Master 30 common interview questions that appear across industries and interview formats.
Question 23 of 30
The Goal
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Admin
Manager
Marketing
Retail
Sales
Teacher
What to Avoid
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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.
The interviewer would like to know more about how you communicate and interact with your co-workers. They also want to know that you can face conflict and resolve disagreements without causing them to escalate. The goal of your response is to show the interviewer that you are a poised professional who understands how to resolve workplace conflict and communicate with team members even if they are displeased with you.

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.
"Last week, I had a co-worker mad at me. This situation doesn't happen too often since I am easy to get along with, but we had a miscommunication around the work schedule. She was working off the old schedule, and I was working from the new one. She thought that I had not shown up for my shift when, in fact, it was my day off. We worked it out, and each apologized for the communication gap. Together, we asked our manager to put the schedule into a cloud-based program rather than in Word so that changes would appear in real-time, and nobody would be stuck with poor communication over the schedule again."

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.
"Some time ago, I worked with an individual who was often upset with me for the speed at which I worked. I am a go-getter and a multi-tasker, and she felt that I was making her look bad since her pace was much slower. I assured her that it was just my personality and that my work speed did not reflect poorly on her. She was insecure about her performance, and it was not my responsibility to make her feel better about her work ethic, but I chose to remain a team player. I continued being my true self, and went about my business, often helping her when she fell behind in her work."

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.
"As a general manager, I have encountered times when employees are upset with me. These situations might occur when I change the schedule, cut hours back, or terminate those who need to be let go. However, I work hard to maintain harmonious relationships. I am friendly, easy-going, and I deliver clear expectations to my team members. Just last week, one of my team members needed to help a customer after hours, and they were upset with taking on the responsibility. The customer service rep came to me and argued about their schedule. I discussed the situation with her calmly and explained why the customer needed to be cared for at that time. The team member understood the issue and agreed to be available in the future if similar customer needs arose. I am actively communicative and respectful of my team members, and I find these traits to be critical in resolving workplace conflict."

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.
"In our marketing department, we will come across disagreements on creative direction from time to time. These disagreements rarely amount to a full-blown conflict; however, they can happen when the stakes are high. Last year, upon approaching a significant deadline, I had a co-worker yell at me for not meeting a deadline. It turns out she had missed my email with the attached document that she needed. I stood up for myself and told her that she was not welcome to speak to me like that again. We eventually made up, but it took a few days for her to apologize for inappropriate office behavior. I believe in keeping the utmost professionalism in the workplace, and that includes remaining calm and respectful of others."

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.
"Earlier in my retail career, I worked with a person who would blatantly steal sales and the attached commissions. It was a toxic work environment, and I was always on edge. I would often bring up concerns with my boss regarding this person's behavior, however, there was no resolution. I left that job when I realized that the environment was not where I wanted to shape my profession. It's important that I get along with my co-workers and feel comfortable in my workspace. I strive to contribute to that positive culture wherever I go."

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.
"Sales environments can often be stressful, which can create more opportunities for conflict than certain other industries or job types. I recently had a co-worker angry with me when they thought I was poaching their client. This colleague did not realize that I had already added the lead into their Salesforce funnel for them. We worked out the misunderstanding quickly, and I focused on building further trust with that individual."

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.
"I have never experienced a full-blown conflict with a co-worker, however, my work has always been quite independent. If I experience conflict with a co-worker, I would want to mend the situation as soon as possible. It's essential to maintain a harmonious workplace environment, especially in the education sector."

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.
Be honest with the interviewer, but avoid telling an extreme story-based example that raises red flags. For instance, talking about a time when you knowingly caused a conflict with a co-worker could make the interviewer wonder if you are the type of individual to create chaos in the workplace. Instead, talk about a time when you faced an upset co-worker and introduced a resolution by exercising emotional intelligence and strong interpersonal skills.

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.
It's a good idea to approach situational interview questions like this one by telling a brief story from the recent past. Using the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result), try organizing your story to ensure that you provide the interviewer with the right amount of information and detail to form a memorable story-based response.

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.
Discuss a time when there was a miscommunication. Talk about how you smoothed the situation out, and be sure to mention if your relationship with that co-worker ended up being harmonious in the end. Focus the bulk of your response on how you approached a solution rather than dwelling on the problem. Assure the interviewer that you are a well-equipped professional to handle conflict and promptly problem solve.
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Anonymous Answer
As a supervisor of a team, I have had to make some unpopular choices that may have caused people to be upset with me. It is my job as the leader to then discuss with the person why the decision I made makes the most sense for the department and the company as a whole.

