Give me an example of a time when you went above and beyond.
"One of my clients had committed to a marketing package that did not include any social media management. It's an expensive commitment, and they were on the fence. I decided to offer them a free social management content calendar, to show them what I could do. My boss was delighted with this decision because just a week later, the client committed to a full six months of service from our marketing group."
"During sales calls with a prospect or a touch base with an existing customer, I will often hear them mention a feature that would sweeten the software for them. I created a Google Sheet with these suggestions as well as who made them, why, and in what context. I then shared this document with the product team and the other member of our sales team to help them keep a finger on the pulse of what our customer base is seeking. Now, most everyone updates the spreadsheet with feedback, and it is the primary source from which the product team chooses new features to build out."
"I enjoy going above and beyond in my work. In my last position, I regularly called customers to check in and see how they were doing, even if there was no news or issues with our service to discuss. I believe going above and beyond for customers, and regular touch-base is what kept them loyal to us."
"Last week I noticed that my manager had not completed the schedule for the following week. Some of the staff were complaining that they didn't have their work schedule yet. Rather than going to my manager with the complaint, I offered to take on some of her workloads so that she would have the time to complete the schedule. We worked together for a couple of overtime hours that day and were able to catch her up on everything. It felt good to help."
"This year, our French teacher, who was also the girl's soccer coach, suffered a heart attack and needed to take medical leave. I jumped in and took over as the soccer coach. The girls worked so hard to qualify for Nationals, and I didn't want to see their dream crushed due to circumstances out of their control. It was a time of commitment and sacrifice for me but worth every minute. We won Nationals!"
"The clothing store which I work has a very crowded sales floor, and some customers with mobility issues could not navigate around the store very well. I had a customer come in, in a wheelchair. Seeing her frustrated with the store layout, I approached her and offered to bring her items that I thought she might like. She had a successful 'personal shopper' experience and thanked me on her way out, for my empathy and assistance."
The interviewer would like to know about your willingness to go over and above for your employer, without being prompted to do so. Display to the interviewer that you can do more than just the bare minimum. Show that you can react appropriately when you see that your employer has a need that goes beyond your usual day-to-day expectations.
"I often go above and beyond expectations. Most recently, I agreed to cover for a co-worker who was on short-term medical leave. I worked 10 hour days for two weeks so that our work did not suffer any setbacks."
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Anonymous Answer
There was a situation where a customer of mine placed an order for a product that was out of stock. Instead of letting the customer down, I bought the stock from a competitor (at full price) and sold it to my customer at a loss so as not to let him down. It was a strategic move as it kept my customers from going to the competitor and possibly losing them forever.
Rachelle's Feedback
Wow - that is thinking outside the box. Good work!
Anonymous Answer
"S: When I worked at Nike, my manager had not completed the schedule for the following week.
"T: Rather than complain, I offered to take some of her workloads so that she would have time to complete the schedule.
"A: We worked a couple of hours overtime that day, and we were able to help her catch up on everything.
"R: It was very satisfying to help.
Cindy's Feedback
Great example of solving a problem rather than complaining about it. The STAR format is working well in this example. Good job.
Anonymous Answer
I always go above and beyond whenever I work. However, there was a time when my supervisor was not feeling well, and she had a procedure the next morning when she and I worked together. This is a 430 beds hospital and the NP always needs to be with an MD, but that night I knew that she wasn't well so I told her to go rest and I would take care of what needed to be done. I did and there was no issue.
Stephanie's Feedback
Great response; once again, this really shows your ability to go the extra mile in helping the team! Your colleague was fortunate to have someone so considerate of her needs.
Anonymous Answer
I was originally recruited for the 2 subsidiary companies. I was trained on the treasury for the parent company because they were short of staff. I picked it up so well and was helping once a week. I offered to take a whole week's duty as one colleague was sick and so the other could take her scheduled leave.
Stephanie's Feedback
This shows your work ethic and commitment to teamwork! To strengthen your response, I suggest adding a closing sentence to wrap things up. For example: "I have an exceptional work ethic, and I am always willing to go beyond the call of duty if it means supporting my colleagues."
Anonymous Answer
When I was working at Nordstrom Rack, it was a busy Saturday afternoon and I was putting away go-backs and working with customers to find their sizes. I saw a young lady next to her mom crying hysterically. I asked if they were okay and the mom explained her daughter took off her engagement ring to try on costume ring bands for fun. Her ring went missing. I got on my hands and knees to look for the ring. I found the ring under the luggage wall - the girl started crying tears of relief and gave me a huge hug.
Stephanie's Feedback
Great example of going above and beyond! You may wish to add a concluding sentence that re-states your commitment to going the extra mile at work.
Anonymous Answer
Recently, I helped cover my co-worker's shift who was on leave even though I hadn't worked in her department for several months. Also, I agreed to stay past my scheduled work hours.
Marcie's Feedback
Nice! It sounds like you went above and beyond the call of duty. Can you give more details about what kind of work your coworker does and how you managed to cover her duties despite not being overly familiar with them? Also, consider talking about how this helped the company. By covering her shift, how did this benefit the company and its customers?
Anonymous Answer
While in pharmaceutical sales I did not get to meet with one of the providers during my office visit like I usually do. They really wanted to see me and rather than waiting until my next visit in a few weeks I went to the office early on a Saturday so that they knew I was there for them.
Stephanie's Feedback
It's clear that you have a customer-service mindset, and you're committed to your clients! I'd like to see you take this response a step further by showing what happened as a result of this "above and beyond" approach. You went on a Saturday; what happened then? Did this improve working relationships? Did your sales increase as a result?
Anonymous Answer
Updated Answer -When I worked at _____ there was an Advent Campaign mailing we were running behind on. There was a deadline to get it out the next day and we still had around 1,000 brochures and inserts that needed to be put in the envelopes and stamped. As soon as our donors could receive the campaign materials we could start fundraising and receiving donations. I knew this campaign was a priority so I readjusted my schedule for the day and I was able to recruit a few people from my department to help. We worked through lunch and were able to get the mailing done by 5 pm. I dropped off the mailing at the post office that evening and it was mailed the next morning. Going above and beyond on this campaign was beneficial to the company and I enjoyed being an integral part of this campaign.
Marcie's Feedback
It's great that you put the extra effort in, but why did this matter? Why was getting the Advent campaign mailed out so quickly important to the organization? Going above and beyond benefited who and in what way? Make sure to add in these details to explain why your actions mattered. Good job!
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