Tell me about a time when you effectively delegated tasks.

Question

Rachelle Enns · Accepted Answer

"(Situation) In my current position, I was asked to put together a team for a special client project. (Task) I was allowed to handpick the team members and organize the project timeline. (Action) I chose my strongest employees in a variety of areas. In our initial meeting, I delegated the tasks while explaining my reasoning. This opportunity was great for me to show each team member that I had the utmost confidence in their abilities. (Result) Everyone played to their strengths, and it worked out well. We delivered this special project to our client on time and under budget."

Rachelle Enns · Answer

The interviewer would like to know that you are capable of confidently delegating tasks to your employees or coworkers. A great leader is someone who can efficiently manage their time by ensuring the equitable division of tasks while utilizing the strengths of others.

Behavioral-based interview questions that begin with 'Tell me about a time...' are best answered using the STAR method. STAR is an acronym for Situation, Task, Action, Result. Organizing your response using this framework will ensure that you provide the interviewer with the right amount of information and detail to form a compelling answer.

Display to the interviewer that you nurture the skills of your team by delegating tasks that complement individual strengths and skillsets.

Rachelle Enns · Answer

"(Situation) I recently trained a new Executive Assistant to the VP. (Task) Since I am the EA to the President, the leadership group felt that I was the best person to train the new EA correctly. (Action) She had a little bit of experience; however, she did require in-depth training on our systems, programs, and more. In total, I spent around 80 hours training her on a variety of systems. (Result) I now oversee her work and delegate to-dos. It's been a smooth onboarding so far!"

Rachelle Enns · Answer

"(Situation) My current company employes hundreds of people, and it can become a challenge for the managers to track the individual performance of each person. (Task) As the Warehouse Manager who leads 150 warehouse staff, I found it challenging to maintain a keen and constant eye on every person on shift. (Action) For this reason, I introduced the idea of team leads. I have five team leads in total, and they are responsible for helping with productivity and safety. If any conflict arises, they report the situation to me immediately. (Result) Since I introduced this structural change six months ago, the workload is spread more evenly on the floor, and we have had approximately 5% lower turnover."

Rachelle Enns · Answer

"(Situation) This year, we did an overhaul of our company website. (Task) I was responsible for coordinating and communicating across the design team, the IT team, and the developers. (Action) First, I assigned the copywriting, editing, design, and graphics. Then, I built another team to test and review functionality and responsiveness. (Result) The outcome was a sleek, functional website that has been very successful in boosting customer conversions and increasing click-through rates to our appointment booking page."

Rachelle Enns · Answer

"(Situation) When I joined my current company, the customer service team had minimal drive and direction. (Task) As the new Customer Service Lead, the expectation was that I met with my team every month to outline the store targets and corporate's expectations. (Action) The first thing that I did was set a standing meeting time on the first and fourteenth day of each month at 9:00 AM. I talked to all team members about our plan for the month and how we would delegate the work. (Result) It's been a great strategy for the team since everyone begins the month with laid out expectations, targets, and plans for execution. We meet mid-month again to ensure we are on track with our goals."

Rachelle Enns · Answer

"(Situation) In my previous role, I had three reports working on sourcing inventory for my accounts. (Task) Each day, I was expected to hold a huddle to delegate the individual work orders. (Action) In these huddles, we would discuss the current workload, urgency of each order, and I would approach why each one of them had been assigned to a particular account or order. (Result) My team appreciated this form of delegation, and I found that everyone was highly accountable for their work, often delivering ahead of time and exceeding expectations."

Rachelle Enns · Answer

"(Situation) Students need a lot of direction and delegation. (Task) As an experienced teacher, I know how important this delegation is. (Action) Every day, I delegate tasks, homework, and assignments with clear expectations. I am a kind teacher but do command their attention when needed, to ensure they deliver their work on time. (Result) My group of students has learned a lot about accountability and time-management."

Anonymous User · Answer

"Before going on vacation, I once had to delegate my tasks to a Co-worker. This particular employee was familiar with my duties but needed clarification on certain items. I trained him on the procedures before leaving and provided detailed written instructions. My co-worker felt very comfortable taking over my duties while I was gone due to the amount of preparation we put in."

