How to Answer: Talk about a time you helped motivate a struggling employee and improved their performance.
Advice and answer examples written specifically for an Entry-Level Manager job interview.
31. Talk about a time you helped motivate a struggling employee and improved their performance.
Why the Interviewer Asks This Question
The interviewer is curious how you motivate your crew while ensuring the success of the team as a whole. When answering this question, it is important to maintain a positive tone while communicating that you see the value in all of your co-workers. Several new managers might grow frustrated by a staff member who they claim isn't contributing their equal share. However, it is up to the manager to identify the strengths of every employee, and ensure they have the proper training and the tools to perform at their best.
Written by Kevin Downey on February 27th, 2024
Experienced Example
"While I haven't yet had experience motivating a struggling employee in a managerial role, I have had experience motivating my co-workers and my team. My motto is to play on everyone's strengths and never exploit their weaknesses. Every weakness is a growth opportunity, and the way to get them to seize that growth opportunity is by playing on their strengths, assigning tasks they are good at, and giving them a sense of accomplishment and confidence. Then offer training to get them to develop. You have to ensure they don't take on more work than they can handle, which just sets them up for failure. It's a marathon, not a race. Then, if you have another employee whose growth opportunity is training others or assisting their fellow teammates, pair them up with that employee who you're developing. The more perspectives they have to help them overachieve, the better."
Written by Kevin Downey on February 27th, 2024