Workday, Inc. Mock Interview
Practice 34 Workday interview questions covering enterprise software, product strategy, and customer success.
Question 16 of 34
Tell me about a time you worked with a person who did things very differently than you. How did you collaborate?
Why the Interviewer Asks This Question
Experienced
General
How to Answer
Entry Level
Community Answers
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
Behavioral questions assess how your experience in certain situations will play out in a role with Workday. Teammates often have to navigate how to work together despite their different work styles or approaches since everyone's work style is unique. Therefore, your interviewer wants to understand if you are an adaptable team player and if you already embody the fun and collaborative culture Workday promotes among their 'Workmates.'
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
"My fellow administrator and I approach deadlines differently, and that is okay. I prefer mapping out the situation and putting myself on a timeline, whereas she prefers to jump right into the task. After discussing our differences, we have found a good balance between our two working styles. On our last project, we agreed to split the tasks and come together at the end of each day to put the pieces together. We have also agreed to keep the lines of communication open throughout the day. As different as we are from each other, we both agree that so long as we get to the end goal together, it doesn't always matter how we got there."
Rachelle Enns is an interview coach and job search expert. She works with candidates to perform their best in employment, medical, and post-secondary admission interviews.
"When I began my most recent role, I replaced a manager who believed in a dictatorship management style. It was a huge challenge to undo the damage created while safely implementing my more relaxed management style. My team was so used to a stringent workplace that they resisted my methods significantly. Once trust developed, we created a comfortable workplace culture."
Sue is a Recruiter and Talent Sourcer with over 13 years of experience sourcing and interviewing candidates for a variety of roles and industries, including Architecture, Engineering, Construction, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Financial, e-Commerce. She
Show the interviewer that you value different working styles, even if they do not match your own, and indicate that you are effective in working with different people. Maybe you're organized, and you had to work with someone who is not organized. Perhaps you are a 'big picture' thinker and had to work with someone who micromanaged the details. Maybe you are a technology whiz, and you had to work with someone who likes to do things with paper and pen. Start by discussing the project you were working on and how your work styles differed. Explain how you worked together to conquer the project.
Kevin Downey has an extensive background in business management, recruiting, branding and marketing. He's volunteered his career coaching services at job fairs, lecturing on interview techniques and crafting winning resumes and cover letters.
"That has happened to me on several occasions. Everyone is different, so everyone thinks and works differently. So, I adapt. Any chance to learn how to work with and communicate with someone who approaches the world and their work differently than you do is an opportunity to branch out and further develop your skills. I adapt, learn, and find new ways to collaborate and make it work."
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Anonymous Answer
I was working with another student on a semester-long project that required us to figure out our aggregate plan for manufacturing a product. I am more of a planner, and the other student liked to do trial and error. So we worked to our strengths, and I planned out a couple of possible methods of approaching the problem by creating a hybrid staffing plan, and my partner would test the methods. We then used this to improve my plans and hone in on the best and most precise aggregate plan.
Lauren's Feedback
Great example. You provided a strong example to demonstrate your flexibility and collaborative ability. I assisted with adding general traits based on this example that would be transferable.
When working in a team or group projects, I offer an analytical approach. I am, however, flexible for the work to feel authentic for everyone involved. I once worked on a semester-long project with a peer who had a different work style from my own. I am an analytical person who devises plans and creates a system to address projects. My colleague, however, preferred trial and error. We were able to collaborate in such a way to highlight our working styles. We created a shared plan for possible methods for approaching the problem as well as a hybrid staffing plan. My partner was able to test several methods, and I was satisfied with a logical plan in place. By allowing both of us to integrate our styles, we worked cohesively and efficiently.
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