DWP Work Coach Mock Interview
Practice 30 DWP Work Coach interview questions covering welfare support, claimant engagement, and public service values.
Question 16 of 30
Tell me about a time where you adapted your communication style to better communicate with a customer.
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Kevin Downey has an extensive background in business management, recruiting, branding and marketing. He's volunteered his career coaching services at job fairs, lecturing on interview techniques and crafting winning resumes and cover letters.
"I recently dealt with a customer who spoke very little English. The rest of our staff had no idea how to help this person or what their issue was. So I stepped in, and after a moment was able to determine what country they were from, and then able to determine a common language that we both spoke poorly. So, at this point, both speaking a language which was not our native tongue, in the most rudimentary terms we were able to communicate, and I was able to help them with their inquiry."
Kevin Downey has an extensive background in business management, recruiting, branding and marketing. He's volunteered his career coaching services at job fairs, lecturing on interview techniques and crafting winning resumes and cover letters.
"I recently had an encounter with an irate customer. They started off by cutting me off as I greeted them and launched into something of a tirade. Very quickly, I asked them to start over, more calmly so that I could more effectively understand exactly what it was they were trying to communicate. They were jumping all over the place, and it took a while to get them to fill in all the pieces of their complaint. Eventually, I mirrored everything back to them, and asked them if there was anything they left out. They then said I got it right and asked me what I was going to do about it. At that point I explained to them they had us confused with another company with a similar name, and that we hosted an entirely different range of products and services, but I told them if they'd like, I could quickly find out the proper channels for them to lodge their complaint, and help them get their issues with this other company resolved. They apologized all over the place and thanked me for the help."
Kevin Downey has an extensive background in business management, recruiting, branding and marketing. He's volunteered his career coaching services at job fairs, lecturing on interview techniques and crafting winning resumes and cover letters.
A skilled communicator adapts their communication style to those who are less skilled communicators than themselves. A DWP work coach will often need to employ their high-level communication skills on the job, especially when communicating with those customers who face significant and emotionally challenging circumstances. Share a story that demonstrates your ability to remain objective, maintaining a situational perspective, while exhibiting empathy. Choose a story, or work experience, which your interviewer will find relatable to this position, and makes you seem well prepared for the role and what lies ahead.
Kevin Downey has an extensive background in business management, recruiting, branding and marketing. He's volunteered his career coaching services at job fairs, lecturing on interview techniques and crafting winning resumes and cover letters.
Here are some of the ways DWP defines the traits of an effective communicator; "Communicating and Influencing - Communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing. Interact with others in an enthusiastic way. Express ideas clearly and with respect to others. Listen to and value different ideas, views and ways of working. Respond constructively and objectively to comments and questions. Handle challenging conversations with confidence and sensitivity."
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Anonymous Answer
A customer was complaining and shouting at me as he was overcharged. I requested him in a calm manner to lower his voice so I could help. He was struggling to speak English. I spoke in Urdu to him and asked him to explain what happened. I listened to his problem. I took his reg and checked it was the system, so I gave him the email of the refund team. Also, I gave my name and role. The refund was done. He was happy.
Jaymie's Feedback
Your response demonstrates your ability to keep your cool in a tense situation, de-escalate, and use effective listening skills to get to the root cause of a problem. Great example!
Anonymous Answer
When I first lived in Dubai, a guy turned up to do a job in the villa, I hadn't a clue, what he had come to do and his English was poor. I talked slowly to the guy and went from room to room pointing at each thing on the snag list. We even got a pen and paper out and did some terrible drawing, between hand gestures, pointing, and drawing we managed to communicate enough to realize what was needing to be done.
Jaymie's Feedback
This is a good example of how you were able to think critically and effectively communicate through various nonverbal methods. Great job!
Anonymous Answer
A lot of our customer in the head office was from the Far East so not only was there a language barrier the was also a time difference. I would arrive to work early to speak to my Far East client and I had to be sympathetic that it was the end of their day. I would send notes prior to the call so they were able to translate words they were not familiar with. When on the phone call I just speak a little slower than normal and also be very patient.
Jaymie's Feedback
These are great examples of techniques you utilize when working with customers who require communication modification. Great job!
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