job interview assignment sample

DEI in 2024 is a more polarized topic than in 2020 – Check out our recent survey and get the insights Download the report

• HR Toolkit |
• HR Templates |
• Recruiting email templates |

Sending an interview assignment: example email

This is an email template you can use when you want to send an assignment to your candidates as part of your hiring process. For some positions, especially technical roles, adding a written assignment or test will help you evaluate your candidates’ skills through a real work project and screen people who approach problems the best way.

Email subject line: Assignment for the [ Job_title ] position

Hi [ Candidate_Name ] / Dear [ Candidate_Name ],

Please find attached an assignment as part of our interview process. I’m also attaching some instructions to help you complete the assignment.

Keep in mind that there are no ‘right answers.’ This assignment is designed is to gauge your skills and give us an idea of how you approach tasks relevant to the [ Job_Title ] role. It would be great if you could send this over to us [ within X time frame or by Y date ].

Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions.

Best of luck with the assignment,

[ Your name ] [ Signature ]

[When you receive the assignment]

Thank you for completing the assignment. Our team will review it and get back to you with feedback as soon as possible.

I hope you enjoy your day,

• Read about smart interview techniques to hire the right people.
• Read about common mistakes to avoid when interviewing top candidates .

Let's grow together

Explore our full platform with a 15-day free trial. Post jobs, get candidates and onboard employees all in one place.

Share on Mastodon

How to Answer Common Interview Questions

Discover the top interview questions with sample answers and customizable answer templates to help you nail your job interview.

Customers Interviewed by:

Nailing the job interview for your dream opportunity demands you prepare common interview questions in advance. This will help you overcome pre-interview jitters . When you have an outline of what you want to say, you can confidently mention every detail to answer the question clearly.

Ask yourself why the interviewer is asking their questions so you can tailor your response and highlight the most impressive skills and accomplishments.

In this guide, we’ll review some of the most common interview questions. For each question, you’ll see why the interviewer is asking and how you should answer. You’ll also find templates and examples so you can copy the outline and see the answer in context.

How to answer interview questions

When scripting your responses, answer questions using the STAR method— situation, task, action, and result . It helps tell a story, showing off your skills , experiences , and accomplishments in a compelling formula. Using this method helps ensure you’re answering the question without the fluff.

Below is an example of the STAR method in action.

Situation : Describe the context within which you performed a task or faced a challenge at work. This is where you set the scene and give the necessary details of your example. Be specific about the situation but keep it brief.

Task : Explain the actual task or challenge that was involved. What were you responsible for in that situation?

Action : Describe the specific actions you took to address the task. Focus on your individual contributions and explain what you did, why you did it, and how you did it.

Result : Share the outcomes or results of your actions. Quantify the impact if possible and explain what you learned or how the organization benefited from your actions.

Question: Can you tell me about a time when you had to manage a challenging project with tight deadlines?

Situation: In my previous role as a Digital Marketing Manager, we had a major product launch with a fixed date, giving us only four weeks to prepare a comprehensive marketing campaign.

Task: My task was to coordinate the entire campaign, including social media, email marketing, content creation, and paid advertising.

Action: I organized a kick-off meeting, used project management software to track progress, set up daily check-ins, and prioritized tasks. When content approval was delayed, I expedited the review process by coordinating closely with the team and stakeholders.

Result: We launched the campaign on time, achieving a 30% higher engagement rate and a 20% increase in website traffic compared to previous campaigns, resulting in a significant boost in sales during the first week.

Autobiographical interview questions

Autobiographical job interview questions are designed to help interviewers understand your background, experiences, values, and motivations. These questions typically focus on your personal and professional history, providing insight into how you have developed your skills and handled various situations.

1. Tell me about yourself.

Why are they asking:   Ana Lokotkova , a career advisor and interview coach, put it this way: “What ‘tell me about yourself’ really means is ‘sell yourself’. This interview question is the ultimate chance to convince the recruiter that you are the right person for the job. They want to know if your experience, knowledge, skills, and even personality will help them achieve their business goals.

How to answer: You have to put the needs of the interviewer first and build your pitch around it. So keep your story relevant to the interviewer. Mention experience and skills that will directly help you be successful in this exact role.  Do research  before the interview on the company’s values and showcase your personality traits that will make you a good cultural fit.

“I’ve worked in full-cycle accounting for over six years now. I believe that quality financial reporting is the key to improving the financial health of the company, so that’s what I’ve been focusing on for the past three years. I’m really proud of a project I recently led where we completed a company-wide implementation of a new interdepartmental reporting and communication system. I really enjoy and am good at breaking down a big, complex task into smaller, manageable steps. It is what has consistently helped me improve the quality of financial reports, increase accounting efficiency, and significantly reduce administrative costs.”

“I’ve been a [job title/career] for [# of years]. I enjoy it because it gives me a chance to use my skills in [skill] and [skill] to [business goal your job serves]. I started as a [first job] and learned how to [skills you developed over your career]. That helped me to [accomplishment you’re proud of]. I believe that [personal belief that aligns with company values]. That’s why I’ve always been successful because [expertise you have] and [personal belief].”

Read the full guide: How to Answer the “Tell Me About Yourself” Interview Question

2. What are your hobbies?

Why are they asking:  Culture is important when hiring, so the recruiter or hiring manager wants to know if you fit in with the team. What are you like as a person? Are you an easy person to chat with? What  soft skills  do you have? Talking about something unrelated to work gives them an opportunity to see you as a person. They might also be able to pick up on soft skills demonstrated in your hobbies. 

How to answer: Feel free to speak passionately about things you enjoy. The point is not to impress them with your hobbies or extracurricular activities . The point is to be likable and approachable. If you can, show how your hobby demonstrates a skill that you also use in your job.

“I’m really into fitness. I enjoy going to the gym and playing basketball with my friends. I usually play every weekend. I know fitness isn’t enjoyable for everyone. Don’t get me wrong, there are days when I don’t want to go work out. But I’ve learned to enjoy the process. And it has taught me self-discipline.”

3. What motivated you to pursue your current career path?

Why are they asking: While this sounds like an existential question, the goal for the hiring manager is to uncover how engaged and dedicated you’ll be in your role. Happy, healthy, and fulfilled employees make for a more productive organization and a positive work environment.

How to answer:

Your research about the company will help you answer this question successfully. Align your response to match the values and mission of the organization with examples. The tailored response will paint a picture of your fit for the role.

Find the company’s mission statement and values on their website. Typically, they’re listed on their “About Us” or “Careers” pages.

My dedication to digital marketing comes from a passion for connecting brands with their audiences. After earning my Marketing degree, I joined a leading digital marketing agency where I immersed myself in mastering SEO, content strategy, and social media over the past 8 years. I’ve kept up with industry trends through workshops and certifications, leading successful campaigns that significantly boosted brand visibility and engagement for my clients. What drives me is the opportunity to innovate and achieve results for the companies I work with, ensuring their success and growth online. I bring this dedication to every role, always striving to exceed expectations and drive company success.

My dedication to [your field] comes from a passion for [related interest]. After earning my degree in [your degree], I joined [your company or a leading company in the field] where I immersed myself in mastering [relevant skills or areas] over the past [number] years. I’ve stayed current with industry trends through workshops and certifications, successfully [achievements or projects] for the companies I work with. What drives me is the opportunity to innovate and achieve results for the companies, ensuring their success and growth. I bring this dedication to every role, always striving to [solve the company’s problem].

4. How would your coworkers describe you?

Why are they asking:  There are two reasons they’ll ask this. According to Kyle Law, Lead Recruiter here at Jobscan , they’re probably asking because the job will require teamwork and collaboration. “They’re going to try to evaluate how you perform with that and how you enjoy working with a team.” If you have a lot to say about your relationships with your co-workers, then you likely spend a lot of time working with them and collaborating. 

How to answer: The first step to having a good answer is to be a collaborative teammate. Even if you’re an introvert, try to think of times your teammates relied on you for a task or project and how you came through for them. Perhaps discuss the good relationships you have with your team and how much you’ve enjoyed working with them.

“I work hard to carry my load and help out on the team when I can. I also try to maintain a positive attitude and contribute to group projects. So I think my coworkers would say they appreciate my willingness to collaborate and how I’m easy to work with.”

“I try to be a good teammate by being [quality like collaborative, supportive, positive, etc.]. I think my teammates would say that I always [describe positive habits like contributing to team projects, stepping up when someone needs help, making people laugh, etc.] because [positive impact on culture or business].”

5. Can you explain your employment gap?

Why are they asking:  First things first, there’s no reason to panic if you’re asked this question in a job interview. According to Kyle, “People assume that they’re being admonished because they do have a gap, but normally people just want a reason. It could literally be anything.” 

The point here is not to give a great reason or try to spin it into something amazing. You really just have to explain that you had a logical reason for not working and not that you suddenly quit your job and didn’t work at all or do anything else for a significant period of time. That would be a red flag.

How to answer: Give your honest reason! Did you take off work to go back to school, be a stay-at-home parent, care for aging parents, or even travel the world? All of those are fine. Kyle Law says many employers don’t even ask this question anymore because there are so many completely valid reasons for a resume gap .

“I wanted to make a career change, so I took some time off to figure out what new direction I wanted to go in. That’s what led me to this job opportunity.”

“I took [length of time off work] to pursue [activity/goal/or responsibility]. The time off proved to be helpful because [1 or 2 benefits]. Now I’m ready to start a new job, which is how I ended up here!”

6. Why are you leaving your current job?

Why are they asking:  “A big thing is going to be ‘What is going to motivate that person to leave their job for yours?’”, says Kyle Law. “If there’s a really good compelling reason that they want to leave their role, then it obviously makes more sense to continue the process and target the candidate. You can also verify that what you’re planning to offer in the role is what they’re looking for.” The recruiter might even use that information when making an offer.

How to answer: It’s best to be honest. If you want another role, a higher salary, or a different work environment, don’t be shy about expressing that. Remember, you can’t be all things to all people, nor can the company that’s interviewing you. This question is a good chance to see if they have what you want.

Refrain from bad-mouthing previous employers, bosses, or colleagues. Be honest about why you’re leaving without talking badly about colleagues.

“I’ve been a Specialist at my current company for a couple of years and I would like to grow into a leadership role. There aren’t any roles like that available at that company, so I’m looking for another opportunity.”

“My current role isn’t working for me because [1 or 2 valid reasons]. I’m looking for a job that [1 or 2 features you want that your current job doesn’t have]. Based on the job description and what I know about this company, it sounds like this opportunity is a good fit for what I’m looking for.”

7. What are you looking for in a new position?

Why are they asking:  “This goes along with ‘Why are you leaving your current position?’”, says Kyle Law. “Is what we’re about to give you going to interest you, going to keep you engaged, going to keep you in the role long-term?”

How to answer: Be specific, honest, and realistic. Describe the kind of role you want, what you would like your day-to-day duties to include, what sort of career growth opportunities you would like, the sort of culture you want to be a part of, and even your desired salary (if you feel comfortable sharing that at this point). All of these will help the hiring manager make an attractive offer.

“I’m looking for a leadership position that will allow me to have a hands-on role in shaping the strategy. I enjoy collaborating, so I want to be part of a team. My work-life balance is important to me, so my ideal job would have a culture that promotes hard work and supports the idea of stepping away when I need to.”

“I would like a role that includes [duty #1, duty #2, duty #3]. I know I can excel in that kind of role because [skills that support responsibilities]. I want to be part of a team that [describe desired culture]. I fit in with that kind of culture because [soft skills you possess]. I prefer working [remote or in-person].”

Other points not listed in this template but that could be included:

• Hours/schedule
• Career goals

8. What’s an interesting fact about you that isn’t on your resume?

Why are they asking: Hiring teams can only learn so much by reading your resume or browsing your LinkedIn. Your answer can give the interviewer insight into your personality, your motivations, and how well you might fit on the team.

How to answer: Keep your answer professional and tie your interesting fact back to the role you’re applying for. Choose an interest, achievement, or hobby that gives you the skills you need to do the job well. It’s a bonus if the skills you highlight are key to solving the company’s pain points.

“An interesting fact about me is that I run a personal blog where I write about the latest trends and innovations in digital marketing. This blog has a modest but engaged readership, and it has allowed me to explore new ideas and strategies in a practical way. Keeping the blog updated requires me to stay current with industry trends, continuously learn new tools and techniques, and think creatively about how to engage my audience. This passion project has honed my ability to create compelling content and engage with an audience, which I believe are crucial skills for driving successful marketing campaigns at your company.”

“An interesting fact about me that isn’t on my resume is that I [describe your activity]. This activity has allowed me to [explain what you do and how it relates to your field]. Keeping it up requires me to [describe how it has benefited you or enhanced your skills]. I believe these skills will be invaluable in [explain how it relates to the job you are applying for].”

Behavioral interview questions

9. how do you stay organized how do you prioritize tasks.

Why are they asking:  Every employee is expected to be able to stay organized. It’s an essential part of getting your work done on time. The reason a hiring manager will ask you how you stay organized is because they want proof that you actually have this ability and a process. Anyone can say that they can manage their time well or prioritize tasks, but what’s their process for doing that? If they can’t explain it, they might not be as good at it as the job demands.

How to answer: Be specific about your process for organizing and prioritizing. Mention any software or tools you use like Trello or even a notepad or sticky notes. Give examples of what you did in the past. All of these details will show that you have experience balancing priorities in a busy job.

To organize your job search, try Jobscan’s  Job Tracker . This easy-to-use tool tracks and manages your job applications and interviews all in one place. It also includes a Notes feature where you can keep track of common interview questions and write down answers you can use.

Situation: “There was a time when I had to handle multiple tasks simultaneously, including preparing a presentation for a major client, managing a team project, and responding to urgent client inquiries.”

Task: “My responsibility was to ensure that all these tasks were completed efficiently and on time.”

Action: “To prioritize the tasks, I made a list of all the tasks and assessed their deadlines and importance. I created a detailed schedule, allocating specific time blocks for each task. I used a project management tool to keep track of my progress and stay organized. Additionally, I communicated with team members to delegate some of the project tasks and set up regular check-ins to ensure everything was on track.”

Result: “As a result, I was able to complete all tasks on time. The presentation was well-received by the client, the project progressed smoothly with my team’s support, and client inquiries were addressed promptly. This experience taught me the importance of effective prioritization and time management skills, as well as the value of clear communication and delegation.”

Situation: “In my previous role at [Company Name], there was a time when I had to handle multiple tasks simultaneously, including [briefly describe the tasks, e.g., preparing a presentation, managing a team project, and responding to client inquiries].”

Action: “To prioritize the tasks, I [describe the action you took, e.g., made a list of all the tasks, assessed their deadlines and importance, and created a detailed schedule]. I used [mention any tools or methods, e.g., a project management tool, time-blocking technique] to keep track of my progress and stay organized. Additionally, I [any other actions, e.g., communicated with team members to delegate tasks, set up regular check-ins to ensure everything was on track].”

Result: “As a result, [describe the positive outcome, e.g., I was able to complete all tasks on time, the presentation was well-received, the project progressed smoothly, and client inquiries were addressed promptly]. This experience taught me [what you learned, e.g., the importance of effective prioritization and time management skills, the value of clear communication and delegation].”

10. What accomplishment are you most proud of?

Why are they asking:  Are you driven by success? How do you measure your success? These are the questions the hiring manager is really asking. Companies want employees who take pride in accomplishment. When they ask this question, they want to see signs that you are driven in your role and have worked to achieve goals.

How to answer: Choose an accomplishment that you can relate to the role. Describe a project you worked on, a sales target you met, a degree you worked to receive, or a life goal you achieved. All of these things show your ability to set goals and work to achieve them. 

Use numbers and measurable outcomes to support your answer and deliver your response with confidence. The STAR method can help transform your answer into a concise story for the interviewer.  

Situation: As an Operations Manager at ABC Healthcare, our hospital faced long patient wait times and inefficiencies.

Task: I was tasked with reducing wait times and improving operational efficiency.

Action: I analyzed our processes, introduced a new scheduling system, reorganized staff for better peak hour coverage, and implemented a triage system. I also led training sessions for smooth adoption.

Result: Within six months, wait times decreased by 40% and patient satisfaction increased by 25%. These improvements also reduced operational costs and earned me the Employee of the Year award for outstanding performance.

This experience enhanced my skills in healthcare operations and team leadership, preparing me to drive similar improvements at your hospital.

Situation: As [your previous job title] at [your previous company], [describe the challenge or situation].

Task: I was tasked with [specific responsibility or goal related to the challenge].

Action: I [describe the steps you took and strategies you implemented].

Result: Within [time frame], [quantifiable outcomes and achievements], earning me [award or recognition].

How it prepared you for this role: This experience enhanced my skills in [relevant skills or abilities], preparing me to [explain how it relates to the job you are applying for].

11. Describe a situation where you had to work with a difficult team member. How did you manage the relationship?

Why are they asking: Recruiters need to assess vital teamwork skills like conflict resolution, communication skills, problem solving, and collaboration skills. You won’t always agree with every team member’s ideas, but recruiters want to know that you can handle tough interactions with professionalism and emotional intelligence.

How to answer: Emphasize the solution to the problem, how you carried it out, and what the outcome was. Don’t spend time dwelling on the tension and avoid talking negatively about the other team member. Keep the tone positive, focus on the solution, and outline which soft skills you used to resolve problems.

Situation: “In my previous role, I was part of a project team where one member consistently missed deadlines and delivered subpar work.”

Task: “As the team lead, it was my responsibility to ensure the project stayed on track and that all team members were contributing effectively.”

Action: “I decided to have a private conversation with the team member to understand the root cause of the issues. I approached the conversation with empathy and an open mind, asking if there were any challenges they were facing. I learned that they were overwhelmed with personal issues. I offered to reassign some of their tasks temporarily and connected them with resources to help manage their workload better. We also set up regular check-ins to monitor progress and provide support.”

Result: “As a result, the team member was able to improve their performance, and we completed the project on time and to a high standard. The team member expressed gratitude for the support, and our working relationship improved significantly.”

Task: “As the [your role, e.g., team lead, project manager], it was my responsibility to ensure [the task, e.g., the project stayed on track, all team members contributed effectively].”

Action: “I decided to [describe the action, e.g., have a private conversation with the team member] to understand the root cause of the issues. I approached the conversation with [your approach, e.g., empathy and an open mind], asking if there were any challenges they were facing. I learned that [describe the root cause, e.g., they were overwhelmed with personal issues]. I offered to [describe your solution, e.g., reassign some of their tasks temporarily, connected them with resources]. We also [describe any follow-up actions, e.g., set up regular check-ins to monitor progress and provide support].”

Result: “As a result, [describe the positive outcome, e.g., the team member improved their performance, we completed the project on time and to a high standard]. The team member [describe any additional positive outcomes, e.g., expressed gratitude for the support, our working relationship improved significantly].”

