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Original poster

is this possible interview answer too personal?

89 replies

ireallydontcare · 20/08/2017 22:28

I'm looking at possible competency questions and where I could be asked about meeting a challenging deadline I was going to say something like (I've shortened it for the purposes of this thread)

The company put me on a course. it was challenging as I had 6 months to complete the course but it was not accessible for me as a disabled person. I had to find a way to complete my course in alternative ways. I asked other participants for a copy of their notes, I asked the tutor for extra 1 to 1 meetings, I asked my manager for extra study days, I asked the tutor for adjustments and I tried to set aside some time in my diary to work on the course. I went from thinking I would not be able to do the course to getting the highest marks.

What do you think? too personal? crappy example? change to something else? Any suggestions for maybe wording it better?

I don't want to sound critical of the company either.

OP posts:
Original poster
ireallydontcare · 21/08/2017 22:56

thank you everyone for your comments, it has been helpful.

I am struggling to find another deadline example though. there is a time when we commissioned a research company to undertake research for us within a 3 month timescale and I was their main contact, giving them a steer etc, but it wasn't really MY deadline...so how would I use that/word that?

The competency is problem solving and the role is not customer service. I've been advised by colleagues who have had interviews that they sometimes ask about challenging deadlines or similar

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TheClacksAreDown · 21/08/2017 23:30

I think you're thinking too big. hard to help too much without understanding what sort of job this is you're going for or what you do now but you must have had occasions where you had to get something quickly to a customer, needed to get a report pulled together quickly, needed to source materials swiftly for an urgent repair, needed a patient pushed through systems quickly or something like that? It doesn't need to be a giant project.

Ledbury · 21/08/2017 23:35

I'd steer clear from the course example, as it does unfortunately make you look like a bit of a pain, haranguing other people. Just what it might look like, not what it was. A previous poster re-worded it quite well. Put a positive spin on things.

Good luck with the interview :)

daisychain01 · 22/08/2017 06:23

Think about it in terms of "examples of where I've shown a sense of urgency"

Anything you've delivered quicker than average. You just need to demonstrate enough to convince them you have the right attitude and will add value.

As pp have said, no need for any Herculean effort here, keep it simple!

Sophieelmer · 22/08/2017 06:29

Yogiyoni has reworded your answer really well. You need to ensure your answer so are about what you did, not what you asked others to do!

insancerre · 22/08/2017 06:37

Meeting deadlines is a daily part of work though, isn't it?
I would want to hear that you can manage your work load, reflect on past experiences, maybe delegated other less pressing stuff to another colleague and prioritised correctly and your reasons for prioritising, e.g. New contract, penalties for not completing on time etc, working overtime,
I think this is about your problem solving skills, how creative are you at finding solutions?
I wouldn't use your disability to answer this question.

Loopytiles · 22/08/2017 07:43

Yes, you're thinking too big/long term. Deadlines could be on the day, a week, a few weeks. Work examples best.

daisychain01 · 22/08/2017 10:12

Personally I wouldn't bring disability into it. Why would you need to?

You're as good as everyone else, so don't point out things you don't need to, it could just give them as excuse to differentiate you and not in a useful way.

insancerre · 22/08/2017 10:59

I'll give you an example of what I would say
In my job I send transition reports to school for each child in the preschool
Previous experience has taught me that I need to start this in may, to have all the information together so that I can have enough time to get them written, filled in by parents and sent to school by the end of term
I've redesigned them because they were too long, and spoke to the reception teachers about what information the need, so im not doing unnecessary work
The hardest part is getting them back from parents so now we have consultation evenings in the nursery so parents sign them there and then, if they go home, I don't get them back until after lots of nagging and often this means I miss the end of term deadline
I've devised a timetable so each key person has time to do their part of the report and then I check for accuracy, after a previous year where parents complained as the reports by one member of staff were not accurate

It really doesnt have to be a big deadline, think smaller

Original poster
ireallydontcare · 22/08/2017 18:25

thank you all again. I've been trying to think of what I do to meet deadlines....

Without giving too much away about my current job, let's just say that I write a lot of reports for MPs, often with very short notice. I'm not sure if I could use this as an example as its something I do all the time and there isn't any particular one that jumps out at me. As its a promotion, I can't 'big up' this role without the interviewers knowing, plus its part of my job description, it's not a sudden/rare deadline thing.

I also organise a lot of CPD for colleagues...not sure how I could use this example.

I have a work from home day tomorrow so I'm going to take this time to think about examples, write out some scenarios, go through all my past work.

