Tell me about a time when you took charge of a situation but the outcome was disappointing.
"(Situation) This year our HR Manager was on maternity leave, and someone needed to take control of the company's most recent hiring fair. (Task) As the HR Assistant, I was next in line to take over the event. (Action) I worked hard to plan and leverage the few connections that I had. I attempted to build excitement through social media posts and our company e-newsletter. (Result) In the end, the hiring fair was not as successful as previous hiring fairs and, despite my best efforts, I didn't see the results that I was hoping. I will continue to learn the recruiting field and won't give up despite this disappointment."
"(Situation) Last month, we had a last-minute order come through from a customer, but our production scheduling manager was out sick. (Task) Although out of my wheelhouse, I was next in line to answer the clients' needs. (Action) I tried to get the order in place for our client quickly, even putting in overtime and making urgent calls to other departments. (Result) Despite my best efforts, I missed the deadline. The client was upset with us, so I took the brunt of her disappointment and promised her that the company would work hard to make it right. I am currently collaborating on a fix with the production scheduling manner; however, I am confident that we will find a way to re-establish the clients' trust."
"(Situation) Last year, I introduced the idea of 'lunch and learns' to boost team morale. (Task) As the Sales Manager, I noticed that the teams' energy had dwindled, and I wanted to encourage them. (Action) I put together a series of learning sessions, and they were well-received for the first few weeks. (Result) However, attendance in these sessions flopped after about six months. The team morale was so low that it became apparent that everyone needed to use their lunch breaks to disconnect from work so they could be more impactful overall. Looking back, I would have scheduled these meetings once every month rather than once each week to avoid this type of burnout."
"(Situation) A few months ago, my agency needed to change to a more reliable email marketing service provider. (Task) As the Digital Marketing Director, I was the right person to take charge of the project. (Action) I oversaw the migration of our email marketing provider to a new, much better one with more robust features and analytics. (Result) However, in the process, we lost one of our primary email lists in the migration. Luckily, the list was recovered by our IT team after about three weeks. This situation was a substantial disappointment initially, but it taught me to always back everything up and move extra carefully, even on a tight deadline."
"(Situation) The store where I work is known for its beautiful seasonal window displays. (Task) As the newest merchandiser, I was eager to learn and asked to take charge of the spring window display. (Action) I completely underestimated how challenging the job was and, despite my research and the tools offered to me, it was a flop. (Result) My boss was nice about the situation, and we worked together to make the display better. I was happy that I tried, and I learned a lot about visual merchandising along the way. I continue to learn more every day!"
"(Situation) Every spring, our high school seniors have a 3-day camping trip. (Task) This year, I took charge of planning the event. (Action) Despite speaking with other teachers who had led this event in the past, I truly underestimated the scope of work and planning. Quickly falling behind, I recognized that I bit off more than I could chew and ended up recruiting another teacher to help me plan the trip. (Result) In the end, the trip was a success, and I'm glad that I decided to ask for help when I did."
Interviewers understand that leaders will have failed efforts now and then. What they want to know is that you can recognize those failures, learn from them, and enthusiastically move on.
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.
Think about a time when your leadership plan didn't go as desired. Be sure to tell the interviewer what you learned from the scenario, as well as what you would do the next time.
"(Situation) When I first joined my current company, the mandate was to focus on the professional growth of the team. (Task) I had big plans to overhaul the existing sales team and send them on a business development workshop weekend. (Action) Once I announced this plan, I lost of the employees ended up quitting because they didn't understand what this growth opportunity would have allowed them. Looking back, what I should have done was build a stronger rapport with my new team before sending them to a weekend workshop. They felt it was a punishment of some sort, which wasn't the case at all. (Result) I learned my lesson, hired some stellar sales staff, and forged ahead! My new team ended up gaining strong momentum and finished the year 124% above budget."
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
I took charge of the machine shop in a previous role. The aim was to improve the output. The method was to use OEE as the driver. The shop was not ready for using a tool such as OEE, and the outcome was disappointing.
Kevin's Feedback
It is great that provided a specific answer. It would be more-rounded if you explained why it was disappointing, and closed with what you learned from the experience. Please fill in the blank below.
