16 Behavioral Interview
Questions & Answers for Managers

SUGGESTED ANSWER:

“I can remember being in a meeting at work where we were supposed to be putting forward our ideas for the launch of a new product that was due out shortly. Unfortunately, our senior manager who was also the chair of the meeting, was stuck in traffic and she was going to be at least 40 minutes late. Everyone in the meeting room saw this as an opportunity to relax and make idle chat about what they got up to at the weekend. However, I decided to lead by example and suggested we all start working on putting our product launch ideas together, so that when our manager eventually arrived, we could save time and provide her with one collective presentation instead of her having to sit through many different ones. We then spent the next 40 minutes collating all of the best launch ideas, and once our manager arrived, I presented her with a short 20-minute presentation, which she appeared to be very impressed with. I feel I am someone who would always lead by example and can be trusted to act professionally within this role if I am successful.”

SUGGESTED ANSWER

“I believe as a manager, it would be my responsibility if someone was not pulling their weight and, on that basis, I would rectify the issue immediately before identifying the root cause of the problem so it didn’t happen again. First and foremost, I would sit down with them as soon as possible to make them aware their underperformance had been noted, and that it wasn’t acceptable. I would then ask them to explain the reasons for their underperformance. It would be important for me to establish the cause as there could be a number of reasons for them not performing well at work. It may be they are not feeling motivated, or perhaps they were having problems in their personal life. Either way, once I had established the cause of the issue, I would then agree with them a resolution to get them back up to speed as quickly as possible. I would make sure I provided them with the correct level of support needed, and also further training to assist them during the process. I would also agree on a deadline whereby they had to get back up to speed by. Finally, as I said at the start, I would identify the reasons for the underperformance so I could put the necessary steps in place to ensure it doesn’t happen again.”