12. Tell me about a time you made a mistake.

Why are they asking:  Don’t worry, they’re not trying to trap you into revealing a major defect or missing skill. Interviewers are looking for a few key competencies with this question, including self-awareness, accountability, and resilience. Everyone makes mistakes, but hiring teams want to know how you react to mistakes, bounce back from errors, and the lessons you learn.

How to answer: Your response should be solution-oriented. Highlight the changes you made to ensure you don’t repeat these errors. Whether you improved your communication with colleagues or put new processes in place, you can spin your human errors at work into something that had a positive result. Focus on what you learned from it.

Situation: “During my tenure at a healthcare administration role, I was in charge of overseeing a new patient management system implementation across multiple departments.”

Task: “My primary task was to ensure a smooth transition from the old system to the new one, minimizing any disruption to patient care and administrative operations.”

Action: “In the initial stages, I overlooked the importance of conducting thorough training sessions for all staff members. I assumed that the new system’s interface was intuitive enough for everyone to adapt quickly. However, this led to confusion and delays in patient management processes, impacting our efficiency.”

Result: “Once I realized the mistake, I immediately organized comprehensive training sessions tailored to different departments’ needs. I also set up a support system to address any issues promptly. As a result, within a month, the staff adapted well to the new system, and our operational efficiency improved significantly. Additionally, the experience taught me the importance of thorough preparation and training in system implementations.”

“In my previous role at [Company Name], I made a mistake when [describe the mistake].”

Task: “My responsibility was to [describe your responsibility].”

Action: “When I realized my mistake, I [describe the action you took to address the mistake]. I also [additional actions to prevent future mistakes].”

Result: “As a result, [describe the positive outcome or what you learned]. This experience taught me [what you learned].”

13. Tell me about a challenge you’ve faced and how you handled it.

Why are they asking:  The specific challenge you faced isn’t the priority here. The interviewer is interested in how you handle adversity or stress and how sharp your problem-solving skills are. This is a behavioral interview question.

How to answer:  Now that you know why they’re asking, make sure you think of an example that allows you to demonstrate the skills they’re looking for. There might have been a challenge that you “handled”, but not very well. Give an example of a challenging situation and the soft skills you demonstrated in working through it – problem-solving,  critical thinking ,  leadership , resiliency, and others.

Situation: “In my role as a Project Manager at a software development company, we were tasked with developing a custom CRM solution for a major client. Midway through the project, our lead developer unexpectedly resigned, leaving a critical gap in our team.”

Task: “My task was to quickly find a solution to keep the project on track and ensure that we met the client’s deadline without compromising the quality of the software.”

Action: “I immediately conducted a skills assessment within the team to identify who could temporarily take on the lead developer’s responsibilities. I also worked with HR to expedite the hiring process for a new lead developer. To maintain project momentum, I restructured the team’s workflow to optimize efficiency and redistributed tasks to balance the workload.”

Result: “Despite the setback, we successfully delivered the CRM solution on time. The temporary team restructuring not only kept the project on track but also fostered greater collaboration and skill development within the team. The client was satisfied with the outcome.”

Situation: [Describe the context and background of the situation. Provide enough detail for the interviewer to understand the setting and importance of the challenge.]

Task: [Explain the specific challenge or problem you were tasked with addressing. Highlight the significance of the challenge and what was at stake.]

Action: [Detail the actions you took to address the challenge. Focus on what you did, how you did it, and why you made those choices. Be specific about your role and the steps you took to overcome the obstacle.]

Result: [Describe the outcome of your actions. Include both the immediate and long-term results. Quantify the results if possible and explain what you learned from the experience.]

14. Tell me about a time when you received constructive criticism. How did you respond?

Why are they asking: It’s never a good feeling to hear about shortcomings or mistakes, but interviewers are interested in knowing how you respond to negative feedback. They want to uncover if you respond with self-awareness, are receptive to feedback, and can problem-solve and adapt to critiques.

How to answer : Display a growth mindset in your answer. Explain to the interviewer how negative feedback helped you grow and develop as a professional. No one knows everything, so hiring teams are looking for candidates who are coachable and don’t take critiques personally. 

Situation: “In my previous role at XYZ Corp, I received constructive criticism from my supervisor regarding the accuracy of my financial reports.”

Task: “My responsibility was to ensure the accuracy of my financial reports.”

Action: “When I received the feedback, I listened carefully and asked for specific examples of the inaccuracies. I thanked my supervisor for the feedback and took the following steps to address the criticism: I reviewed my report preparation process, implemented a checklist system to ensure all data was double-checked, and attended a workshop on advanced Excel skills. Additionally, I asked for regular feedback from my supervisor to monitor my progress.”

Result: “As a result, the accuracy of my financial reports increased, and I received positive feedback in subsequent reviews. This experience taught me the importance of being open to feedback and the value of continuous improvement.”

Situation : “In my previous role at [Company Name], I received constructive criticism from [who gave the feedback] regarding [describe the feedback].”

Task : “My responsibility was to [describe your role or tasks].”

Action : “When I received the feedback, I [describe your initial reaction]. I took the following steps to address the criticism: [describe the actions you took].”

Result : “As a result, [describe the positive outcome]. This experience taught me [what you learned].”

15. What are your strengths and weaknesses?

Why are they asking:  There are two reasons a recruiter or hiring manager will ask this. First, they want to make sure you’re able to do the job, plain and simple. Beyond that, they also want to get an idea of what kind of person you are. Are you honest? Do you have a measure of self-awareness? Do you work on your weaknesses? Your answer reveals more than what’s on your resume.

How to answer:  As hard as it is, be honest. It would be terrible to accept a job that you aren’t qualified for. Talk about your strengths confidently and relate them to the role. Give real-life examples of when you demonstrated the strength. Share one weakness, but try to find one that’s not a required skill in the role. Discuss what you’re doing to work on that weakness.

It’s natural to want to downplay your weaknesses—don’t! Instead, talk about what you did to improve and what results you gained from overcoming that weakness.

“The strengths that I think will help me the most in this role are communication, leadership, and customer service. As a Shift Supervisor, I’ve led diverse teams and worked to maintain a positive culture. Retention has increased during my time there. My 5 years of experience in customer service are always useful and help me to empathize with and train my staff to be effective. I sometimes have a hard time with our reporting software, so I need to make sure I take the time to learn all of our tools.”

“My most important strengths are [list 1-3 relevant skills]. This helps me in my job by [benefits of listed skills]. Because of those skills, I’ve been able to [give an example of results or achievement the skills helped you gain]. I sometimes struggle with [list one weakness]. In order to overcome that weakness, I decided to [explain what you’re doing to improve in that area].”

Company culture fit interview questions

Company culture fit interview questions are designed to assess whether your values, beliefs, and behaviors align with the company’s culture and work environment.

16. What type of work environment do you prefer?

Why are they asking:  This question might be asked more often now since more companies are offering remote work. The hiring manager will want to know if you’ve worked remotely before and how you performed in that environment. The opposite could also be true. If the position requires you to come into the office, they’ll want to know if you really prefer working remotely.

How to answer:  This is another question where it’s crucial that you’re honest. This is best for you in the long run. If you prefer a certain environment but force yourself into the opposite environment, you might not be happy and do your best work. So be honest with your preferences and let the hiring manager decide if they can offer you what you want. If you’re flexible and have no preference, that’s even better.

“I’ve done both remote and in-office work in my career. Remote work was an adjustment at first, but I set up my office and developed a good routine. I was able to maintain good results on my performance reviews. I’ve found that both environments require their own adjustments and I’ve learned to work well in both.”

“I’ve worked remotely for [X number of years]. But I’ve also had in-office jobs. They’re both very different, but I’ve been able to perform well in both because [describe your approach to work that is conducive to both environments].”

17. Why should we hire you?

Why are they asking:  What they really want to know is how interested you are in the job. If you can make an argument for why they should hire you, that’s a good sign that you are very interested in the job, which will translate into high engagement, productivity, and, hopefully, retention.

How to answer:  Don’t put too much pressure on yourself and think that you have to sell yourself. The recruiter will make that decision based on a lot of information, not one question in the  job interview . It’s good to list three compelling reasons – enough to show that you’ve thought about the role and are taking the opportunity seriously.

It’s best to avoid using cliches or buzzwords during your interview. Instead, mention skills, experience, and knowledge that make you a great candidate.

“I can think of three good reasons: 1) I have 7 years of experience in this role and have gotten tangible results, as you can see on my resume; 2) my skills are a perfect fit for what you’re looking for in this role; and 3) I share the same values as the company, specifically your commitment to customer satisfaction and improving the customer experience.”

“I’m a better fit than other candidates because of my experience with [area of valuable or unique experience] and the results I’ve gotten like [demonstrated results]. I see myself achieving [specific goals the hiree is expected to achieve] by [overview of process] and that’s exactly what you’re looking for in this role.”

18. What do you know about this company?

Why are they asking:  A common thread in many of these job interview questions is the recruiter’s goal of seeing how interested you are in the job. They need to know if it is worth their time to continue the process and make an offer and if you’ll be an engaged employee. This question tests how much you care about this opportunity and how much time you’ve put into preparing for the interview.

How to answer:  This one is simple. Tell them what you know about the company – the products or services, the vision or mission, the company values, and any other information you’ve picked up from researching the company. The key is to actually have that knowledge in the first place. If you really want this job, you’ll need to put forth effort to show that you’re interested.

“I read the company About page on the website and learned about its history. I appreciate the company’s vision and I think the product solves a real problem. I also looked up the company’s social media profiles and got an idea of who the audience is and what we offer them.”

“I read about the company from [resource] and learned [key information]. I also looked up the company on [resource] and found [key information]. Some things that stood out to me were [parts of the business, product or service, or culture that you like].”

Read the full guide : How to Research a Company for an Interview

19. Why did you apply for this job?

Why are they asking:  “It always goes back to engagement level,” says Kyle. “If they’re just like, ‘Oh I just saw it and I clicked Easy Apply’ , and then they  also  didn’t do any research and they  also  don’t have any questions, then you’re just like, ‘This is someone who’s totally not engaged at all.’” The recruiter wants to make sure you have a compelling reason for applying and therefore a compelling reason for taking their potential offer.

How to answer:  This one should be easy, as long as you’re being thoughtful in your job search. List the top three things you like about the job and what skills you have that make you a good fit for the role.

“I was looking for a job that would allow me to grow and open up opportunities to advance my career. From what I’ve read and learned about the company and the position, it has everything I want in a job.”

“I’m looking for a position that includes [day-to-day responsibilities] and it sounds like that’s exactly what this job is. I also need a job that [cite other needs like schedule, work environment, pay, etc.]. Based on what I’ve learned about the company and the role, it’s a perfect fit for what I want in a job and my skills.”

20. Why do you want to work here?

Why are they asking:  While this question is similar to Why did you apply for this job?, the recruiter might be trying to get a deeper insight about you as a person. The job might be a good fit, but what do you like about the company – the culture, vision, product, or team? This tells them whether or not you’re really interested in the job and if your values line up with the company’s values.

How to answer:  You’ll have to do your research. Read about the company and  ask insightful questions . Go beyond the job description in your answer. Discuss what you think of the product or service, what you admire about the company’s history and future, and what kind of team you want to be a part of.

“I believe I can have a real impact here. It looks like there’s a need for the skills I have and, based on my past experience, I’m confident that my performance will help the company grow. That matters to me because it’s important that I feel a sense of accomplishment from my job.”

“It’s important to me that the company I work for does/has [value, quality, feature, or opportunity]. I’ve talked to other companies, but this one stands out because [unique feature].”

21. What are your salary requirements?

Why are they asking:  Susan P. Joyce, a job search coach, said that there are actually a few reasons why an interviewer will ask  what your salary requirements are : 1) to make sure your that your expectations are within a range they can actually meet; 2) to identify whether you’re the type of candidate who does their research and can share specifically the value that they would bring to the role; and 3) to signal to the hiring manager whether you are overqualified or underqualified for the position. Salaries tend to align with years of experience, so it can help them gauge whether you’re in their target experience range. 

How to answer:  Susan gives a few options for answering the  salary requirements question . You can deflect the question and say you’d rather know more about the job before deciding what your requirements for pay. If you want to give a number without restricting yourself, you could give a salary range, two numbers within $5-10k of each other. If the current job you have already is the same as the job you’re applying for, you can simply tell them what your current salary is and that since the responsibilities sound the same, you’d like to make at least that amount. Remember  negotiating your salary  is always an option.

“I currently make $60,000 for a similar role, so I’d like that to be the baseline. Once I know more about the responsibilities and expectations, I can give you my desired salary range.”

“My current role as a [job title] is similar, so I’d like to at least maintain my salary of [your current salary]. I also know that the average salary for this role is [salary based on market research].”

Read the full guide: How to Answer: What Are Your Salary Expectations?

23. Do you have any questions for me?

Why are they asking:  The point is not necessarily which questions you ask, but rather that you have questions at all. Kyle Law, our recruiter here at Jobscan, said, “I absolutely want them to have questions. I want them to be thinking about what they would be doing at a company. The more questions you have, it shows you’re thinking about how you’re going to contribute.” A person who is engaged during the interview will also be an engaged employee, and that’s what a hiring manager wants.

How to answer:  “People who are good at their jobs know how to ask interesting questions and know how to flex their knowledge with their questions,” said Kyle. Come to the interview with a  list of several questions , including back-ups in case some are answered in the interview. Ask about your team, your role, the culture, and the business. Ultimately, that will help you in deciding if you want to accept a potential job offer.

• Can you tell me about the day-to-day responsibilities of the role?
• Are there opportunities for training and career growth within the role?
• What is the culture like here?
• How is the team structured and where do I fit in?
• What will be the biggest challenges of this job?
• Who does this position report to?
• What type of person do you feel would be best suited for this position in terms of skills, experience, and personality?
• How will you measure the success of the person in this position?

Read the full guide : 4 Important Questions to Ask in an Interview (and Why)

Future-focused interview questions

24. where do you see yourself in 5 years.

Why are they asking:  According to Jobscan recruiter , Kyle Law, this actually isn’t a very common interview question and might in itself be a red flag for you. “It’s such a silly question to ask. The person you’re interviewing might not even be there in five years.” They might be looking for someone who expects to stay in a role or job for a long period of time. However, in today’s job market, that’s rare.

How to answer:  It’s important to be honest. If your career plan is to take advantage of every opportunity to grow—whether that’s at one company or several – then make that clear. If the company wants someone to stay with them for several years, there’s no point in wasting your time or their time if that’s not your goal.

“I see myself being successful in my field. I’m a fast learner and I believe I have a natural talent for what I do. In five years, I’d like to say that I’ve been able to gain new skills and experience, visit some places that I’ve never been before, and build a solid reputation in my industry.”

“My goal is to [career goal]. In order to achieve that goal, I need to [steps to achieving the goal]. I think this position is the perfect opportunity for me to

25. Describe your dream job.

Why are they asking:  There are two main things that hiring managers want to know by asking this question: 1) They want to understand your career goals and determine whether the job you’re applying for matches them, and 2) they want to see how well you fit their work culture.

How to answer:  They don’t necessarily want to hear a specific job title. They simply want you to describe what you believe would be the perfect job for you .  Because this question has a two-fold intent, you can answer by describing a job where you can apply the values that you uphold and that align with your goals, as well as describe the things that motivate you.

“My dream job is one where I can collaborate with a team and regularly exchange insights to get the best possible results. I’ve mostly worked as a freelance graphic artist, and I haven’t been able to collaborate with a team as much as I want to. That’s also why I’m applying as an in-house artist in your company. I believe that here I’ll be able to do what I love alongside other great artists from whom I can learn so much.”

“My dream job is one where I could put my skills in [top skills relevant to the job] to use while [mention career values, like collaborating with others]. I’m extremely passionate about these and would love to be in a company that values them as much as I do.”

Track your job search with Job Tracker

Jobscan’s Job Tracker tool can organize your job search all in one place. Optimize your resume , apply for jobs , and manage your interviews from your Jobscan dashboard . Each job card is neatly categorized by each stage of the job search, like on the dashboard below.

When you open an opportunity card, you’ll find your tailored resume , your cover letter , and the job description.

By going to the “Interview” tab, like in the example below, you can input the details of your interview. The date, time, contact name and number, and type of interview are all recorded in one place.

Additionally, you can go to the “Notes” tab to jot down your pre- and post-interview thoughts, details you want to mention, and more. See the example below for the Job Tracker in action.

Interview questions do’s and don’ts

• Think of answers in advance to common interview questions like the ones on this page. Come up with a few stories from your career that illustrate things like challenges overcome, innovation and creativity, conflict resolution, etc.
• Practice out loud . If you feel weird talking to yourself, find a friend who will role play with you and pepper you with questions.
• Study the job description to create talking points and relevant questions.
• If you’re doing a video interview , get rid of distractions, use a clean background, and test your tech (lighting, video, and audio) beforehand.
• Before your interview , decide how you want to present yourself (confident, thoughtful, friendly, etc) and take a few minutes to release tension.
• Promptly follow up after the interview with a gracious message.
• Don’t be desperate , even if you really need the job or money.
• If you’re preparing for a phone interview , don’t be too casual – dress as you would for an in-person interview. You might be tempted to “show up” in jammies, since the interviewer won’t see you. But suitable clothing gets you in the right mindset and helps you feel more confident.
• Don’t talk too fast. Pause before answering questions. You will sound better if you take a second to breathe and think. Come up with a few phrases you can use to acknowledge the question before you pause and breathe.
• Don’t wing it! Research the company ahead of time to prove that you are more excited and more prepared to take on the role than any of the other candidates.

Some examples of the weirdest interview questions are: • What would you do if you won the lottery? • What superpower would you like to have, and why? • How would you rate me as an interviewer? These are no doubt unusual questions, and they get asked pretty rarely. But when interviewers ask ridiculous questions like these, it’s usually to better gauge your personality, critical thinking skills, or culture fit.

The best way to answer this question is to “sell” yourself. Talk about your key skills, qualifications, and experience that make you a great candidate. You can also make your answer more impactful by keeping it relevant to the company’s business needs and requirements for the role.

Some of the most difficult interview questions are: • Tell me about yourself. • What are your strengths and weaknesses? • Tell me about a time when you failed or made a mistake. • Tell me about a challenge you faced and how you handled it. • Why should we hire you?

If you’re having difficulties answering a question, you can: • Ask your interviewer to repeat or clarify the question. This will give you more time to think as well as a better sense of what’s being asked. • Take your time. Rushing to say something just to say anything may only make things worse. • Admit that you don’t know the answer. If the question does fall outside of your knowledge or expertise, be honest about it. • Redirect to a subject that you’re familiar with. You can also redirect the conversation to a topic that you’re more knowledgeable about. For example, you can say, “Unfortunately, that goes beyond my expertise. However, I’m quite knowledgeable on [a subject you’re good at that’s related to the question].” You can then elaborate on it if the interviewer gives you the go-ahead. To keep you focused during your interview, prepare using a tool like Jobscan’s Job Tracker , which has a Notes section where you can jot down common interview questions and sample answers for each. Before the interview, refer to this section and go over what you’ve written. This will help you feel more confident and prepared.

