Describe an ongoing problem at your current or former employer, that you were able to overcome.
"An ongoing issue in our marketing department was a lack of funds allocated to the projects that our board had already approved. It seemed as though they wanted us to perform miracles with very little financial support. To overcome this, we created a catchy new hashtag, and it ended up going viral on Instagram. Luckily we did not have to spend funds to make this happen, and we were able to promote our product to an audience much larger than we thought possible."
"Lately the senior sales team has found that our sales assistants had oversold or misrepresented aspects of our product to our clients. It seemed that either they were poorly trained or were so eager to get the "yes" the setting an appointment, that they failed to mention important caveats. Booking appointments are the main KPI the assistants need to reach, which created some glitches when it came to honesty in our product. To overcome this, our sales manager had us collaborate and create a training manual, scripts included, for our sales assistants. By bringing it back to the basics and making sure everyone received proper training, we saw a huge improvement in client satisfaction."
"Lately the senior sales team has found that our sales assistants had oversold or misrepresented aspects of our product to our clients. It seemed that either they were poorly trained or were so eager to get the "
"Clear communication was an ongoing problem in our office when I first started as senior administrator. With the support of management, the use of Microsoft Project, and a weekly status email template, we quickly overcame the communication issues. All five of our departments are now talking to each other instead of pointing fingers."
"In my current position, one ongoing problem is the gossip and separation in the workplace between the warehouse staff and the sales team. I have begun to overcome this by implementing weekly lunch and learns where everyone is welcome. The topics are focused on a variety of situations that we all face in the company. I feel that the better we all understand each other's jobs and functions, the better we can all get along. So far this tactic has been working very well."
"In my last teaching position, we had a lot of trouble with parent participation and volunteerism. A strong percentage of our parent body were single parents who could not afford to take a day off from work to volunteer. Our faculty came up with the idea of looking for senior citizen volunteers from our community. They were, of course, background checked before being approved. It was adorable to see the young students interacting with the seniors and the seniors cherished the opportunity to support the children in their community."
"Staff turnover is almost always an ongoing problem in my current position. The company does not pay a high commission, and often our top sales reps are recruited by competitors. I made a recommendation to head office that they incorporate a deeper staff discount as well as one flex day per month. It would cost the organization less money than a raise but would still be enough to satisfy employees who were on the fence."
Every place of employment will have its challenges. Talk to the interviewer about a specific issue that you were able to overcome in your previous role. Be sure to remain positive. Avoid complaining or saying negative things about your last employer or co-workers.
"In my most recent position we had an ongoing concern with our most popular stock depleting before the new shipment would come in. Customers would become annoyed and upset, which then became an issue for me as the customer service manager. I decided to document the cycle and then approach the inventory manager about my concern. We were able to work on a solution for ordering from that particular supplier. In the end, this solved the majority of supply issues."
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
When I was selling merchandise at Wembley stadium, many employees would accidentally take fake money. This could be avoided by using a special pen. I was determined to never take a fake note and I succeeded because I never switched off.
Kevin's Feedback
Interesting! So your diligence and care are what led to the good result? Expand on how you managed this to add color to your answer.
Fake notes being passed as currency was a common issue for anyone selling merchandise at Wembley stadium. Many employees fell victim to accidentally taking fake money. Yet it was easily avoided by using a special pen everyone was equipped with. I was determined to never take a fake note, but I was the exception. Everyone, it seemed to me, got too wrapped up in the high demand, high stress, fast-paced environment that they often sacrificed this step to keep up. Later, they’d realize they took fake notes, which contributed to their stress, which resulted in them tripping over their own feet and repeating their easily avoidable mistakes. I guess I have no issues remaining calm, not allowing my stress to dictate my work style, and I therefore rarely make such mistakes which would stress me out. Stress so often is self fulfilled. I call it little-big-picture thinking.
