What is the most difficult situation you have had to face and how did you tackle it?

How to Answer
Answer Example

The interviewer is interested in knowing how do you manage difficult situations, do you keep your head on your shoulders when difficulties arise or do you lose patience.

All the companies want to hire a person who is a problem solver and knows his way out of situations. Anyone who is willing to go that extra mile might be the choice of the hiring manager. An purchasing manager's job is to always come up with better solutions to the company's supply chain requirements and if you are someone who loves challenges then this just might be the job for you.

This can be answered with a difficult project encountered while in school or work. Difficult situations can be related to team dynamics, unrealistic expectations, incomplete directions, etc.

Describe the project, the difficulty and how/why it was difficult. Then describe how you dealt with it. Example might be taking a project team member aside and walking through the project elements, how they need to work on specific areas. If it was with a difficult teacher/boss, then describe how you communicated the issue(s) you were encountering, what you proposed to solve the issues, and ultimately the resolution.

"One such situation I can remember of is from a few years back when one of our suppliers decided to stop providing us with supplies as he was getting better price from one of our competitors. We tried to talk to him but he was adamant so we had to find our new supplier in a week's time. This was a difficult task as this was a big supplier but we decided to use all our contacts and made sure that we get even better prices and quality by the suppliers we enrolled next. We did have to go for 3 small suppliers to fulfil the requirement but we were able to complete our orders in time."

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How to Answer: What is the most difficult situation you have had to face and how did you tackle it?

Advice and answer examples written specifically for a Purchasing Manager job interview.

4. What is the most difficult situation you have had to face and how did you tackle it?

How to Answer

The interviewer is interested in knowing how do you manage difficult situations, do you keep your head on your shoulders when difficulties arise or do you lose patience.

All the companies want to hire a person who is a problem solver and knows his way out of situations. Anyone who is willing to go that extra mile might be the choice of the hiring manager. An purchasing manager's job is to always come up with better solutions to the company's supply chain requirements and if you are someone who loves challenges then this just might be the job for you.

This can be answered with a difficult project encountered while in school or work. Difficult situations can be related to team dynamics, unrealistic expectations, incomplete directions, etc.

Describe the project, the difficulty and how/why it was difficult. Then describe how you dealt with it. Example might be taking a project team member aside and walking through the project elements, how they need to work on specific areas. If it was with a difficult teacher/boss, then describe how you communicated the issue(s) you were encountering, what you proposed to solve the issues, and ultimately the resolution.

Written by Rachelle Enns

Answer Example

"One such situation I can remember of is from a few years back when one of our suppliers decided to stop providing us with supplies as he was getting better price from one of our competitors. We tried to talk to him but he was adamant so we had to find our new supplier in a week's time. This was a difficult task as this was a big supplier but we decided to use all our contacts and made sure that we get even better prices and quality by the suppliers we enrolled next. We did have to go for 3 small suppliers to fulfil the requirement but we were able to complete our orders in time."

Written by Rachelle Enns

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