Kelsey is a Content Writer with a background in content creation, bouncing between industries to educate readers everywhere.

Related Articles

August 28, 2024

July 30, 2024

June 20, 2024

November 8, 2023

June 14, 2021

June 7, 2021

December 15, 2020

April 16, 2020

Join 2 million job seekers who get bi-weekly job search tips

Get insider knowledge and ready-to-use job-seeking tips and hacks delivered to your inbox.

Interview Projects and Assignments

Interviewing in today’s job market can sometimes feel like a never-ending process. You’ll likely be called for a virtual interview first. Then you’ll go through at least three in-person interviews, if not more. Then, you must wait for references to be verified, and a background check to be completed.

The latest statistics say it can take 43 days for the average candidate to go from first interview to job offer. In 2017, it was just 24 days according to research conducted by Glassdoor .

The time from first interview to hire is likely to increase because employers are requiring candidates to take on a sample assignments or projects as part of the interview process.

What is a Job Interview Assignment?  

A job interview assignment is a task that’s similar to the type of work you’d be doing if hired for the job. The hiring manager will use the assignment to further assess your skills and abilities. It gives them tangible evidence of your ability to perform the job at a satisfactory level if hired.

If you knock the assignment out the park, it may help you land the job. However, if you fail to impress your potential employer, then you might not get the offer, no matter how well you did on your interviews.

How Do You Handle a Job Interview Assignment?

No matter how you might feel about interview assignments, it looks like they are here to stay so you have to know how to succeed.

Here are some tips to keep in mind:

1. Do understand the expectations of your industry

There are some roles where interview assignments have always been the rule rather than the exception. If you’re applying for a position as a graphic designer, copywriter, proofreader, then you should expect an assignment.

Beyond that, it’s becoming increasingly popular for employers to ask candidates to create a marketing plan for a certain product. If you’re going for a process management role, employers may want to see your take on a process-improvement plan. If you’re into data analysis, then you may be asked to give a report on a set of numbers they provide.

It’s hard to predict what type of assignment you’ll get from each employer. The point is to have a general expectation that you’ll be asked to complete a project, so you’re not surprised when it comes.

2. Do follow the instructions

Read the instructions of the assignment carefully. Avoid the temptation to go “above and beyond” to try and wow the hiring manager. That approach may backfire. Turning in a solid product that demonstrates your understanding of the assignment should be your priority.

3. Do ask questions

It’s perfectly okay for you to ask questions. In fact, it shows that you’re engaged and really want to do a quality job. You don’t want to fail the assignment just because you didn’t ask a simple question.

Remember to ask about the deadline. Are they expecting you to hand in a report or present your work to the hiring manager? What criteria will they use to assess your work?

4. Do protect your intellectual property

You want to do your best, but at the same time you don’t want the company to just take your work and use it. It sounds unethical, but it does happen.

Ask how your work will be used once you provide it. Is the work for evaluation purposes only? Or will any work you do become property of the company? Knowing the answer may influence whether you want to do the assignment.

Some jobseekers may ask employers to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) to ensure they don’t use the work without consent. That could be a turnoff for some employers, but don’t hesitate to request that one be signed if you’re truly concerned.

5. Do research the company

You want your final product to reflect the tone, style, and values of the firm you’re interviewing for. Ask for a copy of the company’s style guide to use while completing the assignment. They may not want to give you that proprietary information, but it’s worth asking.

Whether or not you get the style guide, reading the company’s website, looking up press releases, and reviewing marketing materials can give you a sense of the company’s culture. Showing that you did a bit of “homework” before you completed the assignment will surely impress the hiring manager.

6. Do set aside time for the assignment

 Give yourself plenty of time. You don’t want to wait until the night before the assignment is due to start the assignment. Put time on your calendar well before the due date to start. You may need to complete the assignment over two or more sessions.

7. Do complete the work yourself

If you’re not too sure about the assignment you may be tempted to ask a friend or colleague to do it for you. While it’s okay to ask for a bit of advice or an opinion on your work, make sure you do it yourself. Handing in someone else’s work is not only dishonest, but if you get the job and can’t do similar tasks, you might not hang onto the job for very long.

8. Do proofread your work

Make sure you have time to thoroughly proofread your work before handing it in. You may also want to have a friend or colleague review your work as well. You don’t want a careless typo or mistake to sink your chances of landing the job.

9. Do show enthusiasm about the project

When submitting the assignment, take a moment to include a note. Thank the hiring manager for the opportunity to complete the project. Remind them why you’d be a good fit for the role. And, put in at least one thing you learned while doing the assignment to entice the hiring manager to look further.

Here’s an example of a note you could include:

Thank you for the opportunity to complete this assignment. I really enjoyed the challenge. You’ll see that I’ve made three low-cost recommendations that I believe would increase paid subscribers by 10% over the next quarter.  

Completing the assignment confirmed to me that I have the passion and skill set to be successful in this role.

10. Do be prepared to walk away

Interview assignments shouldn’t take more than four hours to complete. You may review the assignment and decide that it would take up too much of your time and energy. You may have second thoughts about even doing it. That’s perfectly okay.

You can decline the assignment by writing an email to the hiring manager that says something like this:

Thank you for offering me the opportunity to interview with your company. I’ve enjoyed the experience, but I’ve decided to pursue other job opportunities at this time and won’t be completing the assignment given to me at the end of the last interview.

It may be hard to walk away from a job opportunity when you’ve come so close. But think of it like this: if a company is asking you to do a lot of work and you haven’t even been hired yet, then just imagine what they ask their paid employees to do.

What are Examples of Job Interview Assignments?

Here are three examples of job interview assignments that you might receive from a potential employer. 

1. You’re interviewing with Scheer & Douglass Marketing Group. They’re looking for a new Director of Content Management who understands SEO best practices and long-form blog writing.

For your assignment, you’ll receive a topic, keywords, the audience you’re writing for, and a company style guide. You’ll also receive several samples of the company’s best-performing blogs. Your assignment is to provide a 1,500-word blog that includes at least five mentions of each keyword and a strong call to action.

2. Save the Date, Inc. is a software company that develops and sells scheduling and dispatch software for pest control companies, cable installation companies, and more.

You’ve applied for a sales position with the company. For your assignment, your potential manager gives you information about their latest software, a spec sheet, and a price list. Your assignment is to create a 10-minute presentation to help sell the company’s latest software to a flower delivery franchise that’s reluctant to upgrade.

3. Cumulous Software, LLC needs a software engineer who can oversee ongoing updates and improvements to their brand-new mobile app.

The hiring manager is interested in testing your coding skills. You receive several pages of sample code that’s not working properly. You’re given limited instructions and access to the company’s source code library. Your assignment is to find the problems within the code provided and write the simplest, most practical code possible to solve the issues.

Interview Projects and Assignments are Here to Stay  

Like it or not, interview assignments are the new normal, and it’s best to assume that you’ll be asked to do one sooner or later. Use the tips above to make sure you turn in the best work possible.

Maria Gold is a Content Manager/Writer for Empire Resume. She is dedicated to helping educate and motivate people with the latest career articles and job search advice. Her interests range from writing to programming and design. She is also passionate about innovation, entrepreneurship, and technology.

Related Articles:

Key Recruiting and Hiring Statistics (Updated for 2022)

How to Get an Internal Promotion

How Long Do Hiring Managers Spend Reviewing Resumes?

Interview Assignment Example-Template-Format | Pocket HRMS

Interview assignments are an integral part of contemporary interviews. They help the recruiters with brilliant insights as to the thinking pattern of candidates and understand their aptitude for working. On the other hand, it is a great avenue for the candidate to showcase their skill set as well as stand out from the crowd.

Since the assignment helps the interviewer understand the candidate’s problem solving and analytical skills better, it is used by recruiters whenever a technical position is being filled. Irrespective of how the candidate fares during the interview, the recruiter might still go ahead and hire a poorly performing candidate solely due to the fact that they were able to complete the assignment on time and were able to explain it well.

Importance of The Assignment

Interview and interview questions are an essential part of any recruitment process. However, what really helps the recruiter narrow down their search is the assignments and the way they are completed. If you are a candidate applying for any position where analytical skills and problem-solving is involved, then you can be sure that you will be asked to complete some form of assignment by the recruiter. Nowadays, even positions requiring creative thinking also requires the candidates to fulfil some assignments for their interview.

The assignments help the HRs understand the thinking pattern of candidates. It also gives them a good overview of their abilities. This helps them weed out others who might not be suited for the vacant position. The way the candidate approaches the problem at hand also helps in understanding whether they would enjoy the daily challenges of their job while they work in the company. Hence, based on how they complete the assignment, the HRs can make a sound decision.

On the other end, the candidates themselves can benefit from the assignments given by their recruiters. It provides a window for them to understand the kind of challenges they might face while undertaking their daily duties. It is also a chance for them to showcase their talents and abilities in a practical situation and hence, it would also help those candidates who might be a bit reserved.

Why is an Assignment requested by The Hiring Manager?

As we have established, the interview assignment and the way it is completed helps HR understand various kinds of parameters and abilities of candidates. However, there are other reasons too where the recruiter might request the candidate to complete some assignment for their interview.

One common example is to verify whether the aptitude and qualifications mentioned in the resume are legitimate. A candidate might have the necessary qualifications, yet, may not be capable enough to face the daily challenges while working in the company. Hence, providing them with a challenge will expose them to the daily work which would help them make the right choice.

If you are being asked to submit an assignment towards the end of a hiring process, you can be almost sure that you have stiff competition and you are being asked to complete the assignment by the recruiter to help them decide between you and your competition. In this case, it is vital that you understand what the company is looking for and tweak your assignment accordingly to increase your chances of being placed.

Email Template for Requesting Intake Meeting | Pocket HRMS

Interview Assignment Email Checklist

Before furnishing your candidate with the assignment email, kindly check whether the following pointers are covered and conveyed clearly:

1. The expected outcome

2. the deadline to submit the assignment, 3. contact information for resolving any doubts related to the assignment, 4. an example, a link or an attachment with all required instructions, 5. the exact timeline of the assignment, 6. the instructions for submitting the assignment, the interview assignment template.

Email Subject Line: Assignment for the position of [Job title]

Dear [Candidate Name]

Thank you once again for applying for the role of [Job title]. As part of our hiring process, we have decided to send assignments to talented candidates such as yourself!

In the attachment, you will find the assignment along with detailed instructions about completing and submitting it. Kindly read and follow the instructions in order to complete it successfully.

I wish you to understand that there are no right or wrong answers in this assignment. It mostly consists of situations relevant to the position being offered, and we want to evaluate your behaviour when facing situations like that during the course of your work here.

Kindly note that the due date to return the assignment is [Due Date].

If you have any questions or doubts about your assignment, make sure you contact me here. Wishing you the very best with the assignment, and I am looking forward to reading your insights.

[Your name]

[Email Signature]

Reply To Job Application Acknowledgement Template | Pocket HRMS

Template for informing Candidates about the receipt of Assignment

Dear [Candidate Name],

Thank you for completing and sending over the assignment within the defined timeframe. I hope you have followed all the instructions of this assignment.

Our team will review and evaluate the answers to your assignment. Once it is done, we will get back to you with detailed feedback and any further information we may have. I hope your insights help us understand you better and moves you forward with the hiring process.

Wishing you a good day, and please don’t hesitate to contact us with any doubts you may have!

[Signature]

Download Interview Assignment Template[FREE]

Found this article interesting? Share it on

Schedule a product demo, recent post.

Experience Next-level Employee Engagement

Get in touch to digitalize your hr today.

Experience Futuristic Employee Management with Pocket HRMS: The Only smHRt HRMS in India with Microsoft GenAI.

• Payroll Software
• HRMS Software
• Leave Management
• Attendance Management
• Employee Management
• Performance Management
• smHRty Chatbot
• HR Template
• HR Glossary
• What is Payroll System?
• Holiday Lists 2024
• Why Pocket HRMS?
• Industry Solutions
• Partner with Us
• What is Payroll Software?
• What is HRMS?

Subscribe to Newsletter

• Privacy Policy
• Terms of Use

Download your free resource

What Every Job Seeker Should Know About Work Assignments During the Interview Process

You’re progressing well through an interview process, and you think you’re close to landing that coveted offer, when the employer says, “One more thing—we have a little homework for you.”

This tactic is used by a lot of companies (especially startups), and with good reason: The hiring manager gets a firsthand look at your approach, creativity, quality, turn-around speed, and communication and presentation style and can gauge how serious you are about the position.

If you really want that job, your instinct will likely be to put your best foot forward and provide the most fabulous project the employer has ever seen. But there’s something else to consider: You may end up putting in many hours of work, creating an awesome deliverable—and at the end of it all, still not getting the job. There’s even a chance that the company will take the ideas you labored over for its own benefit, and you’re left not only without an offer, but without compensation for all that hard work.

It’s happened to me: Once, at the end of a second round interview, a hiring manager asked me for a list of quick-hit ideas on increasing user engagement for his consumer website. I spent almost half a day coming up with a list of 10 great ideas, including many examples from other sites. After I proudly sent over my recommendations, I didn’t hear from the company for over two weeks. When I finally got a response, he thanked me for all my hard work and said that the company decided not to pursue the position at this time due to “internal matters.”

Who knows if this really was the case; but to my surprise, I noticed a handful of my ideas were actually implemented within the next few months on their site. Maybe these were ideas already in motion and my assignment only confirmed what was planned, but I couldn’t help but feel that I had been somewhat “used” and regretted putting so much time and effort into this homework.

While there are times you may want to go to the moon and back for a job , it’s also important to be careful how you approach these homework assignments—especially if you’re investing your time into applying to multiple jobs. Here are some tips on how to handle this tricky situation.

1. Understand General Goals and Expectations

First, it’s important to get a sense of how this assignment will factor into the overall evaluation of your candidacy. Is this the final hurdle before the job offer? (It should be.) How will this be weighed with other elements of your interview? (You should get some positive reinforcement that the company’s very interested and just wants to get a sense of how you work.) How long will the assignment take? (Being asked to spend more than 2-3 hours on an assignment before getting hired is bordering on disrespect.)

Don’t be afraid to ask questions like, “Can you help me understand how this assignment will be evaluated?” “Are you looking more for big-picture ideas, or a detailed look at my recommendations?” “Roughly how much time do you recommend I put into this assignment?” It’ll help you understand what the company is looking for and how much time you’re willing to put forth.

2. Ask for Data

Next, remember that you have every right to ask for information that’ll help you better tackle the assignment and not start from scratch (if you were hired, that’s what you’d obviously do , right?). So, put some onus on the company to provide relevant data. For example, if the company is asking for your ideas on potential partners, ask questions that’ll point you in the right direction, like, “Who are your current partners?” “What types of partners are you currently pursuing?” “What are the key metrics that define a successful partnership?”

And if the company doesn’t provide any more information? Do your best, but also make sure you express where you’ve made assumptions based on lack of information—e.g., “Without knowing what your current metrics for successful partnerships are, I’ve made suggestions for partners that will boost both brand awareness and website traffic. Obviously, if the company has different goals, I would be able to adjust these recommendations.”

And then don’t worry—if the hiring manager doesn’t offer it, he or she will understand that you’re operating under lack of information and history.

3. Outline Main Points, Only Tease the Details

More often than not, the primary reason companies dole out homework is to get a better sense of your thought process, as well as how you structure and convey your thoughts and ideas. There’s not necessarily a “right” answer, nor is there a need to get way down in the weeds.

So, don’t stress about providing a ton of information—just outline the main points (bullets and numbered lists usually work well). You can tease out more details as you’re talking through your assignment in the interview without having to write down your specific plans and fully fleshed out ideas. Remember: You don’t want the hiring manager to have the blueprints for your fabulous ideas—you want him or her to hire you so that you can be the one implement them!

4. If You’re Worried, Get an NDA in Place

Depending on the type of job function and level you’re interviewing for, it may not be a bad idea to request a non-disclosure agreement. If there is any confidential information you do not want shared widely, your assignment involves using data from your current employer, or you just have a nagging concern that the company may steal your best ideas, take a precaution and get a simple mutual NDA executed (many template NDA forms are available online for download). Don’t make it too legally formal—the company may get turned off by this move—just let the hiring manager know you just want to make sure things stay confidential and you’d be more comfortable providing details with a simple NDA in place. If he or she refuses to sign, this may be another warning flag.

Knocking a homework assignment out of the park can be an amazing chance to show you’re the best candidate of the bunch, but you never want to get in a situation where you’re wasting your time or being used for free labor. Follow these guidelines, and you’ll be able to present a great deliverable while making sure you’re spending your time and effort the right way.

Photo of man working courtesy of Shutterstock .

• SUGGESTED TOPICS
• The Magazine
• Newsletters
• Managing Yourself
• Managing Teams
• Work-life Balance
• The Big Idea
• Data & Visuals
• Reading Lists
• Case Selections
• HBR Learning
• Topic Feeds
• Account Settings
• Email Preferences

10 Common Job Interview Questions and How to Answer Them

• Vicky Oliver

Use this guide to stand out from the crowd and land the role you want.

Interviews can be high stress, anxiety-driving situations, especially if it’s your first interview. A little practice and preparation always pays off. While we can’t know exactly what an employer will ask, here are 10 common interview questions along with advice on how to answer them. The questions include:

• Could you tell me something about yourself and describe your background in brief? : Interviewers like to hear stories about candidates. Make sure your story has a great beginning, a riveting middle, and an end that makes the interviewer root for you to win the job.
• How do you deal with pressure or stressful situations? : Share an instance when you remained calm despite the turmoil. If it’s a skill you’re developing, acknowledge it and include the steps you’re taking to respond better to pressure in the future.
• What are your salary expectations? : Before you walk in for your first interview, you should already know what the salary is for the position you’re applying to. Check out websites such as Glassdoor, Fishbowl, or Vault.com for salary information. You could also ask people in the field by reaching out to your community on LinkedIn.

Resignation numbers have remained abnormally high in the U.S. between July 2021 and October 2021, with millions of Americans quitting their jobs  — which also means there are millions of new openings up for grabs. If you’re entering the market for the first time, or just looking to make a change, use this guide to prepare for your next interview.

• Vicky Oliver is a leading career development expert and the multi-best-selling author of five books, including  301 Smart Answers to Tough Interview Questions , named in the top 10 list of “Best Books for HR Interview Prep.” She’s a sought-after speaker and seminar presenter and a popular media source, having made over 900 appearances in broadcast, print, and online outlets.    

Partner Center

81+ Job Interview Questions and Answers for 2024 [Full List]

You applied for a job.

After you’ve created a killer resume and cover letter and passed the first screening, it's time to face the final challenge:

Your job interview.

That’s something that scares even the best of us.

Being judged by someone who has your future in their hands is one of the most anxiety-inducing experiences out there.

And, to calm you before an interview, you might have heard the interviewers and hiring managers say that there are no right or wrong answers.

But here’s the thing:

They are almost always looking for the right answers.

This is where this guide comes in.

We’re going to cover some of the most common job interview questions and answers, and turn you into a bona fide interview expert by the time you get to the end.

