Behavioral Interview Questions

Usually, a hiring manager will craft some behavioral interview questions to see whether the candidate regularly used those skills (behaviors) that are most relevant to the opening position. Depending on the desired skills, a candidate may be asked questions similar to the following ones:

Behavioral Interview questions to test analysis skills:

Give me a specific example of a time when you used good judgment and logic in solving a problem.
Give me an example of a time when you used your fact-finding skills to solve a problem.
Describe a time when you anticipated potential problems and developed preventive measures.
What steps do you usually follow to study a problem before making a decision?

Behavioral Interview questions to test leadership skills:

Give an example of your ability to build motivation in your co-workers, classmates or a volunteer committee
What is the toughest group that you've had to get cooperation from? Describe how you handled it. What was the outcome?

Behavioral Interview questions to test communication skills:

Describe the most significant written document, report or presentation that you had to complete.
Tell me about a time when you had to use your presentation skills to influence someone's opinion.

Technical or professional skills:

As a customer service representative, tell me about a time when you have to deal with angry customers.
As an accountant, give me an example of a time when you came across questionable accounting practices. How did you handle the situation?

Teamwork:

Describe a situation where your colleagues disagreed with your ideas. What did you do?
Tell me about a time when a colleague was not doing his share of work. What did you do?
Describe a situation in which you found your supervisor's idea was not correct, what action did you take?

Planning and Organization:

Give an example of what you've done when your project plan was interrupted by unforeseen circumstances.
Describe a time when you had many projects due at the same time. What steps did you take to get them all done?

Motivation:

Give examples of your experiences in a job that were satisfying. Give examples of your experiences that were dissatisfying.
Describe a situation when you were able to have a positive influence on the actions of others.

More readings and help on job interviews:

Go Back To Behavioral Interview Page
Behavioral Interview Questions