Briefly walk me through your relevant experience as a training specialist.
The interviewer is trying to better understand your experiences as a training specialist and how these experiences are relevant to their opportunity. Yes, the hiring manager likely has your resume; however, they ask this question because they want you to provide details beyond this one or two-page document.
Begin by sharing your educational background and a couple of key highlights that kicked off your training specialist career. Then, starting from your least recent to most recent positions, offer a brief overview of your work history. Include details such as the company's name, your job title, or how you secured the job. Discuss your primary accountabilities and mention a stand-out accomplishment for each position. You may also want to briefly touch on your reason for leaving to help you verbally segue into the next position in your work history.
Include as many relevant details as possible to help the interviewer picture you performing successfully in their role. For instance, you could discuss how many people you trained and the tools and resources you used to deliver engaging training sessions. Remember to mention the most enjoyable factors of each previous position. This approach will ensure that your passion as a training specialist shines through.
Last, be sure to bring your answer to the present time by spotlighting why you believe this specific training specialist opportunity is a great next step in your career.
"I graduated from University XYZ with a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration and a minor in Communication. I applied myself very well during this time and earned a spot on the Dean's List for 3 out of 4 years. During my first year, I developed a significant interest in adult education, training, and development. I began looking for opportunities to grow my teaching skills, so I became a volunteer student tutor. Before completing my degree, I interned as a trainer's assistant at Company X for three months. During this internship, I learned a lot about curriculum development. There, I was lucky enough to attend six employee training sessions where I observed the training specialist's hands-on training style and its impact on the group's performance. I was hooked! After my internship was complete, Company X offered me a full-time position as a training assistant. In this role, I learned a great deal from observing the company's training specialist, helping me to improve the communication skills required to succeed as a trainer. Four years into my role with Company X, I was approached by a headhunter and offered a training manager position with Company Z. Although it was sad to leave, my leadership team was gracious about the move and encouraged me to grow into this larger role. I have been at Company Z for 5 years now. For the first 3 years, I held the position of training manager, where I focused on delivering communication-based skills sessions to groups of 5-8 employees. Two years ago, I was promoted to training specialist. Now in this role, I travel to Company Z's 15 locations and lead training sessions for department leaders. In this role, I really enjoy the challenge of training leaders and helping them learn to communicate in ways that generate strong results from their teams. While I am very pleased with my career progression at Company Z, I'm interested in working for a company like yours in the media industry where I can further utilize my communications focus."
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