Rachelle's Feedback
It's wonderful that you are willing to sit down and discuss your choices after making decisions for the good of all. Do you have a specific example of a time when you dealt with this situation?
Anonymous Answer
I have had a worker be upset with me because they felt I wouldn't pay attention to them. Since I worked in sterilization, it was my job to collect the dental trays for sterilization and remove trash from the room. I was often put in a position where multiple people would finish at the same time, and I could only clean one room at a time. One person felt that I prioritized cleaning other worker's rooms first. I explained to them that I was just cleaning the room of whoever I saw first, but from then on, I made a point to specifically look out for their room to avoid any future conflict.

Rachelle's Feedback
It's great that you created a new system to avoid future conflict, while still also taking the time to explain the situation. This was a mature and professional approach.
Anonymous Answer
As Shift Supervisor, I had to make some unpopular choices that caused some of my workers to be upset with me. To resolve the matter, I would discuss with them why my decision made the most sense for the department and the squadron as a whole.

Rachelle's Feedback
This answer is a good start! The interviewer should feel confident that you are comfortable making challenging decisions, as well as handle conflict. If you'd like to deliver a more detailed response, you could also try to use the STAR framework while telling a specific story. Here is a guide if you would like to learn more. I have also offered an example, below. https://www.mockquestions.com/articles/Master Behavioral-Based Interviews Using The Star Method/
"As Shift Supervisor, I had to make some unpopular choices that caused some of my workers to be upset with me. To resolve the matter, I would discuss with them why my decision made the most sense for the department and the squadron as a whole. For instance, I was asked to (describe a situation where you had to make an unpopular choice), and one particular team member was upset by the decision because (discuss the pain point). As the Shift Supervisor, I was mandated to (discuss your task). To resolve the issue, I (discuss the action that you took). In the end, we resolved the conflict and (what was the result of your conflict resolution skills?)"
Anonymous Answer
I do not recall a situation where a co-worker was mad at me. But I can recall a co-worker being frustrated with me. While on the project, I was reviewing the team member's codes, and one newly added team member wasn't providing a good quality code so after having a bit of miscommunication in the comments to the code he agreed to the call and sounded somewhat frustrated that I wasn't approving it. I had to point him to the code from other team members and explain why we are doing things this way. After that, frustration disappeared, and he fixed the code.

Rachelle's Feedback
It seems that you approached this situation with a lot of professionalism, and it's terrific that you pointed to examples to help support the feedback you gave this team member. At the beginning of your answer, I recommend taking the time to add more details and set the stage a bit further. This effort will help your interviewer to follow along easily.
Anonymous Answer
Animal Technicians' environments can often be stressful, which can create more opportunities for conflict than other industries or job types. I recently had a co-worker angry with me when they thought I was trying to take control of their study. What this colleague did not realize was that I was just trying to help them, and I didn't want them to fail or make a mistake that could have been caught. We worked out the misunderstanding quickly, and now my colleagues and I have better commutation skills; instead of just doing something, we ask what their thoughts are on the subject.

Stephanie's Feedback
From your response, it is evident that you use creativity to build positive working relationships.
Anonymous Answer
I can't remember a time when any of my coworkers were mad at me. I've always had a good working relationship with my manager and team members. It's important that I get along with my co-workers, and I feel comfortable in my workspace. I strive to contribute to that positive culture wherever I go.

Stephanie's Feedback
It sounds like you get along well with others, both inside and outside of the workplace.
Anonymous Answer
I'm pretty easy to get along with, and I do make an effort to keep a positive work environment intact by being friendly, helpful and responsive. I can remember a time when a co-worker asked me to cover a shift, and I wasn't able to accommodate him due to a prior commitment. He seemed mad or annoyed because I said no. I apologized that I couldn't be more helpful, and he walked away. Later, he apologized for his reaction, and we metaphorically shook hands and went about our day.

Stephanie's Feedback
From your response, it is evident that you are a valuable colleague who goes out of her way to be supportive to others and to get along well with others, while still maintaining your own boundaries.
Anonymous Answer
There was a couple of times in the last year when my co-workers were mad at me. This happened due to a deadline coming up very soon and I was working on multiple projects. I was not able to contribute properly to the project in which my co-worker was leading. I met with my co-worker and explained to him the works that I am already doing in another project. Both of us discussed the remaining tasks in his project. Both of us agreed on a reasonable deadline for the new tasks. I was able to complete his tasks on the new schedule. In future projects, I discussed with my co-workers and my advisor before taking up a new project others are leading. This helped me to avoid such situations in the future.

Cindy's Feedback
Very good. You do a good job explaining how you resolved the issue. Is there an opportunity to also discuss how you'd avoid a similar situation in the future?
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Written by Rachelle Enns
30 Questions & Answers • Common Interview Questions

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By Rachelle