This guide is going to include:

22 Most Common Job Interview Questions

• 18 Most Common Situational Interview Questions
• 10 Most Common Behavioral Interview Questions
• 50 Sample Answers for Different Professions and Levels of Experience

So, let’s get started!

Job interview questions are designed to let the interviewer learn more about you and how well you would fit in with their company. That being said, there are a few questions out there that you can expect during just about any interview you go to.

Some of these include:

• Tell me about yourself.
• Describe yourself in three words.
• What do you know about this company/organization?
• How did you hear about this position?
• Why did you decide to apply for this position?
• Why do you want to work here?
• What are your strengths and weaknesses?
• What is your greatest strength?
• What is your greatest weakness?
• What is your greatest accomplishment?
• What motivates you in your professional life?
• What skills are you currently working on improving?
• What are you looking for in a new position?
• Can you describe your ideal job?
• Are you considering other positions at other companies?
• What is the professional achievement you’re most proud of?
• What kind of working environment do you work best in?
• What are your career goals?
• Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
• Why should we hire you?
• What are your salary requirements?
• Do you have any questions for us?

18 Situational Job Interview Questions

A subset of job interview questions you can expect are situational interview questions .

Typically, these questions either reference something from your resume, like an employment gap or a career change, or they present you with a hypothetical situation and ask how you would handle it.

Some of the most popular questions in this category include:

• Why haven’t you gotten your degree?
• Why have you switched jobs so many times?
• Why did you change your career path?
• Why did you decide to leave your previous job?
• Why is there a gap in your work experience?
• Why were you fired?
• How do you feel about working weekends or late hours?
• How would your boss describe you?
• What would your first 30, 60, or 90 days look like in this role?
• Are you a team player?
• Are you a risk-taker?
• How do you deal with pressure or stressful situations?
• If you had a choice, would you rather innovate a process or follow the established procedures for it?
• Do you think there is a difference between hard work and smart work?
• How quickly do you adapt to new technology?
• What are your interests outside of work?
• If you had to choose between a high-paying job you don’t enjoy and a lower-paying job you are passionate about, what would you choose?
• What do you think our company/organization could do better?

10 Behavioral Job Interview Questions

• How have you handled a challenge in the workplace before?
• Can you give me an example of a time when you performed well under pressure?
• What was a time when you showed leadership qualities?
• Describe a situation where you had to collaborate with a difficult coworker. How did you manage it?
• Tell me about a time you had to quickly adjust your priorities to meet changing demands. What did you do?
• Have you ever had to deal with a dissatisfied customer? How did you resolve the situation?
• Can you talk about a time when you had to go above and beyond your regular duties to get the job done?
• Describe a moment when you had to make an unpopular decision. How did you handle the feedback?
• Tell me about a time when you used data or analytics to make a decision. What was the outcome?
• Describe a time when you had to learn a new skill to complete a task. How did you approach it?

How to Answer 22 of the Most Common Job Interview Questions [+ Sample Answers]

These questions are the ones you’re bound to hear at just about any job interview - whether you’re an intern or a senior professional with a decade of work experience.

All of these questions are used to learn more about you, both as a person and as a professional.

If you understand what the interviewer is looking for with each of these questions, you’ll be able to give the right answer and rock that interview!

Now, we’re going to go through 22 of the most common job interview questions and sample answers for each.

Let’s get started!

#1. Tell me about yourself

This is usually the first question asked in an interview, so it acts as your introduction.

How hard can it be to talk about yourself? We do it on a daily basis, without much thought.

However, hiring managers aren’t looking for your whole life story, your third-grade achievements, or what you had for dinner last night. Instead, they are looking for a pitch.

Make sure your answer is relevant to the position you are applying for. Aim to present yourself as the ideal candidate for the job in a few words.

A good rule of thumb is to structure your talking points as follows:

• Briefly introduce yourself: What’s your name? How long have you been working in the field?
• What do you love about your job?
• What are your top 2-3 skills or achievements that are relevant to the job you’re applying for?

Now, let’s go through some sample answers:

“Hey! So, my name is John Doe and I’ve worked as a business analyst for 5+ years in Company X and Company Y.

I have some background in data analysis, having studied Information Systems at ABC University.

Throughout my career, I’ve done some pretty impressive stuff, if I do say so myself, haha.

For example, at Company X, I led a project to migrate all operations data to a new data warehousing system to cut down on costs. The new solution was a much better fit for our business, which eventually led to savings of up to $200,000 annually.”

Not bad, right? But if you don’t have a lot of work experience, you can still make a stellar introduction:

“I am Jane Doe, a recent college graduate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

I have just graduated with honors in Biochemistry. I know my way around a lab and have had multiple opportunities to put my knowledge into practice as a chemistry research assistant.

The lab felt like home, which is why I’d love to work as a lab assistant. I am passionate, hard-working, and extremely responsible. I am also looking forward to putting into practice all the things I learned during my time at university.”

Learn more about how to introduce yourself in an interview in our dedicated article.

#2. Describe yourself in three words.

There are tons of different versions of this question, like “What word would you use to describe yourself?” and “What five words would people use to describe you?” but the same idea applies to all of them.

The interviewer uses this question to test how well you can summarize your key strengths and if you can make a convincing elevator pitch in a few choice words.

So, make sure to choose words that are positive, relevant to the job, and actually reflect your personality or work ethic.

Here are a few examples to inspire you:

"Innovative, reliable, and adaptable. I tend to bring creative solutions to any challenge I’m up against. I also consistently deliver on my commitments, and I easily adjust to changes, so unfamiliar situations don’t phase me at all."

"Collaborative, diligent, and enthusiastic. The first is because I thrive in team environments, and I love working with others. Then the next one is because I pay really close attention to the details in my work; it’s almost compulsive for me. And I’m also, well, enthusiastic - I’ve been told I bring positive energy to every project I work on."

Learn more about words to describe yourself in our dedicated article.

#3. What do you know about this company/organization?

A quick search on the company’s about page should be enough information, right?

Well, yes and no.

Think of this as an open-ended question. There’s no real wrong answer here, except maybe:

“I don’t know anything about this organization.”

However, the more you actually know about the company, the better your chances of getting hired.

Imagine two equally competent candidates:

• One who doesn’t particularly care much about your company and is only applying because they know you pay a good salary.
• One who’s been following your company’s blog for ages, loves your product, and has several friends already working at the company.

Which one would you pick? The second one, obviously.

So, with this job interview question, your goal is to convince the hiring manager that you’re the right candidate for their company.

Now, how do you do that? Well, a rule of thumb here is to do some research on the company before the interview and learn the following:

• What does their product or service do?
• What impact does the product / service have?
• What’s the company's culture like?
• What is the latest news about the company? How are they performing?

...and pretty much whatever other type of information you can dig up.

Here are some possible answers to this question:

“I hadn’t heard about you until recently, actually. I found out about Company X through your job ad on RandomJobBoard.

After doing some brief research on you guys, I ended up falling in love with your software and your mission.

Now, I’ve worked with a ton of different project management software, like Software 1 and Software 2, but none of them were as intuitive as Software 3.”

“Well, I know that you’re one of the biggest investment banks in Middleton. Company X pops up on the news pretty often, and I’ve read that you’ve invested in some of the hottest tech IPOs and have several up-and-coming biotech companies in your portfolio.

I was particularly interested in your recent investment in Startup X. I found that interesting because I love robotics and it’s cool that you’re expanding in that direction.”

#4. How did you hear about this position?

Although at first glance this might seem like a straightforward question, you should use this opportunity to highlight your interest in the company.

Even if you haven’t been continuously refreshing the company’s website for job listings, you should more or less make it seem like you have. 

Start by telling the hiring manager what you like about the company or what excites you about the job opportunity.

Additionally, if someone inside the company told you about the position or recommended that you apply, definitely make sure to mention that.

You’ll have a much better chance of getting hired if someone credible can vouch for your skills.

So, mention their name and their position inside the company and give their reasoning - why do they think you’re a good fit for the position?

Some possible answers to this question might be:

“I’ve known about XYZ Tech for a long time - I’m a big fan of your products. I even own one of your latest phone models!

I love the company’s passion for creating super intuitive, beautiful hardware, and I would love to be a part of it.

So, when I saw your job ad on JobBoard Website, even though I wasn’t actively looking for a job at the time, I couldn’t help but apply!”

“I heard from Jim Doe, my old coworker and college friend, that Company X was looking for a new sales director. He encouraged me to apply and said that my experience managing a sales team at Company Y would be helpful here.

I’ve heard a lot about Company X from Jim, and I’m a big fan of the way you do things there. I’ve always wanted to work for a company with a flat organizational structure.”

#5. Why did you decide to apply for this position?

This question is something interviewers ask to see how passionate you are for the role.

And no, the answer isn’t:

“Well, I’m very passionate about not starving to death.”

“Well, I needed the money, and you guys tend to pay a lot.”

What the interviewer is looking for here is to see how passionate you are about the job or the company.

After all, job performance is directly linked to job satisfaction. The happier you are about your position at the company, the more productive you’ll be.

And here’s the kicker - your enthusiasm will be very evident during the interview.

When you’re talking to a person who’s genuinely interested in something, you can pretty much feel them glow as they talk. And if you’re a hiring manager who’s interviewed hundreds of people, this will be a good sign to hire the candidate.

So, use this knowledge to your advantage. 

When asked this question, your answer should include two things:

• What exactly motivated you to apply for this position?
• Why this specific company? Have you heard of them before?

Let’s look at some sample answers to get the point across:

“I’m very passionate about sustainability and renewable energy. In fact, I minored in Environmental Science at XYZ University.

I’ve always wanted to put my engineering degree towards a good cause - and the position as a Sustainability Coordinator at Company XYZ is just what I’ve been looking for.

I’ve been following your company for the past few years, and I love how you’re changing the renewable energy landscape in the USA.”

Keep in mind, though, that if you don’t know much about the company or the position, that’s okay, too. Just be honest and let your genuine interest in the job shine through.

That being said, we always recommend you do your homework before going to an interview.

Let’s look at an example where the candidate doesn’t know too much about the company:

“I’ve always wanted to get into marketing. I’ve done promotional jobs here and there, but I’ve never had the opportunity to do something more serious.

I do think I have just the right skills to get started, though: copywriting, basic Photoshop, and, of course, lots of creativity.

So, I thought that an internship at Company X would be an awesome start to my career in marketing.”

#6. Why do you want to work here?

This is another great question that the interviewer can use to see how much you know about the company and whether you’re genuinely interested in the role.

Here, the interviewer wants to see if you've done your research. Do you have any specific reasons for applying?

It's crucial to let your enthusiasm shine through and align your answer with the company's values and goals. 

So, avoid generic or self-centered answers like: 

"I just need a job and your company seemed okay. Plus, the salary is good." 

Saying something like that will just tell the interviewer you’re not actually interested in the job - you’re just a random applicant.

We recommend focusing on what attracts you to the company and how you can contribute to its success.

Here are a couple of examples of how to answer this question:

"I'm impressed by your company's commitment to sustainability and innovation in the tech industry. Your recent project on renewable energy actually aligns perfectly with my passion for environmental conservation. I also think my skills in software development could contribute to the upcoming green initiatives I read you’re planning." 

"Well, your company's reputation for fostering employee growth appeals to me a lot. I also read about your collaborative work culture and that sounded like a great fit for my work style. I saw that you recently expanded into some emerging markets, too, so that looks like an exciting opportunity. I actually have some experience with international business, so I think I could help out with that." 

Learn more about how to answer “ Why do you want to work here? ” with our dedicated article.

#7. What are your strengths and weaknesses?

Everyone has strengths and weaknesses, that goes without saying.

But the reason hiring managers use this question is because they want to evaluate your honesty and self-awareness. They want to see if you can give yourself a realistic assessment and if you're actively working on improving yourself.

For strengths, choose a few qualities relevant to the job and be ready to back them up with examples.

For weaknesses, on the other hand, focus on showing how you're addressing them.

Make sure you avoid any cliché answers, such as presenting strengths as weaknesses.

"My strength is that I'm a perfectionist, and my weakness is that I work too hard." 

Something like that is going to come across as insincere and it won’t provide real insight into you as a candidate.

Instead, be genuine. Show the hiring manager that you’re self-aware and give them real strengths and weaknesses with your answer.

Here are a couple of possible answers:

"One of my key strengths is my ability to lead cross-functional teams. I’m great at bringing diverse groups together to achieve a common goal. As for weaknesses, I sometimes struggle with delegating tasks. I'm addressing this by trying to consciously empower my team members. I’m trying to focus on mentoring them instead of micromanaging." 

"I'd say my strength lies in my analytical skills. I can quickly interpret data and translate it into actionable insights. My biggest weakness is public speaking, though. I've been trying to work on it by taking a Toastmasters course and volunteering to present more often in team meetings." 

Learn more about how to answer “ What are your strengths and weaknesses? ” with our dedicated article.

#8. What is your greatest strength?

Here, you want to strike a balance between what your actual strengths are and what the interviewer wants to hear.

Narrow your answer down to three strengths at most. Pick one or two skills that would help you really excel at the job and one or two personal skills or traits.

Not sure what your strengths are? No worries! Check out the table below to learn what strengths are perfect for your field:

When you pick your strengths, back them up with a specific situation or a story that shows how you’ve used them to benefit you on the job.

After all, the interviewer can’t know whether your “ leadership skills ” are an actual strength or if it just means that you were super active in your high school class.

Here are some possible answers you can check out:

“My biggest strength is that I’m good at picking up new skills. I’ve worked a variety of different odd jobs - things like working as a waiter , house-keeper, cook, and a bunch more you’ve probably seen on my resume.

For most of those jobs, I ended up picking up all the needed skills within one or two weeks, with basically no previous experience.

So, I’m pretty sure that while I don’t have any experience as a bartender, I have the right attitude, and I’m certain I can get good at it within a week or two.”

“My biggest strength is that I’m very efficient at working under pressure. No matter the crisis or amount of stress, I can make the right decisions on-the-spot.

As an event manager at Company X, we were organizing an IT conference for a client. There were a ton of last-minute hiccups - some speakers canceled and the catering company said they’d be late for the lunch break. On top of that, we were understaffed because two of our volunteer organizers got sick and couldn’t show up.

At that point, things looked so bleak that we were considering canceling the event or postponing it. Instead, I took the initiative in my hands and sorted through the problems one by one.”

Learn more about how to answer “ What is your greatest strength? ” with our dedicated article.

#9. What is your greatest weakness?

This is always a tricky one.

After all, you don’t want to highlight your flaws during an interview, so it’s guaranteed to be a tough question.

The trick to answering this is realizing that the interviewers don’t expect you to be perfect. Everyone has flaws, weaknesses, and things they need to improve about themselves.

When asking this question, the interviewer actually wants to learn:

• Whether you have the right skills for the job . If you’re applying for a position as a server in a busy restaurant and your biggest weakness is performing under pressure, then you’re definitely not getting a call back.
• If you’re self-aware and really know what your downsides are. Someone who can’t admit to a fault is someone who probably won’t take criticism well or own up for mistakes.

And no, fake humble-brag weaknesses don’t count as weaknesses. You can’t just say that your biggest weakness is that you “work too hard” or that you’re “a perfectionist.”

The key here is to mention a weakness that’s real, but not something that would get in the way of you doing your job.

You wouldn’t want to say you’re bad at math if you’re applying for an accountant position, would you?

It’s also good practice to mention how you’re working towards overcoming your weakness and that you realize how it affects you negatively.

If possible, try to balance it with a positive side effect, like two sides of the same coin.

Possible answers here might include:

“My biggest weakness has always been my communication skills . I’ve always been pretty shy and anxious, even as a kid. Over the years, though, I’ve been really working on the issue.

At this stage, I’m much better than I’ve ever been, but I’m still far from perfect.

This, however, won’t have any impact on my job as a software developer. Despite lacking communication skills, I’m very good at working in a team.”

“Well, as a recent graduate, I’d say my biggest weakness is the lack of real-life work experience .

While I’ve worked on a dozen software projects at my university, I don’t have the experience of working in a fully agile environment with an experienced team.

But I’m willing to do my best and catch up as fast as I can.”

Learn more about how to answer “ What is your greatest weakness? ” with our dedicated article.

#10. What is your greatest accomplishment?

This question is a great opportunity to share a significant achievement that reflects your character and values. 

Here, the interviewer wants to understand what success looks like to you . 

So, choose an accomplishment that shows off your transferable skills or qualities relevant to the job.

Just avoid any answers that are unprofessional, such as:

"My greatest accomplishment was catching up on One Piece. It took months of watching!" 

Personal accomplishments can also show valuable qualities like perseverance, leadership, or personal growth.

That being said, do try to focus on professional accomplishments.

Here are a couple answers you could give:

"My greatest accomplishment was completing a marathon last year. It required months of disciplined training, pushing through physical and mental barriers. The experience taught me a lot about setting long-term goals, being consistent, and how far perseverance can take you. I apply the same principles in every aspect of my life but that, by far, made me feel the most sense of accomplishment." 

"Well, I am a teacher , but what I’m most proud of is volunteering to teach English to refugees in my community. Over two years, I helped over 50 individuals improve their language skills, which helped their integration and job prospects. This experience really improved my communication skills, cultural awareness, and I learned to adapt my teaching style to meet really diverse needs." 

Learn more about how to answer “ What is your greatest accomplishment? ” with our dedicated article.

#11. What motivates you in your professional life?

This hiring manager wants to understand what drives you and what keeps you engaged at work. 

So, be honest. Think about what inspires you and try to connect it to the job or the company's goals.

Just make sure you avoid any statements like:

"I'm only motivated by money and promotions. I'll do whatever it takes to climb the corporate ladder." 

Believe us, the interviewer isn’t going to find it funny.

Besides, while ambition isn't bad, showing a lack of passion for the work itself is .

Focus on intrinsic motivations - what do you enjoy? Why does it make you feel good? And how can that benefit both you and the company over time?

Take a look at a few possible answers:

"I like solving complex problems. There's a great sense of satisfaction in overcoming challenges and seeing the positive impact of my work. I also find collaborating with talented coworkers incredibly inspiring - it pushes me to continually learn and improve my skills, so every day is a new adventure."

"What drives me, professionally, is the ability to make a meaningful difference. Whether it's improving a process that benefits my team or contributing to projects that positively impact our clients, knowing that my work actually matters keeps me engaged. I'm also really motivated by continuous learning and career growth opportunities in my field." 

#12. What skills are you currently working on improving?

The interviewer wants to see whether you're proactive about your career development and staying up to date on the latest trends in your field.

So, use this question to show your commitment to professional growth. We recommend choosing skills that are relevant to the job but not crucial to the role you're applying for.

These might be good answers:

"I'm currently working on my data visualization skills. While I'm decent at data analysis , I'm learning to use tools like Tableau to create more impactful presentations of what I find. It could help me communicate really complex information more effectively so I could show it to stakeholders, for example." 

