What do you know about our organization?

When you take the time to research a company, you gain insight into their values, culture and expectations. You can learn more about their products and successes, which will help you to know if they are the type of company you would want to work for. The more you know, the better you can sell yourself too! Come prepared to share what you've learned from your research. Your desire to learn about them shows you are invested and you're not just looking for any job. Companies want to see initiative and interest in what they have to offer.

What is your ideal work environment?

Describe the aspects on an office environment that you enjoy most and why. Are you motivated by the positive attitudes of others? Do you thrive when your boss empowers you by giving you autonomy over decisions? It's important to know what you need and what you want out of a work situation. Share some qualities and attributes of the people and environment that you thrive in. Sometimes it's hard to know if the past places you've been employed were not the best for you. Think about an environment where you feel you will learn and grow best and describe that to the interviewer.

Tell me about your management experience.

If you have experience with supervising a staff, writing performance reviews, coaching employees, hiring, interviewing, or motivating your team, be sure to mention these things. If you know you'll be responsible for managing or supervising others, talk about how you supervised staff members. What was the experience like for you? How did you handle behavioral issues or conflict? If you do not have management experience, now is the time to be honest about it, and talk about how excited you are to learn. Odds are, the interviewer will ensure you receive more training when you begin your new role because they know you will benefit from the extra knowledge!

How do you like to be managed?

You may be reporting to the Chief Financial Officer or the owner of the business, so it's important to know what management styles work best for you. Many people prefer someone who is more hands-off, giving you the freedom to make your own decisions. Others may appreciate a little hand-holding in the beginning, preferring a micro-manager. Think about your past managers. What did you like about them? What didn't you like? Make sure you know who you will be reporting to and consider inquiring about their management style. You can also ask what the team is like to get a feel for expectations and how everyone works together.

How do you ensure accuracy when making projections based on financial data and performance?

This is an opportunity to hone your attention to detail and your process. Like other financial roles, a Treasurer plays an important role in the growth of a company through their financial management and ability to make wise recommendations. Your precision and organization are a couple of skills that will help you in this process. Can you think of a few more? What is your style? What tools help you to do this?

If I were to ask your previous employer, what would they say about your job performance?

"I did my best to work well with everyone and I always put in 100%. I was consistent, dependable and driven."

A fair response to this question would be, "I did my best to work well with everyone and I always put in 100%. I was consistent, dependable and driven." If you did something phenomenal, share it. Just be aware that you only want to share the facts that can be confirmed by anyone on your team your future boss could be in communication with. Highlight your accomplishments and your work ethic. Show off your consistencies and your best traits that were apparent to your previous boss.

What type of accounting/financial experiences do you have?

If you have any trouble talking about your relevant experience, consider framing your response like this: First, discuss your training. If you took courses or received your training from an accredited or well-known entity, share it. Next, talk about your professional experiences. Think about the qualities and strengths required to do the job. How did you express those traits in your previous job? What were some of your greatest accomplishments?

What does a typical work day look like for you?

Start from the beginning. What's the first thing you do when you get to the office? Explain the tasks you focus on. How do you stay organized? How do you prioritize? You may want to think these questions through in case your interviewer follows up to delve deeper into your answer. The interviewer is looking to make sure you have a clear understanding of the responsibilities. They want to see how you put them into practice on a daily basis.

Why should we hire you?

Consider the challenges of your future role. How will you go above and beyond to tackle the most difficult tasks? Sharing your accomplishments, skills and characteristics will demonstrate your extensive knowledge and expertise. How have you successfully managed and limited risks? How have you proven yourself reliable and trustworthy to oversee budgets? What qualities do you offer that make you stand out? Review the job description and your resume side by side once more to help you highlight your relevant experience.

Tell me about yourself.

What do you want the interviewer to think about you when you leave? Making a good impression will definitely increase your chances of getting a call back. When preparing for this question, consider your past experiences and successes. Think of a few examples you could share. You can also draw upon your strengths, abilities and your current position. What projects are you working on that relate to this new job? What initiatives have you taken to make improvements or motivate your team? This is also a good time to mention any future goals that are relevant to the position.

Do you work well under pressure?

"Yes, I'm motivated by pressure. Sometimes it helps give me that extra push to complete projects. I stay motivated by setting deadlines on my calendar and milestones for goals I want to achieve, so that I can maintain my momentum each step of the way."