I am such a worrier though. I worry my scenarios are not good enough, are not suitable for a management level role. Apparently the interviewer does not like 'operational' answers whatever that means

OP posts:
GlitterGlue · 23/08/2017 08:28

Well then, you deal with challenging deadlines on a daily basis. You can say that then pick one example. What do YOU do to ensure a report gets done? It doesn't need to be one giant and super long deadline.

GlitterGlue · 23/08/2017 08:30

Have you put any systems in place to assist with deadlines?

Bluntness100 · 23/08/2017 08:38

If they ask about deadlines why don't you say that's what your current job is all about. Quick turn arounds and challenging deadlines and it's literally second nature to you now to be able to prioritise and meet them.

SwedishEdith · 23/08/2017 10:24

Agree, it's easy to get fixated on the example. It doesn't need to be stellar, just something that shows you do this so they don't have to worry that you can't. It's better if you can add a bit of a challenge as well. Either you did something to overcome it ("X didn't send me Y data by Z so I researched and found the correct data via A and met my deadline." type of thing) or you have reflected and will do something different next time.

It's not easy though, makes you minimise everything you do if you're modest. But you're competing against people who may not be that modest. Grin. So, sell yourself and good luck.

SwedishEdith · 23/08/2017 10:27

Obviously, don't name people though., Rephrase to anonymise and not blame etc.

SwedishEdith · 23/08/2017 10:29

or you have reflected and will do something different next time and have put a system in place to improve. That kind of thing goes down well.

highinthesky · 23/08/2017 10:29

Without giving too much away about my current job, let's just say that I write a lot of reports for MPs, often with very short notice. I'm not sure if I could use this as an example as its something I do all the time and there isn't any particular one that jumps out at me.

Just because its normal for you, it doesn't mean that anyone can do it. It shows the ability to think fast, assess the situation, research a topic quickly, write concisely, understand consequences of inappropriate language, political astuteness etc. You HAVE to use this example somewhere in your interview.

peppykoala · 23/08/2017 10:38

I'd definitely be more impressed by someone who meets challenging deadlines so often that they find it hard to pick one incidence in particular than someone who doesn't! Talk about how it's part of what you do every day, how you approach meeting the deadlines and overcome challenges within that and how you've never missed one!

Queenioqueenio · 23/08/2017 18:59

This competency needs to show how you prioritised, managed your own deadlines, set milestones, measured your own performance.
I would really advise against using your first example as it show you asked others for extra, rather than what you did for yourself.
Could you develop the report writing example? Have you ever had to manage several at once? Was there anything particularly high profile?
Good luck Op this isn't easy Flowers

impostersyndrome · 24/08/2017 06:16

Taking your MP scenario: Do you have an example where the latest research on a topic wasn't readily available, so to meet a deadline you sought help from a specialist librarian at a professional body?

Loopytiles · 24/08/2017 21:18

Work for an MP with deadlines / competing priorities would be a much better example.

Original poster
ireallydontcare · 24/08/2017 22:17

okay I think I can do an MP example, I think I have a possible scenario but its how to word it. He wanted to know what my company was doing about xyz issue so I had to gather information from all departments then meet with him to present this and answer any questions he had, alongside a more senior manager. It wasn't actually an "omg this is a huge request, panic panic" scenario though...our meeting was actually quite relaxed and fairly informal, although it was the first time I had a request to meet rather than go through his office.

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Original poster
ireallydontcare · 24/08/2017 22:19

I've just realised that I hadn't mentioned it's an internal promotion I'm going for, so same company, sorry should have made that clear. So I can't BS my answers.

It's a managerial level position.

There were 40 applications for the job, internal and external applicants. I am not holding out much hope of getting it as my scenarios seem so crap.

OP posts:
Queenioqueenio · 24/08/2017 22:43

That's why you need to practice and beef them up a bit. Concentrate on what YOU did to make it work.
Can you get someone to 'test' you on it before the interview?

whothefuckhas5children · 24/08/2017 22:45

For competency questions you should follow the STAR format
Situation - set the scene
Task - what you needed to do
Action - what you did
Result - the result

Situation
In this case what was the course and how is it important to the strategy of your company. This will set the scene. Only 2-3 sentences. This will demonstrate that you can see the bigger picture. Important for middle management.

Task
In order to achieve the deadline required i.e. 6 months I needed to use my ingenuity//approach the task differently/use my time/skills/even stakeholder management skills to get there.

Action
I did that using my soft skills etc etc

Result
Not only did I reach the deadline but I achieved the highest result. Importantly for the company we now have this skill set which I have been able to train/ expose other team members to/ when I got back I was able to use this skill to ....