred in the workplace. How did you resolve the situation?
"I recall one instance where I misread an email from one of my subordinates. The punctuation was incorrect, and I read it in a dire tone rather than in a positive one, as it was intended. After a tense conversation, the employee clarified her intention, and it seems I was mistaken. She and I agreed to exercise verbal communication on a regular basis to avoid a similar situation from happening again. One of USAA's core values is integrity, and I will uphold that in any issues I have and come to a swift resolution."
"I had a manager text me one time about a client who was not happy with the results of my work. I was really upset, because I try my best at all times, and felt that the conversation would have been better delivered to me in-person. The next day, I approached the manager and requested that future communication of that nature be conducted in person, versus text message. I did apologize for my initial defensive reaction. I know that USAA puts their members first, and I think that's why I was upset - that I was unable to deliver that best-in-class service. However, the feedback I used moving forward to continue to try and make the best-in-class service continue."
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
While working as a hostess, I was the lead and I worked with other girls through the shift. I delegated duties and this time, in particular, I had a coworker at a table to seat. She was new and sat the party in the wrong section, it was where we had to sit for a large party and the restaurant wasn’t very big. Luckily we caught the mistake in time and the party was okay with relocating.
Jaymie's Feedback
This is a good example to share. Consider how you approached the customer and handled the situation. Did you also retrain the team member? What did you learn from the experience that helped you and your team avoid repeating the mistake?
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