Tight deadlines and a manager looking over your shoulder are sure to raise your heart-rate! Stress management and having the ability to calmly and confidently deal with pressure are important skills. Give an example that demonstrates your ability to do this. Here's a sample example:"Yes, I'm motivated by pressure. Sometimes it helps give me that extra push to complete projects. I stay motivated by setting deadlines on my calendar and milestones for goals I want to achieve, so that I can maintain my momentum each step of the way."

Tell me about your education. How has it prepared you for a career as a Treasurer?

Provide the interviewer with an overview of your highest level of completed education. If you have attended any recent training seminars or conferences that are directly applicable, feel free to talk about those too! Next, share a few highlights from your education. You might talk about your education preparing you to multi-task and manage a busy workload. You can also consider sharing that your education has provided you with a good foundation, and you understand there will still be things to learn once you are on the job. Be sure to mention that you look forward to learning all that you can!

Why have you chosen this career?

What do you enjoy about managing financial information? Why did you choose to be a treasurer rather than a financial adviser? Considering there are so many different career paths within the realm of finance, what led you to where you are now?

Tell me about your work experience.

Although it may be tempting, try not to list your past jobs in chronological order with all of your responsibilities. Your resume maps out your work history, but it's up to you to highlight your greatest accomplishments. As you prepare for this question, keep the qualifications for this role in mind in order to focus on relevant experience. If you don't have a lot of relevant professional experience, take some time to review your work history. Think about those transferable skills that you got from a volunteer role or administrative job. You can share your last jobs, focusing on the three most recent, and then talk about what you learned, your skills and your achievements.

What are your future goals?

It's important to think about how this position fits into your long term goals even as you apply for jobs. Review your options, career-wise, before your interview. What could you do within the next five years within this role? Would you want to work towards management or moving into another realm of the financial world? If you have plans for trainings, educational courses or projects that could help you grow your career, share those. Think critically about what you really want for your future and share how this role will benefit you by helping you get to the next step.

Tell me about your education.

Since you are working in a data, financial and administrative function, focus on the aspects of your education that will support you in this role. Starting with your college experience, explain how you became interested in doing this type of work. What topics did you enjoy most in school? How did your training prepare you for this role? You can share an example of some of the work you learned to do during training and talk about your technical skills. Share any continuing education or certifications you have received.

Give an example of a time when you made a mistake. How did you handle it?

No one wants to admit weakness in an interview. And you know what? You don't have to! You can explain a situation where you did something wrong or incorrectly. Try to stay detached from it by explaining in a calm manner, "I accidentally pushed "send" on an email before proofing it." Now, what did you do once you realized you did something wrong? "I knew there were typos and I may have phrased something in a way that could be confusing. I called my manager and explained to make sure they didn't take the message the wrong way." Show you took initiative in handling it. If the consequences were greater than frustrating your boss or having to apologize, show you handled it by being humble and calm. Next talk about what you learned from it and the actions you will take to make sure it never happens again.

What three words would you use to describe yourself?

Use your insight and self-awareness to prepare for this question. When describing yourself, consider some of your strengths. If you are organized, disciplined and friendly, how do these traits contribute to your ability to make decisions and handle financial data? Although the questions asks about how these words describe you, if you take take it to the next level, you will help the interviewer to see how well you would fit into the role. You want to help them realize how you are the best candidate for the job. Paint a picture of yourself that shows you fit perfectly into their work environment.

What decisions are easiest for you to make? What are the most difficult?

You will need to be able to make decisions regarding the financial future of the company. The interviewer is looking for insight into your decision making process. Why are certain decisions more difficult than others? Sometimes the most difficult decisions are the ones you need to make quickly without much time or thought. Do you weigh the pros and cons? If you have been faced with challenging decisions at work, how did you make those decisions? What are the factors you consider?

How do you ensure that confidential information is secure and private?

As you know, you'll be handling confidential information all the time! It's your job. Give an example that proves you are reliable and trustworthy. Your knowledge of how to manage and navigate the software system, contracts and financial documents will instill confidence in your future employer. They want to hear about concrete ways you have handled this type of information so that they know they can trust you with theirs.

Tell me about a time when you fell behind your work. How did it happen and how did you catch up?

