Have you ever made a critical mistake while on the job? How did you handle the situation and why would this approach be vital here?
If you take the time to read through UnitedHealth Group's code of conduct on its website, you'll quickly see that accountability and being responsible for your actions are key pieces of that code. Accountability for UHG starts with complying with all laws, regulations, and contractual obligations and ends with earning the trust of all of the members, patients, and business partners. When they ask this question, your interviewer knows that any candidate they consider has made a mistake on the job in the past. The important things to key in on as you answer are holding yourself accountable, your ability to act swiftly to make things right, and what tasks will require a high sense of accountability.
"In my early years as an RN Case Manager, I had a day where things went really awry with a few client emergencies and a winter storm that had hit our area. Knowing that the emergency clients were the top priority, I focused on their needs first and foremost and did what I could to drive and be onsite with them. Later that evening when I was back home, I remembered that I had forgotten to contact my regular visits for that day to reschedule. Knowing that it was too late at night to call them, I immediately reported this to my manager and made a plan for contacting them the next day and seeing them as soon as possible. Every client was happy to hear from me the next morning and I saw them all within the next week. My manager was also comfortable with my plan moving forward and thanked me for my honesty. I learned some great lessons from that day that I would bring here to the UnitedHealth Group team, as I know your members rely on this team for quick assessments and implementation of their care plans."
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 wouldn't say that I have made a critical mistake on the job but I have made mistakes and have learned that it is best to own up to the mistake rather than waiting for someone to figure it out.
Marcie's Feedback
It's definitely important to own up to your mistakes. Can you talk about a specific instance when you made a mistake on the job and how you handled it? Did you tell a client something incorrect on the phone and have to call them back later after you realized your error? Did you apologize and make amends in a way that left them satisfied? Give details so your answer is meaningful to the interviewer. Good job!
Anonymous Answer
Luckily, I don't recall that I have ever made a critical mistake on the job. I do remember a time that I communicated information to our employees that were incorrect regarding annual bonuses. It was a misunderstanding on my part of what our intent was. I owned it, accepted responsibility and suggested a couple of different ways that I could address it, and asked how my boss prefer that I correct it, and I made sure to do so as swiftly as possible.
Marcie's Feedback
Nice job using the STAR method (situation, task, action, result) to answer this question. Consider giving more details to further strengthen your response. For example, how did you miscommunicate? How exactly did you accept responsibility? What suggestions did you make to fix the situation? The more details you include, the more memorable your answer will be to the interviewer.
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