When evaluating candidates, interviewers often use ‘situational’ or ‘behavioral’ interview questions. These begin with prompts such as, “Can you tell me about a time when…” or “What would you do if…?” Preparing for these questions is an essential part of interview preparation.
How you respond to these questions provides the interviewer with evidence of your character, problem-solving skills, and even a live demonstration of your communication when under pressure. Additionally, past behavior is a generally reliable indicator of future behavior. Thus, situational interview questions enable the interviewer to gauge the likelihood of observing a favorable reaction or behavior — or perhaps the opposite.
Read: Ace Your Technology Interview
1. Reflect
Always begin by researching the company and its organizational culture. Review the job description and then reflect on your resume and experiences.
Take a written inventory of your triumphs, such as when you solved a big problem, aligned stakeholders on a project, influenced someone to think differently, worked with a difficult personality, or met a tight deadline.
Having trouble recalling your triumphs? Reviewing common situational questions and the job description may help you retrieve your memories.
Intentional reflection will not only build your confidence as you reflect on your successes but will refresh your memory, making you less likely to draw a blank on unexpected questions. While having prepared answers is essential, being flexible in your responses and recalling information quickly is just as important.
Using your written inventory of triumphs, identify key stories and accomplishments you may want to share.
2. Anticipate and Prepare
Referring to your research on the company and job description, anticipate what questions you may be asked. Prepare your answers as concise “stories” using this three-part approach:
Describe the (1) situation, (2) your response, (3) and the outcome.
Writing your prepared answers down will speed up your recall and will also make practicing much easier. Keep the accounts relevant to the role you are interviewing for and be sure to demonstrate how you leveraged your personal attributes, previous experience, and technical skills to devise effective solutions. When possible, highlight quantifiable results and the lessons you took away from these experiences.
You may also use the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, and Result) and CARL (Context, Action, Result, Learning) methods to prepare for these questions. While STAR and CARL provide effective and growth-oriented formats, some may find it easier to remain concise and formulate answers on the spot using the simplified three-part approach.
3. Practice Telling Your Story
Practice your responses and your stories out loud. Many choose to practice in front of a mirror or with a trusted friend. Odds are, if you’re nervous in front of a friend you will be significantly more nervous in front of the interviewer. Remember to ask your friend for feedback.
When practicing your three-part answers, remember you are a storyteller. The accounts should be succinct and impactful – highlighting evidence that you handle your responsibilities with accountability and would contribute to the company’s success.
Aim your responses to fit within a 2-minute timeframe. For more complex accounts, you can prompt the interviewer for questions. This strategy will prevent you from delivering extended monologues or skipping over key details.
Be sure to maintain a professional demeanor – not complaining, bragging, or exaggerating. Instead, take credit and give credit gracefully. Maintaining a positive and solutions-focused attitude will likely win over your audience.
4. Interview
By the time your interview day has arrived, you should be able to recall your prepared answers easily. Equally important, you should have other stories lined up in memory from the reflection step.
You can expect at least one question that will throw you off. When this happens, do not panic. Smile, take a deep breath, and say, “Let me think about that one.” Then, pause briefly to formulate your answer using the three-part approach and reply.
Taking a full breath before you say “Let me think about that one.” is essential to remaining calm and focused. Not breathing causes the body to experience sensations of panic, which will most likely prevent you from thinking clearly. A thoughtful pause is respectable and allows you a moment to retrieve information from memory and formulate your response.
> Know who you are. Know what you can contribute to the target company. Communicate this value to the interviewer.
Sample Behavioral Interview Questions
- Tell me about a project where you had to work under pressure. How did you manage stress and maintain productivity?
- Can you share an example of when you had to resolve a professional conflict? What steps did you take to reach a resolution?
- Tell me about a project where you had to collaborate with a remote team or work on a distributed system. How did you ensure effective communication and coordination?
- Can you discuss a significant IT project you led, including challenges faced and how you overcame them?
- Can you provide an example of a challenging technical problem you solved creatively? What was your approach, and how did you implement the solution?
- Describe a situation where you had to troubleshoot and resolve a network or system emergency. What steps did you take to identify and fix the issue?
- Can you give an example of a time when you had to adapt to a significant change in project requirements or technology? How did you handle it?
- Describe a situation where you had to quickly learn a new programming language or technology to complete a project. How did you approach the learning process, and what were the outcomes?
- Tell me about a time when you identified an opportunity for process improvement or efficiency gains in your work. How did you implement the changes?
- Can you discuss your experience in implementing new technologies or systems to drive innovation within the organization?
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