"I've been focusing on improving my project management skills. Although my role is mainly in software development, I've been studying agile methodologies and using project management software in my personal projects, too. I think this can help me collaborate better with our project managers and even potentially let me take on leadership roles in the future."

#13. What are you looking for in a new position?

The easiest way to answer this question would be to just say that you’re looking for whatever the company is offering.

Look at it from the point of view of the potential employer. Would they hire someone if they answered this question with:

“A good salary. And, uh, well, that’s about it.”

That answer pretty much says that the moment the candidate gets a higher paying offer, they’re going to bail.

So, explain to the interviewer that this job at this company is the perfect fit for you. Mention what your short-term and long-term career goals are and how this position ties into them.

You can answer with something like this:

“I'm looking to further apply my machine learning skills that I developed during my 2+ years of work at Startup X. There, I used to do programmatic ad model design.

Now, I’m looking for an opportunity to work on a larger scale project that involves setting up programmatic ads for audiences of more than ten million people.

I’m confident that working on such a large-scale project will also give my career a significant boost.”

#14. Can you describe your ideal job?

The interviewer wants to know how well the position aligns with your personal preferences and expectations.

Of course, they’d be thrilled if your ideal job matches what they can offer, but that doesn’t mean you should just describe the exact job you’re applying for.

Be honest about your preferences while trying to align them with at least some aspects of the job you're interviewing for.

And, obviously, avoid describing a completely different job.

"My ideal job would be working as a travel blogger, exploring new places, and never being in an office."

That wouldn’t be an ideal answer for an in-house writer working at a marketing agency.

So, try to strike a balance. Talk about things you genuinely value but also highlight the things you like about the job you’re applying for.

Here are a couple of examples:

"My ideal job would involve solving complex problems in a collaborative environment. I thrive when I’m working with diverse teams, tackling challenges, and driving innovation. I'm also passionate about continuous learning, so opportunities for professional development like the ones your company offers are important to me."

"Hmm, well, I’d say the ideal job is one that lets me make a meaningful impact while growing professionally. I'm looking for something that offers a balance of independent work and team collaboration, with opportunities to take on increasing responsibilities over time. I'm also drawn to companies that value work-life balance and contribute positively to society, which is why I'm particularly excited about this position."

#15. Are you considering other positions at other companies?

This is another tricky question.

You might be wondering - how much does the interviewer actually need to know here?

On one hand, if you admit to having interviews with other companies, it might look like you’re not 100% dedicated to this one. 

But, on the other hand, if you say you are not considering other positions, it might make you seem like you don’t have other options, which could give the company the upper hand in any future salary negotiations.

So, what’s the deal with this question anyway?

Well, the interviewer is probably asking because they want to know whether they have competition in hiring you. They also want to know if you’re serious about the industry and if you’re legitimately looking to be employed in this specific field of work.

If you do have other interviews lined up for other companies, just say that you are keeping your options open but that you prefer this job to the others.

And if you don’t have any other options? Stick to the same approach.

Whatever you do, just don’t make yourself seem desperate for the job.

With that in mind, here are a few possible answers:

“Well, I’ve had two interviews during the past week with companies in X and Y industries.

But I’m very passionate about this industry and the work you’ve done over the past several years is impressive. So, I’m more inclined toward working for you if everything works out.”

“Not yet. I wasn’t really actively looking for a job until my friend, John, recommended your company. I’m not looking for just any company - I want an interesting, engaging project, like what you’re working on.”

#16. What is the professional achievement you’re most proud of?

This is another version of “Why should we hire you?” and “What is your greatest accomplishment?”

This one’s pretty straightforward. You’re just supposed to mention your greatest professional achievement and you’re good to go.

However, the achievement has to be related to the job you’re applying for. Let’s say you’re applying for the position of Sales Manager :

“In my previous sales position, I managed to hit and exceed department KPIs by 50%+ for six months in a row.”

“I’m very good at underwater basket-weaving, and I’ve woven 20+ baskets in the past year.”

See the difference?

So, find a professional achievement that shows off your skills and experience. Just make sure it’s somehow relevant to the company or organization you were part of at the time, whether that’s your previous job, volunteer position, or an extracurricular activity from your time in university.

Here are some possible answers:

“My biggest achievement is the fact that I went from being an intern to managing company X’s entire marketing over two years.

As an intern, I basically had zero instructions on what to do - it went like, ‘Hey, go learn social media advertising and get it going.’ The founders didn’t exactly expect me to achieve much and didn’t particularly care since they were 100% focused on making the product work.

Instead of just complaining about a lack of direction, I started reading up on digital marketing - pretty much anything I could get my hands on. I learned how to do content marketing for example, from Neil Patel’s blog and started putting everything into practice.

My first success was getting an article to go viral, which generated over $5,000 in revenue in a single day. While that’s not much for a software company, it felt like a lot for an intern.

After that, the founders gave me a lot more trust and they assigned me a small marketing budget of $1,000 per month. I had a lot more confidence in my abilities, so I started experimenting with other strategies.

Then, over the next two years, I got promoted to Head of Marketing. After making a couple of hires, I managed to scale up our marketing efforts, growing the company from $2,000 to $30,000 in monthly recurring revenue.”

“My greatest professional achievement so far is graduating from University X within four years, with a GPA of 3.9. My family wasn’t able to support me financially, so I had to take care of all the bills on my own.

But hard work and dedication paid off. I ended up graduating with almost no student loans. I managed this through a combination of:

• Working part-time while studying
• Doing seasonal full-time work during the summer
• Maintaining a high CGPA and winning two scholarships over four years

It wasn’t easy but it’s definitely something I’m proud of.”

#17. What kind of working environment do you work best in?

The point of this question is to see whether you’ll fit in with the company’s working environment.

For example, some organizations are pretty structured and hierarchical. They require tight organization and have a well-planned day filled with rules and guidelines on how to do things.

If you’re the creative, think-out-of-the-box type who likes to break the rules and innovate, this probably won’t cut it for you.

But other companies are more laid back, with a lot less bureaucracy. The type that says ‘go get us more sales’ and lets you do your own thing.

But if you’re the type who prefers to have strict to-dos and objectives, you probably won’t enjoy that job as much.

So, what’s the takeaway? Different people work best in different environments, and that’s okay.

Before you go into the interview, go through the company’s website and social media pages to get a sense of the general vibe and environment there.

You can also look at employee reviews on GlassDoor , or if you know someone already working there, ask them. 

Answer accordingly, depending on what you learn. For example:

“I work best in smaller companies. I really dislike the corporate world - rules, guidelines, SOPs, and so on. I perform best when I have a certain level of freedom to do things. Want to find innovative solutions to problems you didn’t even know you had? I’m your guy.

Want someone to just blindly follow instructions and do what they’re told? Then we probably wouldn’t be a good fit.”

“I love working in a youthful, energetic environment. You know, when you’re working on a common goal with a team of people who are as passionate as you are?

I like to think of my work as a second home and my coworkers as family. 

The last company I worked at had an environment like that, and I excelled at the job.

I have had that exact feeling about Company X since the moment I walked in here for the interview. So, I’m pretty excited to get to know how you guys work!”

#18. What are your career goals?

This question helps the hiring manager understand what your long-term aspirations are and how the role fits into your career path .

They want to see if your goals align with what the company can offer and if you're likely to stay and grow with them. 

So, be honest about your ambitions, but also show how they connect to the position and company you're interviewing for.

Whatever you do, don’t tell them they’re basically a short-term stepping stone for you.

"My goal is to start my own company within the next two years, so I'm just looking for some experience." 

No one could blame an interviewer for not calling you back after an answer like that.

Instead, try giving an answer like:

"In the short term, I want to become an expert in my role. I’m looking forward to continuously improving my skills and contributing to team projects. Then, in the long-term, I want to move into a leadership position where I can mentor others and drive innovation in the field. I'm excited about the growth opportunities your company offers since they seem to match my goals perfectly."

"My biggest career goal is to develop a comprehensive understanding of the industry. I want to have all the know-how necessary to contribute to its advancement. I'm passionate about staying at the forefront of emerging technologies in fintech. Eventually, I want to take on a role where I can influence strategy and maybe drive change on a larger scale. Your company is super progressive and forward thinking, so I think that’s a great match for me.” 

Learn more about how to answer “ What are your career goals? ” with our dedicated article.

#19. Where do you see yourself in five years?

Sometimes the honest answer to this is, “Hopefully not doing this.”

Especially with entry-level jobs.

But don’t think the hiring manager doesn’t know that. They just want to hear you say that in a more diplomatic way.

Generally, what the interviewer wants from this question is to learn whether you’re an ambitious person and if your career expectations are realistic or not.

Make sure to avoid any of the cliche answers, like:

“In five years? I’ll be in your seat, haha.”

As cute as that might be, the interviewer wants a real answer.

So, think realistically about what the next step after this position is and whether it is possible to reach it within the company you are applying for.

“Within the next five years, I’d like to reach the position of a Senior Business Consultant. By then, I would like to have accomplished a few things, like:

• Helping over 20 organizations improve their businesses.
• Create a personal network of highly specialized professionals.
• Learn as much as I can about optimizing and improving clients’ businesses, as well as the essentials of operating a company.”

“As a start, I want to learn if accounting is the right field for me. While I loved what I studied at university, I want to see if actually working in the field feels the same.

If I do end up enjoying it, I’d like to specialize in either internal auditing or forensic accounting, since I really like to discover and solve problems. From what I’ve seen from your job ads, you guys are hiring for both, so I hope it’s going to be possible to move up from the position of an intern within the next few months!”

Learn more about how to answer “ Where do you see yourself in five years? ” with our dedicated article.

#20. Why should we hire you?

This is the ultimate humble-brag question. 

The trick here is to sell yourself without looking arrogant, desperate, or needy.

You want to stay away from the extremes here. For example, if you think you’re a good fit for the job, say that you “have the right experience.”

But whatever you do, don’t oversell yourself. Grandiose statements like “I’m the best salesman you’ve ever met!” don’t do anything to convince the hiring manager.

Instead, make a more general statement and back it up with your experiences and notable achievements .

There are three things you can mention:

• That you’re super passionate about working for the company, and why
• Which of your skills and experience fit their requirements for the role
• How you’re going to help the company solve their existing problems

Some possible answers include:

“Well, as a start, I have all the skills and work experience required for the job. I’ve worked as a Sales Manager for 5+ years, and over the past two years, I’ve closed several deals totaling six figures.

On top of that, I have experience working with tech companies, so I’ll be able to pick up all the product specifics much faster than someone from a different background.”

“I have just the right skill-set to excel as an executive assistant . While I haven’t previously worked as a personal assistant, I pretty much fit the bill for the role.

I’m extremely organized, having managed several project teams at my university. I led the organization of a charity event and the graduation ceremony. In total, both involved continuous communication with 12+ companies, over 30 speakers, and 15 sponsors.

I’m very meticulous and organized, and I’m more than capable of helping the CEO get the most out of their free time.”

Learn more about how to answer “ Why should we hire you? ” in our dedicated article.

#21. What are your salary requirements?

This is always a tricky question.

On one hand, you don’t want to lowball yourself, but at the same time, you don’t want to be told “no” because you gave such an outrageous number.

When negotiating your salary , keep these three things in mind:

• What’s the average salary for someone of your skill-level?
• How much does the company pay employees of your skill level? Websites like GlassDoor should be super helpful here.
• How much are you getting paid at your current company? In most cases, you can probably negotiate a pay bump from what you’re currently getting.

The final number you tell them should incorporate all three of these points.

And, generally speaking, if you know for a fact that the company is doing well and compensating its employees accordingly, you can quote a higher salary.

The same goes if your skill-level is above average for the position - your salary should reflect your expertise.

As a rule of thumb, you can figure out two numbers: what’s your “good” scenario, and what’s the “best” scenario?

Always answer the interviewer with your “best” salary requirement. They’ll probably negotiate it down, and you’ll be left with something closer to the “good” number you thought up.

You could also answer with a salary range instead of a specific number. Though, keep in mind that they’ll probably pick a number somewhere in the middle of that range.

“My salary expectation is around $70,000 annually.”

“My salary requirement is in the $30,000 - $40,000 range, annually.”

#22. Do you have any questions for us?

You’re going to hear this question at the end of every interview you attend. 

While there isn’t a right answer, there is definitely a wrong one, and that’s:

“Nope, all good! Thanks, I’ll be on my way.”

This question lets you show your enthusiasm about the company, so don’t waste it.

Besides, imagine that they’ve already hired you and you’re starting tomorrow. What would you want to know about them?

Keep in mind, though, that the questions you ask shouldn’t be too easy or too obvious. Asking, “So, what does your company do?” won’t sit well with the interviewer, especially if it’s at the end of your interview.

Other than showing the hiring manager that you’re really interested in working for them, this is your opportunity to really find out more about the ins and outs of the place.

And the answers you get from the interviewer could also tell you whether you really want to work there or not. 

But what kind of questions can you ask? Here’s a list of some of the best ones:

• What does a regular day at this company look like?
• What’s the best thing about working for the company?
• What’s the worst thing about working for the company?
• What would you say are the biggest challenges a person in this position might face?
• What are the most important skills and qualities one must have to succeed in this position?
• What do you like best about working for this company?
• What are the most pressing issues and projects that need to be addressed?
• Do you have training programs available to employees?
• What sort of budget is there for my department?
• What kind of opportunities do you have for future development?
• What are the performance expectations for someone in this position?
• Do departments usually collaborate with one another?
• Do you celebrate birthdays or retirements in the office?
• Do employees usually hang out with each other outside of work?
• Is there anything else I can help you with at this stage?
• What is the next step in the hiring process?

For a complete list of all the questions you can ask the interviewer , check out our article!

How to Answer 18 of the Most Common Situational Interview Questions [+ Sample Answers]

You’ve made it past the difficult part. 

You already know the most common job interview questions, so you can probably handle whatever the interviewer throws at you.

Depending on your specific situation, though, you might also need to learn how to answer a few situational job interview questions.

These questions can also be pretty varied, and sometimes they can be used interchangeably with behavioral interview questions, which we’ll cover further down in this article.

As a rule of thumb, situational interview questions will ask you about a situation .

This might be unique to you, such as something from your resume , or it might bring up a hypothetical situation so the interviewer can learn more about how you think.

The best way to explain this is by breaking down some of the most common situational interview questions.

So, let’s dive in!

#1. Why haven’t you gotten your degree?

As a start, keep in mind that the interviewer isn’t necessarily judging you for your level of education .

If they were looking for someone with a better degree, they wouldn’t have invited you to an interview to begin with. The lack of a degree probably isn’t a dealbreaker here, but your answer to the question could be.

With this question, the interviewer is trying to see your reasoning for pursuing a career instead of getting a degree, whether that’s a BA, MA, Ph.D., or something entirely different.

So, explain why you didn’t think that another degree was the right thing for you at the time.

Just don’t say you were lazy, that you didn’t feel like it, or that it’s a waste of money, even if that might be the case.

Instead, try giving compelling arguments, such as:

• You wanted to see whether it was the right field for you.
• You didn’t have the financial resources at the time.
• You wanted to get some practical work experience before committing to a degree.

“At this stage of my life, I decided to pursue a career instead of furthering my education. On the one hand, I want to make sure that Marketing is what I want to do with my life.

On the other hand, I also think that in my field, practical work experience is a lot more valuable than any academic theory I could learn.

So far, my decision has paid off pretty well - I’ve already gotten a lot of experience doing online marketing for 3+ companies and delivering great results.

I might eventually decide to pursue a Master’s degree to get some specialized knowledge, but at this point, I really don’t see the point in that.”

“Because it’s not in sync with my future career path. I think that for software engineering, practical experience matters a lot more than having a degree.

I’ve already done an internship as a Junior Javascript Back-end Developer, and I believe that it gave me a lot more knowledge than my B.A. in Computer Science, so I dropped out after two semesters.

While I am eventually planning on finishing my Bachelor’s, it’s going to be in a more theoretical field, like Artificial Intelligence or Robotics.”

#2. Why have you switched jobs so many times?

If you’ve switched jobs in a very short period of time, like two or more full-time positions in the span of one year, the interviewer is likely to ask about it.

After all, job-hopping is one of the biggest red flags for HR managers.

You might have had a good reason for it, though. For example, maybe the second company you got hired in just wasn’t a good culture fit for you.

But you’ll have to communicate that.

Employers tend to be skeptical for some of the following reasons:

• You might be a job hopper . Some people tend to switch jobs the moment they get a better salary offer, which puts a strain on companies looking for serious employees.
• You might be unqualified for the job and have left your previous jobs because you couldn’t deliver.
• You might get bored easily at work and your solution to that is to quit.

So, your job here is to convince the interviewer that you don’t belong to any of those categories. 

You need to make them believe that you won’t just jump ship a couple of months after getting hired because a recruiter PM’d you on LinkedIn with a better offer.

The best way to answer this question is to explain the exact reason you switched jobs. It could be one of the following:

• The company's culture wasn’t a good fit. This happens to the best of us - sometimes, the company just isn’t the right one.
• The job description was misleading and you ended up doing something you either didn’t enjoy or were not qualified for.
• You learned that you simply didn’t enjoy the job, whether because of the work environment, internal processes, or something related to your tasks. While this isn’t the best answer, it’s honest, and chances are, the hiring manager will understand.

“The last company I got hired at just wasn’t what I expected. The hiring manager didn’t communicate the role well enough.

As you already know, I’m a copywriter - I write sales copy. I work with landing pages, email marketing, and sales pages.

But around a week after I started work at the company, I realized that they were actually looking for something completely different. They asked me to write generic blog and social media posts, which is pretty far off from what I do.

This really wasn’t what I expected, and it’s not something I find interesting.”

“Well, as a start, my first job was in a big corporation straight out of university. While I did learn a lot there about Software Engineering practices, I also learned that a huge company with lots of regulations, rules, and the like just isn’t for me.

So, at the end of my internship there, I decided to try working at a startup. I enjoyed that job a lot more, as it gave me a lot of freedom when it came to problem-solving. I wasn't told how to do everything, rather, I was given the option of coming up with my own solutions.

Unfortunately, the company went up after failing to raise money, which put me back on the job market.

And here I am. XYZ Company is pretty much the place I’ve always wanted to work, from what I’ve heard about your company culture, and I thought I’d really fit in here.”

#3. Why did you change your career path?

If you recently made a career change , the interviewer is sure to ask about it.

But don’t worry - there’s nothing wrong with taking a different career path. 

Lots of people go through a career change . Some even do it several times in their lifetime!

As long as you’re good at what you do, no one cares if you were a pediatrician in one year and a professional chef the next.

When you get this question, all you have to do is answer honestly. Explain how your old job just wasn’t for you at this stage in your life and how the job you’re applying for is so much more interesting and aligned with your new career path .

“I just realized that being a doctor isn’t for me. While I did enjoy my time in medical school, the commitment was too much. I couldn’t spend so many years studying while my family was supporting me.

I wanted to start making money and help them out way before that, so I dropped out of university and started taking online courses in accounting .

At this point, I’m pretty good at it, having done two internships so far in Company X and Company Y.”