"I got behind on a project due when I got the flu, because I had to miss a couple days of work. I asked a coworker to handle a couple of tasks while I was sick so that when I came back to work I didn't miss any deadlines. I worked late for a few days in order to catch up."

Be careful not to play the blame game. If you fell behind due to an unexpected circumstance or perhaps your boss piled on a few extra projects, that's okay. As you know, these things happen. Focus on what you did to make up time. Were you willing to work longer hours? Did you recruit extra help?

What is the most important rule of a treasurer?

What is a guideline you follow that has helped you stay accurate and organized? When you start a new job, what is the first priority? Learning systems and understanding the current financial status of the company will set you up to be knowledgeable and prepared. Once you're in the position, staying up to date on the financials and being a resource in order to provide sound information to back up decisions are top priority. If you know of a rule that will help you be successful, share it!

Give me an example that demonstrates your attention to detail.

"When preparing forecasting reports, I am very methodical. I have a process I follow to make sure I am taking into account all the information in order to make accurate and wise recommendations."

Attention to detail is vital to your role as a treasurer. You will be investing funds, advising management on policies and financial decisions as well as maintaining systems of policies and behaviors. Show off your precision and accuracy in an example like this: "When preparing forecasting reports, I am very methodical. I have a process I follow to make sure I am taking into account all the information in order to make accurate and wise recommendations."

How would you rate your leadership skills?

You are a strong leader with a desire to make a positive impact on others. You have are an influencer in many aspects of your life, but how do you talk about? Working as a treasurer requires you to maintain relationships with creditors, bankers and other financial staff members. In order to influence decisions and earn trust, you will need to set an example. Are you consistent? Do you show up on time? How do you build those important relationships? Give an example of a recent time you successfully led a team or took initiative to solve a problem.

What interests you about finance?

"I've always loved math and statistics. It just always made sense to me. I enjoy problem solving and helping companies grow to their potential."

What excites you about working in the financial industry? Do you enjoy problem solving and using research and insight to influence financial decisions? Share some of the aspects of the industry that you particularly enjoy. Explain how it allows you to demonstrate your skills and strengths. "I've always loved math and statistics. It just always made sense to me. I enjoy problem solving and helping companies grow to their potential."

Treasurer Interview Questions

Go Back

1. What do you know about our organization?
2. What is your ideal work environment?
3. Tell me about your management experience.
4. How do you like to be managed?
5. How do you ensure accuracy when making projections based on financial data and performance?
6. If I were to ask your previous employer, what would they say about your job performance?
7. What type of accounting/financial experiences do you have?
8. What does a typical work day look like for you?
9. Why should we hire you?
10. Tell me about yourself.
11. Do you work well under pressure?
12. Tell me about your education. How has it prepared you for a career as a Treasurer?
13. Why have you chosen this career?
14. Tell me about your work experience.
15. What are your future goals?
16. Tell me about your education.
17. Give an example of a time when you made a mistake. How did you handle it?
18. What three words would you use to describe yourself?
19. What decisions are easiest for you to make? What are the most difficult?
20. How do you ensure that confidential information is secure and private?
21. Tell me about a time when you fell behind your work. How did it happen and how did you catch up?
22. What is the most important rule of a treasurer?
23. Give me an example that demonstrates your attention to detail.
24. How would you rate your leadership skills?
25. What interests you about finance?

Treasurer Interview Questions

1. What do you know about our organization?

2. What is your ideal work environment?

3. Tell me about your management experience.

4. How do you like to be managed?

5. How do you ensure accuracy when making projections based on financial data and performance?

6. If I were to ask your previous employer, what would they say about your job performance?

7. What type of accounting/financial experiences do you have?

8. What does a typical work day look like for you?

9. Why should we hire you?

10. Tell me about yourself.

11. Do you work well under pressure?

12. Tell me about your education. How has it prepared you for a career as a Treasurer?

13. Why have you chosen this career?

14. Tell me about your work experience.

15. What are your future goals?

16. Tell me about your education.

17. Give an example of a time when you made a mistake. How did you handle it?

18. What three words would you use to describe yourself?

19. What decisions are easiest for you to make? What are the most difficult?

20. How do you ensure that confidential information is secure and private?

21. Tell me about a time when you fell behind your work. How did it happen and how did you catch up?

22. What is the most important rule of a treasurer?

23. Give me an example that demonstrates your attention to detail.

24. How would you rate your leadership skills?

25. What interests you about finance?