Anonymous User · Answer

"Whenever someone calls in sick I delegate tasks to others, to make no task is left undone."

Anonymous User · Answer

"I am currently in a management position, and delegate tasks to team members to bring out their best and ensure they are adhering to the company vision."

Anonymous User · Answer

"I delegated the task of producing safe systems of work to my deputy. Before assigning this task to him, I reviewed the time that he would have and the skills required to do the job. I also discussed the requirements in detail with him so that he knew exactly what to do. It was also a development opportunity for him because it was a task that he had not done before."

Anonymous User · Answer

"I was co-captain of our facility's Relay for Life team. I had to delegate fundraising tasks. I gave each of the department members a task to complete. These tasks included contacting local merchants for raffle prize donations, ordering team shirts, working with the marketing team to design a team logo, arranging a food donation list for the team, and creating a relay roster. Our team successfully raised four thousand dollars for the relay."

Anonymous User · Answer

"As a Chairperson for a Boys and Girls Club Blue Team event at ______, I had to lead a group of volunteers. I was able to organize and delegate specific tasks to 20 volunteers for a successful event. Some of those tasks were painting, clean up, prepping, and purchasing items."

Anonymous User · Answer

"¢ S: When I was the socials secretary for Bristol Hindu society, I was in charge of integrating the freshers into the society

"¢ T: Having been a freshers representative the year before, I felt that there was more I could've learned from that experience.

"¢ A: I decided to create a subcommittee made by freshers whose purpose was to run events for freshers. I personally reached out to freshers and convinced 7 to join this project. Tasks ranged from budgeting and negotiating to marketing. I wanted everybody to experience each role over the year. I explained this for the first event, and then when responsibilities changed, I paired the new team member with who did their corresponding task in the previous event to mentor them."

Anonymous User · Answer

"I am responsible for the administration of many student assessments and I needed a team of colleagues to contact parents regarding virtual students coming to school to take the tests or students taking the tests virtually. I asked our Front Office Clerks and our Parent Liaison to contact the parents of our Virtual students and speak with them about in-person testing administration or virtual testing administration."

Anonymous User · Answer

"Fact that I still I don't have a team right now but the company the delegation is based on strength of team skills."

Anonymous User · Answer

"As a charge nurse in my previous job, I made schedules for both RNs and CNAs. I arranged the assignment based on the acuity level and experience."

Anonymous User · Answer

"Recently, while we were preparing to reopen the store, on the first day of the delivery, we had to put all the new items on the shop floor, changing all the layout of the department. The line manager was on her day off and I and my team had to organize the layout ourselves. After asking for some guidance from the duty manager regarding the new layout of the season, I transmitted that to the other team members and guided them on how exactly to put each new item in each rail. Preliminary we separated and placed unopened boxes next to the right rails. We managed to finish the delivery on time by the end of the shift."

Anonymous User · Answer

"We all know how busy we can get when doing therapy. I have found things go smoother when I pick a task for someone to help me with instead of giving them multiple options. When time and patients are a factor it's much better to assign tasks, similar to how tasks are assigned in an emergency situation. However, in cases where time and patients aren't involved, it may be better to ask for volunteers and then assign anything left over to fill in the gaps."

Anonymous User · Answer

"I recently trained a new coordinator, she had a little bit of experience, my management wanted to give her a new project and, in my understanding, she required in-depth training to successfully execute the project till the end. In total, I spent some time on training. I now oversee her work and delegates to-dos. It's been a smooth onboarding so far."

Anonymous User · Answer

"We were dealing with a standardization project. The project has too many areas to focus on. I have to delegate some of the work to ensure each has some responsibilities to carry out in such a short period. Delegation can be easy but ensuring the work is properly carried out and making sure it is the right decision, I usually would place my head around by having weekly meetings with them to ensure it is aligned with my thoughts and raise areas where further investigation or improvement is required."

Tell me about a time when you effectively delegated tasks.

How to Answer: Tell me about a time when you effectively delegated tasks.

6. Tell me about a time when you effectively delegated tasks.

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