“Simply because I enjoy sales much more than accounting. After five years of working as an accountant for Company X, I decided I wanted to try something new.

I asked my boss at the time to let me switch to the sales team, and I ended up liking it and being pretty good at it. I learned a lot, and I’m ready to take the next step in my career.”

#4. Why did you decide to leave your previous job?

There are a few things the interviewer wants to learn from this question.

First, did you have a good reason for leaving your last job? The hiring manager doesn’t want someone who leaves the second things go south.

“Oh, well, the company started bleeding cash and was on its way to bankruptcy, so I left.”

“I just felt like it was time - I got to a point where everything I was doing felt monotonous. I learned as much as I could in that position while delivering great results. But it was time to switch to something new.”

The hiring manager also wants to know if you left on good terms. Meaning, did you go through the offboarding process, instructing your coworkers on how to take up your responsibilities? Or did you just say “bye” and stop showing up at work?

“Things started to get really boring, and the boss man was kind of annoying. I figured I deserve better, so I just ghosted them and now I’m looking for a new job.”

“I didn’t feel like the company’s values matched mine. The management was too controlling and micromanaging everything. I prefer to have some control over my work so I can go above and beyond when I see an opportunity.

Of course, I went through the off-boarding properly. So, I discussed things with my manager, gave a timely notice of resignation, and transferred everything I was working on to my replacement.”

Another thing the hiring manager wants to know is if you left voluntarily or if you were fired.

“I got fired for consistently being late.”

“I was fired, actually. The fault was mainly in my communication skills at the time. I misunderstood my supervisor’s instructions and ended up setting a higher monthly spend on an ad account for the client. The losses were less than 3-figures, but apparently, the relationship with the client was already strained, so they ended up leaving.

I really took this to heart and worked very hard on improving my communication skills to make sure that I don’t make any mistakes like that again.”

#5. Why is there a gap in your work experience?

In most cases, a gap in your work experience doesn’t really mean anything. You probably have a very good reason for it.

But the interviewer will definitely ask about it, and you should be ready to give an adequate answer.

There’s no secret to answering this question; you just need to let the interviewer know about your situation, whatever that may have been. Examples include:

• Parental leave
• Health issues
• Taking care of a family member
• Time off to pursue further education
• Relocating to a different city
• Working on a personal project

Whichever the case may be, just explain the situation briefly and move on.

There’s just one thing you should keep in mind: If you were laid off at work or you quit and had trouble getting a new job after that, you should be very subtle about it.

If the interviewer knows that you’re struggling to find a job, you’re going to give them the upper hand in salary negotiations.

“I had a baby and had to take maternity leave to take care of my family.”

“I was really burnt out by my job at Company X, so I wanted to take some time to myself to recover. I used that to get back into school and get my Master’s degree, which put me back on track to pursue the career I want.”

#6. Why were you fired?

Now this is a tough one.

Getting fired is pretty much never good.

Keep in mind that we’re talking about getting fired, not getting laid off. There’s a huge difference between the two.

• Getting laid off means that you got let go for something that had nothing to do with your competence. This could be budget cuts, company down-sizing, etc.
• Getting fired , on the other hand, means that you got let go for a reasonable cause. And chances are, it’s probably your fault.

If you’re applying for a job after getting fired and the interviewer asks you about it, you should be honest. After all, they can easily check-in with your previous employer.

Your best shot here is to be critical about your mistakes and explain what you’ve done to improve.

“None of it was my fault! My boss was mean and just hated me for no reason.”

An answer like the one above just makes you look defensive, and that’s a huge red flag for the hiring manager.

Instead, try saying something that shows that you’re aware of your shortcomings.

“The main fault was a miscommunication. The interviewer at my previous company wasn’t clear about the job responsibilities - from what I understood, they were looking for a senior-level marketer to oversee their email marketing operations.

At the end of the day, though, it turned out that the company was looking to experiment with email marketing and needed some specifically to set it up from scratch.

While I did my best to deliver, in the end it turned out that their niche doesn’t actually need email marketing. This was against the management’s vision, so they decided to let me go.”

#7. How do you feel about working weekends or late hours?

Usually, you can expect this question if you’re applying for a job that requires working odd hours or shifts.

In that case, your answer should be pretty straightforward - since you’re applying for the job in the first place, you probably don’t have any problems working at unusual times.

“Sure! I’m okay with working late hours or weekends, as long as you let me know about it at least a few days in advance.”

However, if you’re applying for just about any other type of job, this question is a huge red flag.

Here’s the thing: Is the employer just checking your dedication to the role, or are they looking for someone who’s going to work 24/7 with no overtime pay?

In this case, ask them to clarify what they mean.

“Given enough warning, sure, emergencies happen. Is that something I’ll be required to do often? Do you offer overtime pay for this kind of situation?”

#8. How would your boss describe you?

This question is pretty similar to “What is your greatest strength?” with the main difference being that it should be from the point of view of your boss or coworkers.

Here, you want to focus on your best traits and achievements that you’ve been praised for. After all, the interviewer might ask for a reference .

There are a couple of ways to answer this question:

For example, you could describe a specific situation where you excelled at work and received praise from your boss.

“They’d say I’m super hard working. During my weekend-off, not one, but three of my coworkers got sick, and I had to spot for them.

The weekend was peak season in Nantucket, so the restaurant was getting seriously overwhelmed. All of a sudden, we went from being very prepared for the season to complete panic.

I had to jump between serving, bussing, and line-cooking, but overall, I managed to survive through the weekend successfully. My boss was super grateful, too.”

Alternatively, you could quote a performance review.

If you’ve previously worked in an office job, you’re probably all too familiar with these.

And if your boss gave you a glowing performance review? Make sure to mention it here!

“Well, in my last performance review in September, my boss described me as someone who takes initiative.

My position as a PR manager involves constantly keeping track of our clients brand reputation and, if something goes wrong, dealing with it as fast as possible.

In a lot of cases, you need to be very proactive - if you wait for your entire team to have a meeting on how to deal with the issue, it might already be too late.

There were 4-5 different situations where I had to take charge and react to problems literally the moment they arose, whether it was during my work hours or not.”

#9. What would your first 30, 60, or 90 days look like in this role?

If you’re applying for a senior or leadership role, you’re probably going to get this question.

Chances are, at this stage of the interview, you already know a lot about your future position and the company.

Now, it’s time to show off your knowledge of the field and explain how you’re going to start making things happen at the company.

So, here’s how to answer the question:

You’re probably going to need to get to know the company first. You’re going to be learning as much as possible, including information on:

• What does the company do?
• What are the key processes?
• What does your department do?
• What are the current problems and challenges?
• Where can you help?

Here, you’ll start making an impact. From all the information you’ve gathered so far, suggest a few initiatives you could take on. Examples include:

• You’d audit the company's email marketing strategy and suggest improvements.
• You’d help come up with better ad copies for Facebook marketing.
• You’d help the team with their ongoing marketing initiatives.

At this point, you should already have an effect on the company. Describe several things you think are going to be working better than before you joined. Some examples could be:

• Online ads are going to perform better by 10-20%
• Email marketing operations are going to be more streamlined, taking significantly less manpower

Sound good? Now, let’s look at a sample answer to this question in action:

“Okay, well… in the first 30 days, I’d dive into understanding the company, our processes, and the team’s challenges. I’d get to know what we do, who our key players are, and where we need help.

Then, by 60 days, I’d start making changes. Things like improving our email marketing, refining ad strategies, and supporting ongoing projects.

At 90 days, I’d aim to have already left a mark. I think we could boost ad performance by 10-20%, streamline email operations, and start seeing real improvements in our marketing efforts. I want to make a positive impact quickly.”

#10. Are you a team player?

Wherever you’re applying, the answer to this question should pretty much always be some version of “Yes!”

Even if you’re applying for a completely solo role, you’re probably still going to have to work with a team occasionally. 

We’d recommend being very specific about your answer here. Don’t just say yes, give the interviewer a specific example of when you excelled at working as part of a team.

“I’m much better at working as part of a team than alone, actually. That’s what I love about working in advertising - everyone has their own specific type of creative spark, and when you combine it all, magic happens!

I’m good at both leading and following in terms of creativity and brainstorming. I’m also super receptive to others’ ideas and do my best to help them execute it without nay-saying or criticism.”

“Yep, definitely. I excel at team-work. 

This one time, while working at Company X, I was assigned to an existing team working on a web application for a business process management company.

They were working on a tight deadline and needed help on the API side.

I optimised their development cycles and oversaw a team of three developers while collaborating with the other two dev teams.

Everything went pretty well, and we managed to finish the project on time.”

#11. Are you a risk-taker?

This one can be tricky and the answer here depends on your profession and field.

Just ask yourself: Is risk-taking a valuable skill for the job?

If you’re a pilot, for example, the answer should be a strict “No!”

But, on the other hand, if you’re a day trader, then risk is an essential part of your job.

So, depending on how valuable risk-taking is for your job, answer accordingly.

You could also give a more strategic answer.

Let’s say, for example, you work in investment banking. You need to be a risk taker to some extent, but being too risk-friendly might make the entire company go bankrupt.

The strategy here would be to show that you’re all about calculated risk . You’re willing to take chances, but only when the odds are in your favor.

Try to give examples of situations where you had to take risks, and what the end-results were.

Let’s look at some possible answers:

“Yes, I’m a risk-taker. I believe that to achieve real results, you always need to be willing to take a certain level of risk.

Pretty much any marketing initiative you launch is tied to risk. You can plan everything from the beginning until the end, but no matter how well you plan it out, things might just not work out.

It’s just part of the job - in order to succeed, you need to launch risky campaigns on a regular basis, and hopefully, one in every five is going to bring you massive results.”

“I’m not a risk-taker; I’m more of a risk-manager. As someone who’s been in finance for years, I can say with a lot of confidence that there’s risk in everything.

The most important things are to one, minimize your risks; and two, minimize potential damages if everything goes very, very wrong.

While working at Investment Bank X, we had a very interesting policy for investing in new fintech projects. We used to avoid moon-shots, high-tech projects, and anything that had an experimental business model.

Our strategy was to invest in proven technology. As in, proven product-market fit, business model, etc. In most cases, these were runner up companies. We wouldn’t invest in that one innovative company that was all over the news - we’d instead invest in their latest competitor. More often than not, this ended up being more profitable and significantly less risky.”

#12. How do you deal with pressure or stressful situations?

If you’re applying for a high-stress job, you’re guaranteed to be asked this question.

The aim of this question is to see if you’re the type of person who would survive working at the job or fall through the cracks when the first signs of trouble show up.

So, obviously, you wouldn’t answer with something like:

“Well, I tend to have panic attacks and cry easily, so I end up running away from work sometimes.”

(Although, if that’s the case, we really don’t recommend you go for a high-stress job to begin with.)

Instead, say that you perform well during stressful situations and give one or two examples of a situation where you had to perform well under pressure.

Here are some possible answers to inspire you:

“Well, I can’t say I particularly enjoy stressful situations, but I am very good at working under pressure.

During chaos and panic, I tend to take a step back, think, plan, and prioritize.

For example, there have been times I’ve had to juggle multiple university projects and assignments at the same time. I would break up large assignments into small, individual tasks and prioritize based on things like:

• How fast I could complete each task
• Which task would take the longest
• Which project had the earliest deadline

This way, my work became a lot more manageable. The more times I had to go through that, the better I performed overall.”

“I actually prefer working under pressure. I look at it as a challenge - a situation where I really have to up my game to succeed.

As a cook, working under pressure is pretty much part of the job. I’ve been in several situations where the restaurant was understaffed for the occasion. In fact, it’s pretty much a constant thing during peak season.

When there’s a ton of orders coming in and we can barely keep up, I tend to get significantly more productive than usual. Funny enough, my manager even said the kitchen has more blunders when it’s slow than when it’s a rush. I guess we just adapt to that really well.”

#13. If you had a choice, would you rather innovate a process or follow the established procedures for it?

This question is meant to assess your approach to problem-solving and your adaptability in the workplace .

The interviewer wants to understand if you're more of an innovator or if you prefer following protocol.

There are no right answers here. Different roles and different companies are going to value different approaches.

Just avoid any extreme answers that might make you seem too rigid or reckless. Such as:

"I always prefer to follow established procedures. Change is risky and unnecessary if things are working fine."

Try to strike a balance here. Show the hiring manager that you don’t have a problem doing things the way you’re supposed to, but that you’re also not afraid to try something new.

"I think there's value in both. It really depends on the situation.

If the current process is fine, I'd follow it. But if I see potential for improvement, I'd do some research, propose changes, and look for feedback. Then I might try doing things my way.

It’s always good to try something new but it shouldn’t be at the expense of what already works great, you know?"

"Honestly, I prefer following established procedures. That way, I can always ask for advice or have something to fall back on.

I can try and figure something out on my own if I have to but I would always start out by following the go-to way to do things."

#14. Do you think there is a difference between hard work and smart work?

By definition, hard work is when you, well, work hard. It’s when you’re willing to put in a lot of work to get the job done.

Smart work, on the other hand, means doing the work efficiently. If you manage to get the job done in two hours instead of five, with the same end-result, you’re doing smart work.

Keep in mind, though, that by asking this question, the interviewer is looking to understand what your work ethic is like.

Meaning that they’re looking for a healthy combination of both, not just one.

So, they want you to be the candidate who can think smartly and work hard. 

Here’s how you can explain how you excel at both:

“I don’t really have a preference - I believe that both hard and smart work are important to get the best results.

Smart work lets you figure out the best and most efficient way to get things done.

But hard work means that you’ll do the job right. Even if there’s no way to do it smartly or efficiently, you’ll be willing to put in long hours of work to get it done.

I’d say I’m the type who does both. 

For an example of smart work, during my time at XYZ Corp, I was in charge of the sales department. As a process improvement initiative, I migrated from an outdated, in-house CRM to Pipedrive. This improved the department’s productivity by around 20%.

But the whole migration process took around three months of hard work. As the software we were using was outdated, trying to learn how to map and migrate our data was a lot more complicated than we’d expected.”

#15. How quickly do you adapt to new technology?

Today, whether you’re applying for a software engineering job or as a cashier in a supermarket, you’re going to need to use technology, at least on some level.

And it’s very common for a company to adopt new tech. This could be a new point of service system, self check-out kiosks, customer management software, or whatever else.

Generally, you should be able to pick up new tech as soon as possible. Any new change shouldn’t completely disrupt your work.

So, when answering this question, you should talk about your computer skills and how tech-savvy you are.

Here are a few possible answers:

“I’m pretty tech-savvy. I’ve worked with a lot of different Point of Service systems so far and have zero difficulties learning how to use new ones.”

As a given, I own a PC, have used Office 365, and all the usual stuff.”

“I’ve always been interested in tech. In fact, I’m the type of person who actively seeks out new software to help solve business problems at work.

I’ve worked with 3 different Customer Management Softwares in the past, such as PipeDrive, SalesForce, and Zoho CRM.”

#16. What are your interests outside of work?

If the interviewer asks you this question, take it as a good sign!

It means that they liked your professional background, and now they’re just trying to get to know you and see if you’re a good fit for the company culture.

It’s pretty hard to go wrong here, unless you’re going to say something like:

“I don’t really have hobbies. Sometimes I play video games, I guess?”

Now, there’s nothing wrong with playing video games, but the goal here is to get you to talk about your hobbies and interests .

Bonus points if you can mention something that’s also relevant to your job. For example, creative writing if you’re applying for a copywriting job.

Let’s check out some possible answers here:

“I’m a big fan of creative writing. I have my own personal short-story blog and I contribute actively to several online writing communities, like /r/WritingPrompts on Reddit.

Oh, and I’m also a huge fan of the New York Giants.”

“Well, I’m very interested in all sorts of sports. I like to keep active, as it really helps keep me productive. Over the past two years, I’ve done a bit of everything - fencing, archery, hiking, and several other things.”

#17. If you had to choose between a high-paying job you don’t enjoy and a lower-paying job you are passionate about, what would you choose?

This question is designed to give the interviewer insight into the values and priorities in your career.

They want to understand what motivates you and how you balance job satisfaction with other important factors, like your salary.

There's no universally "correct" answer here, but it is important to be thoughtful and explain the reason behind your answer.

That being said, avoid saying something that leans too far in either direction. You don’t want to seem like you’re solely motivated by money or that you don’t care about your salary at all.

"I'd definitely choose the high-paying job. At the end of the day, money is the most important thing in a career."

The best approach is to show that you value both job satisfaction and financial stability, and explain how you'd try to find a balance.

Here are a couple of possible answers that could work:

"Well, financial stability is important but I think that having passion for my work is crucial for any long-term success or satisfaction.

I'd lean towards the job I'm passionate about since it's likely to be better for me mentally , and it could lead to better performance and opportunities for growth.

But I'd also work to increase my value in that job. Maybe I could eventually get both, but I would prioritize passion for sure."

"That’s a tough one. Generally, I value both job satisfaction and financial security. Ideally, I would look for a middle ground – a job that I enjoy and that also provides fair compensation for me.

But if I’m forced to choose, I would probably go for the job with better compensation. I have too many responsibilities to prioritize a fun job over a good salary.

Besides, I’m a pretty curious person, so I’m sure I could eventually find satisfaction in any type of job. I just think I would find it hard to really enjoy a job if I felt like I wasn’t being compensated properly."

#18. What do you think our company/organization could do better?

Well, this one’s interesting!

While not too common for most organizations, it’s a favorite amongst tech companies.

Answering this question shows a couple of things:

• You’re genuinely passionate about the organization, and you’ve done your research
• You’re not afraid of giving feedback

Obviously, you should be very political about your feedback. You can’t just say something like:

“Well, a lot of things, really. I’m not enjoying the interview process, for example. And your product could use a lot of work, no offense. But hey, there’s always room for improvement, am I right?”

Instead, you want to show off the research you’ve done. Talk about anything that might seem off about their product or business. Such as:

“I actually went through your resume builder before coming to the interview and found several things that seemed kind of counter-intuitive.

Not to say that it’s too hard to understand or something, but it took me a while to figure out some stuff.

If you want, I can open up my laptop and show you what I mean.”

How to Answer 10 of the Most Common Behavioral Interview Questions [+ Sample Answers]

Finally, behavioral job interview questions are questions that focus on how you’ve performed in the past and give the hiring manager an idea of how you would behave in their organization.

These questions are used to understand your problem-solving abilities, thinking patterns, and whether you can think on your feet.

Just about any behavioral interview question can be answered by using the STAR method .

The STAR method gives you a structure your answer should follow. The acronym stands for:

• (S)ituation - Set the scene and give the interviewer context for the story you’re about to tell them.
• (T)ask - What was your role in this example? Describe what the specific problem or responsibility you had to handle was.
• (A)ction - Explain all the steps you took towards addressing your task.
• (R)esults - Wrap up your example with what the results were. If possible, provide numbers or other concrete data.

Want to learn more about STAR interview questions ? Check out our dedicated article on the topic.