In a previous role, I was charged with improving output in a machine shop. I believed using OEE as a driver would enhance output, but disappointingly, it did not. The shop was not ready to implement a tool such as OEE because __________________. At that titime,t didn’t occur to me to clarify why that innovation hadn’t been attempted before. Since then, I’ve sought clarifiers before going down a road like that. I’ve learned to ask more questions and survey the entire landscape before embarking on a course of action.
Anonymous Answer
I once volunteered to perform the tasks of a co-worker who was sick. There was a tight deadline approaching before month-end closing entries were due, and I believed I could handle the month-end closing entries in addition to my regular duties. However, I miscalculated how long it would take me to complete both. The morning month-end closing entries were due, I realized I would not make it in time and contacted my boss to explain the situation. I apologized, explained what happened, and asked for an extension, which he granted. I learned that I need to be honest with myself about the workload I can handle each day. I also learned that when accepting additional assignments, I need to include a time buffer to ensure that even if unforeseen events arise, I can meet deadlines.
Rachelle's Feedback
It seems you gained a couple of valuable takeaways from this scenario. You jumped in to help, which speaks a lot about your work ethic as well.
Anonymous Answer
As the coordinator of the Teacher of the Year program, there was an error with the awards. The spelling of a recipient's name was misspelled. I apologized and assured her that it would be corrected.
Rachelle's Feedback
Oops! It happens to the best of us, and what is most important is that you owned the error and made the necessary corrections.
Anonymous Answer
While working as a project manager at a bank, my team had to perform a category 1 change where the change had a potential impact on 100 critical applications. My team and I prepared the change with detailed impact analysis and were ready to present it in a change board meeting to seek approval from the CTO. I took charge of presenting the change; however, I could not answer a couple of critical questions, and the change was rejected. I revisited the change with my team and was better prepared for a follow-up review meeting where the change was approved.
Rachelle's Feedback
The original outcome would have been disappointing, indeed. It's wonderful that you revisited and were successful the second time around. This answer shows a lot of professionalism and determination.
Anonymous Answer
We had to withdraw our ACR accreditation renewal after a failed attempt. We didn't have a full-time radiologist to oversee it and sign off. Instead, we tried to renew using teleradiology physicians and ultimately didn't get renewed. We had to make the decision to wait until we hired a full-time Rad to try again. As the point person for the renewal and having successfully led the effort to obtain it initially, I was very disappointed when we had to withdraw our application.
Rachelle's Feedback
This situation would have been disappointing, indeed. With this example story, it would be helpful if you could be clearer on your particular involvement.
Anonymous Answer
When I first started at the Analyst position the other analyst also received a new position within the first month I was there, so I took over the Resource Management of the technicians. I would route the technicians according to the home polygon but didn't quite understand when that polygon was full of orders what to do next. I ultimately routed the technicians in the wrong area sending them all over town instead of one specific polygon. After getting calls from dispatch, I was able to re-route the technicians correctly.
Stephanie's Feedback
In this response, you do a good job of detailing a situation that did not go as planned. You could strengthen this response by adding a brief reflection about what you learned from this mistake and how it positively impacted your work going forward.
Anonymous Answer
When I interviewed for a job and did not get it. I learn from my failures and never give up on learning. Looking forward to opportunities.
Marcie's Feedback
Good answer! It is definitely disappointing to interview for a job and not get it. Can you explain more about how you prepared for the interview and how you reacted after you discovered you hadn't gotten the job? It's great that you point out that you learn from your failures and don't give up, since these are the qualities of a leader.
Anonymous Answer
"S: In my last role as a Tutor, I worked with a GCSE Mathematics student. I was using a presentation-based, standard teaching method. In his tests, he was not scoring well.
"T: I needed to find an aspect of my training that wasn't effective and improve his test scores.
"A: I used created examples through storytelling that he would work through during class.
"R: This allowed him to absorb information better, and his test scores improved drastically. This taught me the importance of keeping an open mind for alternate methods of working.
Cindy's Feedback
Good. You're showing a disappointing result and also what you did to try to improve it, both important components of a solid answer.
Unlock all 30 Leadership questions
Unlock responses that demonstrate executive presence and strategic thinking to interviewers.
Get Started