Now, let’s check out the sample answers to the ten most common behavioral interview questions:

#1. How have you handled a challenge in the workplace before?

Situation: “During my last job, I was managing the creative and web development team in charge of creating an online store for a client. Two days before deploying, we found a major bug that messed up the whole front-end user experience.”

Task: “Now, we could have pushed the deadline a bit, but that would have messed up the relationship with the client. The project was already postponed once because of unforeseen circumstances, so this one was a do or die. We had to figure out a way to fix it on time.”

Action: “I briefly discussed it with the management team and assembled a task force consisting of web developers from my team and some software engineers from another department. We focused 100% of our time on fixing the issue and even got in a few hours of overtime to make sure we were on track.”

Results: “It was hard work but we actually managed to launch on time at the end. The client was happy, and the team was relieved that all our efforts paid off.”

#2. Can you give me an example of a time when you performed well under pressure?

Situation: “As a seasonal worker, I’d say my entire career is high-pressure. My last position was as a line cook during the summer tourist season at the XYZ Restaurant near Yellowstone Park. There was a lot of work, and the restaurant was pretty much always full.”

Task: “On one occasion, the town we were in was hosting a festival, so we suddenly had this huge wave of hungry tourists, all at once. We had no time to prepare, so we had to roll with it and make sure everyone was served.”

Action: “I coordinated with the hostess and expo to make sure they were pacing the customers, not seating everyone at once. That way, the line cooks had more time to prepare everything. We encouraged them to seat smaller parties first, like two to four people, so we could get their food out faster. Bigger tables are always a challenge, especially during a rush like that. Every second counts when you’re working in a kitchen, so we used every spare moment to prep for the expected large parties.”

Results: “In the end, it worked out. We managed to roll out all the food on time, there were no complaints about quality, and though we were all stressed out by the end of the night, the customers were happy. It goes to show how teamwork can really make or break a high-pressure situation.”

#3. What was a time when you showed leadership qualities?

Situation: “As an entry-level marketer , there wasn’t much expected of me at XYZ Company.

Task: “My main to-dos involved doing research and completing whatever tasks were assigned to me. But one day, during a brainstorming session with the content marketing team, I had a chance to give my input.”

Action: “I came up with a pretty good idea of how to market the company. The gist of it was that we’d interview company clients who were very successful at using our software product, then create case studies on what exactly they’re doing, and include them in our email marketing strategy.”

Results: “The Chief Marketing Officer loved the idea and put me in charge of executing the project and it worked like a charm. We secured five new clients within the first two months of the campaign.”

#4. Describe a situation where you had to collaborate with a difficult coworker. How did you manage it?

Situation: "At my previous job, I was part of a project team working on a new product launch. One of my team members, let’s call him John, was particularly difficult to work with. He often dismissed others' ideas and insisted on doing things his way, which created tension within the team."

Task: "As the project coordinator, it was my responsibility to ensure the team worked smoothly and efficiently, which meant finding a way to work with John and keeping the project on track."

Action: "I decided to have a one-on-one conversation with John to understand his perspective better. I approached him in a friendly and non-confrontational manner and asked for his input on the project. During our conversation, I realized that he felt his expertise was being overlooked. I acknowledged his experience and suggested that we incorporate some of his ideas while also encouraging him to be open to others' contributions. I also made sure to involve him more in decision-making processes to make him feel valued."

Results: "After our talk, John became more cooperative and started listening to the team’s suggestions. The atmosphere improved significantly, and we were able to complete the project on time. Our collaborative efforts led to a successful product launch, and I even received positive feedback from my manager on how I handled the situation."

#5. Tell me about a time you had to quickly adjust your priorities to meet changing demands. What did you do?

Situation: "Last year, I was working as an editor for a publishing company. We were in the middle of finalizing the edits for a big book release when our CEO suddenly decided to push forward the launch date by two weeks."

Task: "I needed to quickly adjust my priorities and ensure the book was ready for the new deadline. This meant reworking my schedule and coordinating with the rest of the editorial team to speed up the editing process without compromising quality."

Action: "I immediately called an emergency meeting with my team to discuss the new timeline. We broke down the tasks and redistributed the workload to make sure everyone was on the same page. I also reached out to the author and designers to let them know about the change and get their commitment to the new schedule. To stay on track, I set up daily check-ins to monitor our progress and address any issues that came up quickly."

Results: "Thanks to the team’s hard work and cooperation, we managed to meet the new deadline. The book was released on time and received positive reviews. Our CEO appreciated our flexibility and dedication, and it was a great example of how we could come together to handle unexpected changes effectively."

#6. Have you ever had to deal with a dissatisfied customer? How did you resolve the situation?

Situation: "Yeah, I’ve had to deal with upset customers before. One time, when I was a retail manager at a clothing store, a customer came in really frustrated because the dress she bought a week ago had torn after she wore it once."

Task: "I had to calm her down, fix the issue, and make sure she left happy."

Action: "I listened to her, apologized for the problem, and took a look at the dress. I told her that we want our customers to be satisfied with our products. I offered her a choice between a full refund or a new dress. To make up for the trouble, I also gave her a discount voucher for her next purchase. I made sure to report the issue to our supplier to avoid this happening again."

Results: "She was pleased with how we handled everything. She exchanged the dress and even used the voucher to buy something else. Later, she left a nice review about our customer service. So, by listening and being helpful, we turned a bad situation into a positive experience for her."

#7. Can you talk about a time when you had to go above and beyond your regular duties to get the job done?

Situation: "Definitely. When I was working as a customer service representative at an online retail company, we had a customer who ordered a gift for her daughter's birthday. Unfortunately, there was a mix-up with the shipping, and the package was delayed, so it would arrive after the birthday."

Task: "I needed to resolve the issue and make sure the customer was happy, even though it wasn't technically our fault that the shipping company delayed the package."

Action: "I apologized sincerely for the inconvenience and assured her I would make it right. I arranged for a replacement gift to be sent overnight at no extra cost and offered a partial refund for the trouble. Additionally, I personally wrote a card and included a small complimentary item from our store as a gesture of goodwill. I also kept the customer updated throughout the process to ease her concerns."

Results: "The customer was thrilled with the quick resolution and the extra effort we put in. She received the replacement gift the next day and was very grateful for the card and the complimentary item. She sent a thank-you email and later left a glowing review about our exceptional customer service . By going above and beyond, we managed to turn a negative experience into a positive one, and she became a loyal customer."

#8. Describe a moment when you had to make an unpopular decision. How did you handle the feedback?

Situation: "As a project manager in my previous role, we were nearing the deadline for a major project, but it became clear that we wouldn't meet all the client's additional feature requests without pushing the timeline significantly."

Task: "I had to make a tough call to prioritize the core requirements and inform the client that we couldn't accommodate all the requested features within the original timeframe."

Action: "I met with the client, explained the impact of adding the features on time and budget, and proposed focusing on delivering the core project scope. I also suggested incorporating the additional features in future phases."

Results: "Initially, the client was disappointed, but they appreciated my transparency and how I understood their needs. We agreed on the core scope for the initial release, so that maintained project timelines and kept the client satisfied."

#9. Tell me about a time when you used data or analytics to make a decision. What was the outcome?

Situation: "As a business development manager , I needed to find new growth opportunities for our software products."

Task: "I had to figure out which markets would be most promising for us to focus on."

Action: "I dug into our customer data and market trends using our CRM system. I also looked at what our competitors were up to. Based on all that, I recommended that we target the healthcare sector, where there seemed to be a rising demand for our software."

Results: "We shifted our strategy to concentrate more on healthcare. It paid off because we started getting more leads and ended up signing some major new contracts in that sector. Using data to guide our decisions really helped us expand into a profitable new market."

#10. Describe a time when you had to learn a new skill to complete a task. How did you approach it?

Situation: "I remember one project where I needed to create animations for a client's website redesign."

Task: "To do this, I had to learn Adobe After Effects, which was totally new to me."

Action: "I started by watching tutorials online and taking a beginner's course. Then, I practiced in the evenings, experimenting with different features until I felt comfortable navigating the software."

Results: "After a few weeks of learning and practice, I successfully created the animations the client wanted. They were really happy with the results, and it added a dynamic touch to their website. Learning After Effects did a lot more than help me finish the project, though. I’d say the whole experience broadened my skills as a graphic designer , so it was great."

Want to learn more about behavioral interview questions ? Check out our in-depth guide here.

[BONUS] Job Interview Questions Infographic

Now, it’s time for a quick recap!

Check out our new infographic on some of the most common job interview questions and how to answer them:

Key Takeaways

And we’re finally here!

If you managed to get to this point, you definitely deserve a high-five!

Now, to wrap up this article, let’s go through a couple of essential tips on acing your interview:

• Make sure you’re prepared to answer all the common job interview questions. Wherever you’re applying, you’ll likely be asked several of them.
• Think of the answers you’ll give for the situational interview questions that apply to you. Be ready to talk about any gaps in your work experience, why you didn’t complete your degree, or anything else that the hiring manager might ask.
• Understand how to answer behavioral job interview questions with the STAR method. Make sure you have a few examples ready before the interview.
• Make sure you follow basic interview etiquette. Maintain eye-contact with the interviewer, be polite, dress for success, and so on.

And finally, good luck on the interview! You got this!

To provide a safer experience, the best content and great communication, we use cookies. Learn how we use them for non-authenticated users.

Every other Tuesday, you’ll get actionable tips to land your dream job.  Subscribe

• Interview Questions & Answers

Common Interview Questions (Tips + Sample Answers)

If you’re like most people and freak out at the feeling of being interrogated during a job interview… we have great news for you.

There are some common interview questions you’re almost guaranteed to hear.

Knowing them and getting prepared is by far the most important thing to do before a job interview. Once you’ve done it, the interviewing nightmare might actually turn out to be a pleasant conversation.

That’s what we’ll help you with. In this article, you’ll learn:

• Most common interview questions
• How to prepare and practice your answers to questions that will be asked
• Must-know rules of interview preparation
• Sample common interview question answers to get you inspired

The most common interview questions fall into these categories:

• General interview questions
• Behavioral interview questions
• Competency-based interview questions
• Situational interview questions
• Cultural interview questions

You’ll hear the majority of them during an interview, so let’s break them down.

Want to get an offer after every interview? Our interview prep tool will guide you through all the questions you can expect, let you record and analyze your answers, and provide instant AI feedback. You’ll know exactly what to improve to turn your next interview into a job.

ACE YOUR NEXT INTERVIEW

Our users land jobs 4 to 5 weeks faster than the national average. Get ready for your interview now .

Common general interview questions

General questions are there to help recruiters get to know you and your professional past and future better. Some of the most common ones include:

Can you tell me a little about yourself?

This is one of the versions of the “Tell me about yourself” question and it’s typically asked at the very beginning of each interview.

It’s a nice ice-breaker and a chance for recruiters to get to know the person behind the resume.

When answering this question, you should deliver an elevator pitch and follow the present-past-future formula .

Talk about your current position and who you are at this point in your career: your position, current company and industry, and a few accomplishments will be more than enough.

Then touch upon your past experience, education, and transferable skills, but mention only things relevant to the position you’re applying for.

Finally, reference your future and career goals, as well as how this position fits there. It’ll be a nice demonstration that you’re a great fit for the role.

Tell me about yourself: Sample answer

My name is Dave Palmer and I’m from New York. I work as a Director of Email Marketing — I lead a team of 5 email marketers, 2 designers, and 2 copywriters and create email marketing strategies for our clients. It’s been great so far, we’re constantly expanding our clients’ businesses and building their brands. Our latest segmentation project skyrocketed our biggest client’s revenue by 29%.

Prior to this position, I worked as an Email Marketing Manager in the ecommerce industry, after obtaining my MS in Integrative Marketing at NYU. Marketing was always my passion.

Although I enjoy working in email marketing for the ecommerce space, after 6 years I feel like it’s time for a change. Travel and hospitality were always attractive to me because of my hobbies, and I believe switching to this industry would help me further grow my skills and make meaningful contributions.

What interests you about this position?

Recruiters want to know what made you apply to this role in order to know if you’re gonna be a good fit.

In your answer to this common interview question, you need to emphasize why this position is tailor-made for you. Prove that it’s a good fit for your skills and experience and how it can help you further grow in your career.

You can also mention why you think you’ll be successful in that position. You can do it either by listing key skills that make you a great fit or recall one or two (related) accomplishments and how you can achieve similar results for this company, too.

Why do you find this position interesting: Sample answer

Why do you want to work for our company.

This question is partially similar to the previous one. But with “Why do you want to work here,” recruiters want to know what made you apply and how you’ll fit in, if you have what the company needs, and if your career goals align with what the company has in plan for the open position.

So you need to sell yourself and show why you and this company are a good fit for each other.

To do this, focus on 3 elements:

• Why do you want to work at this particular company
• Why does this particular position interest you
• Why you’ll be successful in that role

The key here is to research properly and show you’re in the loop with what this company does, as well as industry news and standards. You’ll want to show how the company stood out when you decided to apply.

Then, provide reasons for why this position is interesting to you (refer to the question above), and provide proof that you’ll be successful in it (again, mention key hard and soft skills, as well as a few quantifiable achievements; your past is the best indicator of your future performance).

Why do you want to work here: Sample answer

If you need more tips that’ll help you rock absolutely any interview, we’ve prepared a free course in which we teach you how to speak about your strengths, sell yourself, and negotiate the salary and benefits of your dreams.

What are your career goals?

Your career goals will tell recruiters about your long-term thinking, proactiveness, and the direction you want to take in your career.

As always, your answer needs to be tailored to the company and the position you are applying for (so if your goal is to get your yoga teacher certification so you can teach random classes when you feel like it, you should not mention that in your “career goals”).

Mention both short and long-term goals (a few months vs. a few years) and make sure you have an action plan and actual details on how you want to get to your goals.

And if you can, tie your plans to the company you’re applying for, aka, show them how they fit in with this picture and how they could benefit from your career progression.

What are your career goals: Sample answer

Where do you see yourself in five years.

This one’s a variation of “What are your career goals?”

Interviewers want to know about your career plans and if their company has a place in your professional future.

That’s why you should emphasize the alignment between your goals and the company’s objectives, show you’re dedicated to professional growth and continual learning, and showcase your adaptability and the ability to handle change (HR managers love flexible candidates!).

Where do you see yourself in 5 years: Sample answer

Why are you leaving your current job.

Now, this is a tricky question.

Interviewers want to know if you have a good reason for leaving your current job, as well as what you want from a new job, as your answer will help them understand your values and what motivates you in your professional life.

Of course, you don’t want to lie, but you also might not be able to be 100% honest (You can’t really say you’re running away from micromanagement, bad working conditions, and toxic leadership — badmouthing never looks good).

Common reasons for leaving a job include wanting growth and more responsibility, industry change, relocation, work-life balance, values alignment, or personal reasons you don’t really have to share, so try to center your answer around these reasons.

Whatever your reason is, your answer should be brief, positive, and focused on you. Do not badmouth your ex-managers and company or complain about a particular situation that made you make the decision to leave.

Why are you leaving your current job: Sample answer

Or, if you’re experiencing toxic leadership or micromanagement (which is really common but also really hard to talk about), the template below might help, as it leaves a positive impression but also helps you establish what you don’t want to happen again:

What can you bring to this role that others cannot?

This is basically another way of asking “Why should we hire you?”

And it’s straightforward: they’re asking you why the decision of hiring you is a good business decision for them.

Depending on how you want to present yourself, you can choose a variety of angles: general, enthusiasm, the perfect fit, one in a million, listener, numbers, long-term vision, fresh perspective, and network.

You can read all about them in the article linked above: the whole point is to take some of your strongest skills or traits and construct your answer around them.

What can you bring to this role that others cannot?: Sample answer

For common mistakes you’ll want to avoid when answering this question, check out the video below:

Common behavioral interview questions

Behavioral questions aim to discover how you act in certain situations. They’ll usually start with “Tell me about a time when…” or “Describe a situation when you…”

When answering behavioral questions, it’s best to rely on storytelling and using the STAR format (Situation — Task — Action — Result). You should briefly describe the situation/problem and set the context, speak about the tasks and actions you took to resolve it, and say what the results were.

Here are some common behavioral questions you’re likely to hear at a job interview.

Can you describe a time when you had to deal with a difficult colleague or customer?

With this one, recruiters are trying to gauge your communication and interpersonal skills, as well as how you handle unpleasant situations.

Your answer will be especially important if you applied for a project manager/team lead position (as you get to handle multiple people and resolve their conflicts) or a customer service/sales position (it’s difficult to deal with unhappy customers and difficult prospects).

Here, you’ll want to showcase traits such as patience, persuasive communication, staying calm in stressful situations, and similar. It’s best to do so through storytelling.

Can you describe a time when you had to deal with a difficult colleague or customer?: Sample answer

Tell me about a time you had to prioritize multiple tasks or projects.

Time and task management are invaluable skills for pretty much any position.

And with this question, hiring managers want to check if you’re an independent worker or if you need someone to hold your hand. They also want to know how your mind works, how you set priorities, and if you’re able to juggle several things at the same time.

Tell me about a time you had to prioritize multiple tasks or projects: Sample answer

How do you handle stress and pressure.

Bear in mind that this question doesn’t necessarily mean that the position you applied for is stressful.

Instead, interviewers ask it in order to check how you deal with stress in general. In any company, there will be ups and downs, and it’s important that you display you handle pressure in a healthy and productive way.

How do you handle stress and pressure?: Sample answer

Describe a situation where you took initiative or demonstrated leadership.

Especially important for project management or team lead positions, however, it’ll come in handy for just about any position.

Even if you never had any managerial duties, taking initiative or demonstrating leadership can be about organizing events, leading a project, or coaching someone.

Describe a situation where you took initiative or demonstrated leadership: Sample answer

Tell me about a time when you had to solve a problem creatively.

Recruiters want to see if you’re capable of thinking creatively and taking unique approaches to solving problems. It’ll show them you’re focused on solutions, not problems.

Tell me about a time you had to solve a problem creatively: Sample answer

Can you share an example of a time you failed and how you handled it.

Handling your failures gracefully is very important.

With this question, recruiters want to see if you’re self-aware enough to see and admit your failures and if you’re wise enough to learn something from them.

Can you share an example of a time you failed and how you handled it?: Sample answer

Describe a situation when you had to work with a team to achieve a goal.

Teamwork is one of the most desirable skills to have.

Recruiters want to know if you can integrate into any team easily, collaborate with others, and share credit with a team.

Describe a situation when you had to work with a team to achieve a goal: Sample answer

Common competency-based interview questions.

These are the questions to check your knowledge of specific tools and processes that are needed for the position.

Please note that these questions will vary across industries and positions.

What software are you most proficient in?

Depending on the position or the industry, this can be an SEO tool like Ahrefs or Semrush, or email service providers like Mailchimp or Klaviyo, or graphic design tools like Adobe Photoshop or Figma, or a project management tool like Asana or Notion, or a CRM system like Salesforce, and similar.

The whole point of this question is to gauge your proficiency — the recruiters will need this info to check your seniority, it may show them you need additional training or that you can train others, it may be a factor when deciding on your offer, and similar.

Can you describe your experience with specific tools or technologies relevant to the role?

This is the perfect opportunity to display your hard skills and the areas you’re proficient in.

It’s similar to the previous question and recruiters will use it to gauge your seniority, which in turn will affect your offer (salary, benefits).

How do you stay updated on industry trends and best practices?

This is where you want to showcase your curiosity and commitment to lifelong learning.

Make sure you mention digital news platforms, newsletters, forums, groups, seminars, and similar tools that help you stay in the loop and continuously learn more about your industry.

What projects have you worked on that demonstrate your technical skills?

Pick your favorite or most successful project to showcase your technical skills.

Recruiters want a well-rounded image of you as a professional, so make sure you provide details in your answer.

Describe the project, the challenges you faced, how exactly your technical skills helped you overcome them, and what you learned from the experience.

Can you explain a complex technical concept in simple terms?

No matter how experienced you are and no matter how many complex skills and technical knowledge you possess, you’ll need to be able to break them down into digestible chunks and explain them in simple terms.

During your career, you’ll probably have to train a new employee, or write an article for a wider audience, or explain the context behind a project.

And if you use complex industry and position-specific terms, you won’t reach your audience and no one will understand you.

That’s why you need to demonstrate you can easily explain complex concepts in simple terms. It’s a useful skill that will bring you a lot of points in your professional life.

Template answer for competency-based questions

Because there are so many different competencies that are key to different positions and industries, creating a relevant sample answer would simply not be possible. That’s why we’ve prepared a template answer that you can use and modify for your own situation:

Common situational interview questions

As their name suggests, situational questions will present a hypothetical situation and ask you what you would do in that situation.

Situational questions help hiring managers see how you’d think and react in specific circumstances.

These questions are also awesome for assessing your problem-solving, communication, and time and task management skills, as they will put you in situations commonly encountered in that particular industry/position.

Below are some common situational questions you’ll hear in an interview.

How would you handle a situation where you disagree with your manager’s decision?

Are you able to present your thoughts in a respectful manner? How do you handle disagreement? Do you try to find a middle ground or do you agree with the manager right away?

How you answer this question will say a lot about your ability to accept and tolerate differences and disagreements.

How would you handle a situation where you disagree with your manager’s decision?: Sample answer

If you were given a project with a tight deadline, how would you manage your time and resources.

Once again, recruiters want to check the way you think and organize your time and tasks, as well as how you work under pressure.

Other things your answer will reveal: do you ask for help? Do you openly say that something is not feasible? Do you break a project down into smaller tasks? How do you prioritize things on your plate?

If you were given a project with a tight deadline, how would you manage your time and resources?: Sample answer

How would you deal with a team member who isn’t contributing their fair share.

Are you able to gracefully provide negative feedback? How do you deal with unpleasant situations? How do you stop a conflict from escalating? How do you motivate coworkers?

Your answer will tell volumes about your teamwork.

How would you deal with a team member who isn’t contributing their fair share? Sample answer

If you had to choose between meeting a deadline and delivering a high-quality product, which would you prioritize and why.

Now this is a tough one, especially because each project/product is different and you, as a candidate, don’t have any details and are still in the hypothetical realm.

But interviewers want to know how you think — and the best option here would be to show them how diplomatic you are.

In your answer, you’ll want to say it depends on the project scope, what a team wants to achieve, and what was agreed on.

There’s no secret recipe for answering this question: the whole point is to show that you’re diplomatic and that you take different factors into account.

If you had to choose between meeting a deadline and delivering a high-quality product, which would you prioritize and why? Sample answer

How would you handle a dissatisfied customer or client.

In case you haven’t noticed, interviewers are big on communication and interpersonal skills. That’s why there’s a variety of questions that aim to assess these skills — and this is one of those variations.

Although this is hypothetical, we’re pretty sure that you did have an unpleasant experience with a client, customer, coworker, or even your peers at university. Draw from that experience when creating your answer.

How would you handle a dissatisfied customer or client?: Sample answer

Common questions about company culture and your overall fit.

Company culture is a set of values, beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors, that you as a candidate and the company you applied for need to share in order to have a successful collaboration. And oftentimes, it’s a vital component that many companies use to make their final decision about you.

In order to check if you’re a culture fit, there’s a variety of questions recruiters will ask you to check your work ethic and style, your values, what makes you thrive in a company, how you would get along with your future team, and similar.

Here are some of the questions you’re likely to hear.

What type of work environment do you thrive in?

Is it a startup or a corporation, a big or small team, a team that nurtures trust and collaboration, in-office or remote, etc.

There are so many options here — what’s important is that you know what you want and have a specific answer ready. That’s the only way for you and the prospective company to decide if you’re a good fit for each other.

What type of work environment do you thrive in? Sample answer

How do you define success in your career.

This question will help recruiters check your career goals and aspirations, as well as your values.

It’ll help them figure out if what you’re looking for in a career aligns with what is planned for the open position you applied for — after all, this factor can determine if you’re gonna be successful in happy in your new role or not.

How do you define success in your career? Sample answer

What management style do you work best under.

If you’re working under a management style that doesn’t really fit you, it can negatively affect your performance and enthusiasm.

That’s why it’s important to work with a manager you trust and whose style suits you.

Recruiters know this and asking this question will help them figure out if you’re likely to get along with your new potential manager and if you’ll fit in with the team well.

What management style do you work best under? Sample answer

How do you balance work and personal life.

Your answer will tell recruiters about your values, priorities, boundaries, and what work-life balance even means to you.

A balanced life will help you achieve optimal results at work — so what you say here matters.

How do you balance work and personal life: Sample answer

What motivates you at work.

People can be intrinsically motivated (a sense of purpose, helping others, developing skills, life-long learning) or extrinsically motivated (raises, bonuses, more days off, benefits, etc.).

Usually, we’re all motivated by a balance of these things, but picking your brain on the topic will help recruiters figure out how to keep you happy and motivated in your new position.

What motivates you at work?: Sample answer

Can you describe your ideal team or colleagues.

What you value in others says a lot about you.

Recruiters will therefore ask this question to see what type of person you are, what type of people you prefer, and how you’ll fit in with the rest of the team.

Can you describe your ideal team of colleagues?: Sample answer

How do you handle constructive criticism or feedback.

No one likes to be criticized but sometimes that’s the only way to grow. Recruiters know it.

That’s why they’ll want to make sure you’re an open-minded person that takes constructive criticism or feedback gracefully, without getting defensive.

Not only are such people great to work with, but they’re also bound to quickly progress in their careers. Be one of those people.

How do you handle constructive criticism or feedback? Sample answer

Basic rules of job interview preparation.

Now that you know the intention behind each common interview question, here are some tips on how to prepare for the interview .

Research the company

This is the basic step but not many candidates do it.

Researching the company (their website, social media, forums, Glassdoor, hiring platforms, etc.) will let you stay in the loop with the company’s initiatives, employees, reputation, and similar.

This will help you reduce anxiety during the interview, but it’ll also make you look confident and resourceful. Depending on the info you obtain, you’ll be able to break the ice and prepare nice topics for chit-chatting, or suggest improvements (this will definitely bring you bonus points and help you stand out).

In addition, you’ll know exactly what sets the company apart, why you’d like to work there, and if you and the company are a good fit for one another.

Study and understand the job description

Knowing the ins and outs of the job description will help you figure out what exactly the company needs and what they intend to do with the position.

It’ll definitely give you an angle through which you’ll answer the most common interview questions, as you’ll know exactly what skills and key accomplishments to emphasize and position yourself as the perfect fit.

Prepare your responses to the most common questions

Job interviews are one of those things that always make everyone nervous — and that anxiety often interferes with our ability to say relevant things in a coherent way.

The only way to stop this is to prepare in advance.

This usually means writing down key points you’d like to mention and then practicing until you know exactly what and how you want to say things.

Our Answer Builder can come in handy, as it will let you jot down ideas and provide tips for answering some of the most popular interview questions (for other questions, you can use a general Free Form).

Run a mock interview with a friend or someone who knows your professional self

You can practice with a friend — or you can use our Mock Interview Practice Tool which is specially designed to give you feedback and actionable tips on how to improve.

You can expect valuable info on the quality of information you mentioned, the power words you used, your pace of speech, filler words, pauses, the vocabulary you used, and so much more.

Remember, you don’t want to learn your answer by heart. It’ll make you sound robotic and boring, and you won’t be able to pick up where you left off in case a recruiter interrupts you.

Running a mock interview helps ensure you know what you’ll say and how you’ll say it, but leave room for improvisation as it’ll help you sound relaxed and prepared.

Big Interview helped AJ land his first job in tech and get 7 job offers in the process . “I think Big Interview was super helpful in that aspect of having canned answers for every possible scenario and being in the moment of answering those questions.”, said AJ.

Prepare the questions you’ll ask at the end of the interview

We can’t emphasize enough how important asking the right questions at the end of the interview is.

If you have no questions, it’s likely that you’ll come across as disinterested and unprepared.

But asking great questions will show recruiters that you’re resourceful and serious about this position. It’ll also give you a lot of valuable info.

Here are some good examples:

• How will you measure success for this role?
• Where do you see me in the next 3/6/12 months?
• What are your team’s biggest strengths and challenges at the moment?
• Why is this role open?
• Who would not be a good fit for this team and company?
• How many people have been internally promoted in the last year?

The more specific the interviewer gets in their answers, the better. Check out the article above for a full list (including some ones recruiters won’t be expecting).

Dress appropriately

How to dress for an interview is usually going to depend on the type of company and you’ll certainly want to ask around and research the company’s dress code.

If you’re applying for an executive position in a huge corporation, then sure, you can wear a suit or a skirt and a blazer or any other formal combination.

But if you’re applying in a startup or in a company that’s not too formal, you can opt for trousers or even black jeans paired with a blouse, polo shirt, knee-length dresses or skirts if you’re female, etc.

What matters is that your clothes are decent, tidy, ironed, and that they’re comfortable and make you feel confident.

Arrive early

Early is on time, on time is late, and late is unacceptable.

Besides, if you arrive 10-15 minutes early, it’ll give you enough time to find your way around the building, cool down, settle down, and get used to the surroundings, all of which will help you be more relaxed and comfortable.

But if it’s an online interview, there’s really no need for this. Arriving a minute or two before the interview starts is totally cool.

Follow up with a thank-you note after the interview

It’s critical that you follow up with the interviewer after the interview and send a thank-you note .

It’s common courtesy but it will also set you apart as, let’s be honest, not many candidates do it anymore.

You’ll want to send it immediately after the interview (24 hours after the interview at the latest). It’ll reinforce the good impression you left on an interview and prove you’re a seasoned professional who knows hiring tips and tricks.

Customize the thank-you note and make sure to include specific details you mentioned in your interview. Finally, restate your interest in the position.

Common Interview Questions: Key Points to Remember

• The main groups of questions you’ll get asked are general questions, behavioral questions, situational questions, competency-based questions, and questions about company culture and overall fit.
• General questions are there to break the ice and get the conversation going.
• Behavioral questions look at your past professional experience and behavior.
• Situational questions put you in hypothetical situations to check how you’d react.
• Competency-based or technical questions aim to assess your knowledge of platforms and the industry (your hard skills).
• Questions about overall fit aim to understand your values and if you’d fit in with the rest of the team.
• Prepare your questions in advance and practice them. This is what makes the biggest difference on interview day!
• Researching the company and studying the job ad will help you craft targeted answers and impress the interviewer.
• Sending a post-interview thank-you note is an easy way to make you stand out.

_________________________________

Need a hand? There are 2 ways we can help you:

• To learn how to land an offer after every interview, discover actionable lessons and interview practice here (Rated with 4.9/5 by 1,000,000 users).
• Learn how to effectively describe your current role and responsibilities here .

Should I memorize my answers to the most common interview questions?

Never! You need to remember all the key points you want to mention, but memorizing the entire answer by heart will make you sound monotonous and robotic (and yes, recruiters will know you learned your answer by heart). You want to know what exactly you want to talk about, but leave some room for spontaneity and improvisation in order to sound natural.

What interview question is asked most often?

Questions such as “Tell me about yourself,” “Why should we hire you,” “What are your strengths,” and “Where do you see yourself in 5 years” are some of the most common questions you’ll hear at any interview.

Are different questions more common across different stages of interviewing?

Yes. For example, you’ll hear “Tell me about yourself” only on your first interview. More technical and situational questions will come in the middle. Negotiating your salary and additional perks will come in the later stages.

What are the best questions to ask at the end of an interview?

Some of the best questions to ask at the end of an interview are:

Should I start job interviews with my elevator pitch?

You can use your elevator pitch when asked the “Tell me about yourself” question, which you’ll 99.9% likely hear as the very first question in your interview.

Maja Stojanovic

Turn interviews into offers

Share this article

• Big Interview
• Plans & Pricing
• Higher Education
• Editorial Process
• Resume Templates
• Interview Preparation
• Interview Q&A
• Career Advice
• Create an Account
• Knowledge Base

©️ 2024 Skillful Communications, Inc. | Big Interview is a trademark of Skillful Communications, Inc.

Terms | Privacy Policy

50 Example Phrases: How to Introduce Yourself in a Job Interview

How to introduce yourself in a job interview.

When introducing yourself in a job interview, it’s important to tailor your introduction to the specific job you are applying for.

To customize your introduction:

• Research the company and job position : A successful introduction demonstrates your knowledge about the company and the position you’re pursuing. Take the time to learn about the organization’s values, culture and key accomplishments. Understand the main requirements and duties of the job, and be prepared to discuss how your skills or experience relate to them. Example: “I’m very excited to be here for this marketing coordinator position. I’ve been following your company’s growth and the award-winning campaigns you’ve produced, and I feel strongly aligned with your innovative and results-driven approach.”
• Highlight relevant skills and experience : You don’t need to list all your skills or work accomplishments. Choose a few that are directly related to the job and will be of interest to the interviewer. Focus on your strengths that match the position’s requirements and explain how they can benefit the company. Example: “In my previous role as a content marketing specialist, I gained experience in writing engaging newsletters, managing multiple social media accounts, and coordinating with freelance designers. I believe my background in content creation and project management would make me a valuable member of your team.”
• Connect your values to the company’s : Emphasize the shared beliefs that make you a good fit for the organization. Talk about what you admire in their work and demonstrate how your personal values align with the company’s mission or culture. Example: “I value your company’s focus on sustainability and community involvement, as I have been volunteering at a local environmental nonprofit for the past two years. I’m excited about the opportunity to contribute to your marketing initiatives and benefit both the environment and our community.”

Examples of Effective Introductions

• The Classic Approach: Start by briefly mentioning your name, current role, and your key accomplishments. For example, “I’m Alex. I recently completed my degree in Marketing and managed a successful social media campaign for my university’s annual event.”
• Highlight Your Skills: Mention one or two skills that are relevant to the role you’re applying for. You could say, “I’m a web developer with extensive experience in JavaScript and PHP, and I’ve created several high-performing websites for local businesses.”
• Connect with the Company: Show your enthusiasm and knowledge about the company by mentioning a specific project or accomplishment that resonates with you. For instance, “I’m a graphic designer with a passion for eco-friendly product packaging. I was impressed by your recent sustainable packaging initiative and would love to contribute my creativity to your team.”
• Tell a Short Story: Use a brief, engaging anecdote that aligns with the job you’re interviewing for. This can demonstrate your personality and ability to think on your feet. For example, “I’m Emma, last year I organized a charity event where I managed 50 volunteers and raised over $10,000 for a local hospital. I’m excited about the opportunity to apply my project management skills to this position.”
• Emphasize Mutual Connections: If you have a connection with someone who already works at the company, mentioning it can provide a personal touch. Just make sure to ask for permission first. An example could be, “Hi, I’m Mike. I’ve been working as a data analyst for five years and recently met your colleague, Laura, at a conference. She spoke highly of your company, and I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to interview for the team.”

How to Introduce Yourself in a Job Interview: 50 Example Phrases

• Hi, my name is [Your Name].
• Thank you for inviting me to interview for [Position Name].
• I’m excited to be here and learn more about this opportunity.
• I’ve always been interested in [Industry Name].
• My background is in [Your Field].
• I studied [Your Major] at [Your College/University].
• While attending [Your College/University], I [Relevant Experience].
• My most recent role was as a [Your Previous Position].
• I have [Number of Years] of experience in [Your Area of Expertise].
• I’ve worked with companies such as [Company Names].
• I’ve held positions like [List Relevant Positions].
• I’ve successfully managed projects like [Project Names or Descriptions].
• My skills include [List Relevant Skills].
• I’m particularly adept at [Specific Skill or Experience].
• I pride myself on my strong work ethic and dedication.
• My attention to detail has led to various successes in my career.
• I’m a strong communicator, both written and verbal.
• People often describe me as [Positive Personal Trait].
• I enjoy working in teams and believe in the importance of collaboration.
• I excel at working under pressure and meeting tight deadlines.
• I am particularly passionate about [Area of Interest].
• In my spare time, I like to [Personal Interest or Hobby].
• I’m always eager to learn new skills and take on new challenges.
• I have experience with [Software/Tools] commonly used in this field.
• I’ve taken courses in [Relevant Coursework].
• My proudest accomplishment in my career so far was [Achievement].
• I think my experience aligns well with the requirements for this position.
• I’m drawn to this opportunity because [What Attracted You to the Job].
• I believe I can make a strong impact in this role by [How You Can Contribute].
• I have a proven track record of [Positive Outcome].
• I’m confident in my ability to take on this role and exceed expectations.
• I understand the importance of [Key Concept in Industry].
• I’ve kept up-to-date with recent developments and trends in [Industry].
• I am well-versed in [Industry Knowledge].
• My experience includes working with [Diverse Groups or Clients].
• I’ve honed my leadership skills through [Experience or Specific Role].
• In addition to my professional experience, I have a [Certification or License].
• I am fluent in [Languages Spoken].
• My technical skills include [Programming Languages or Other Technical Skills].
• My expertise covers [Broad Aspect of Your Field].
• I’m eager to bring my unique perspective and experiences to this position.
• I’m confident in my ability to work independently and efficiently.
• I enjoy connecting with others and building strong relationships.
• My approach to problem-solving is both analytical and creative.
• My resilience and adaptability have been valuable assets throughout my career.
• I have experience working with [Specific Demographics or Clientele].
• I’ve developed a strong understanding of [Industry-Specific Processes].
• I’m not afraid to tackle complex projects head-on.
• I am confident that my experience and passion make me an ideal candidate.
• I’m looking forward to the opportunity to contribute to [Company Name] and grow in this role.

Closing Your Introduction

To leave a lasting impression at the end of your introduction, it’s important to emphasize your enthusiasm for the role and tie your experiences to the position. Use a simple yet strong closing statement that reiterates your enthusiasm for the job. For example, you can say:

Thank you for this opportunity, I am really excited about the prospect of joining your team and believe my skills are a great fit for this position.

When closing your introduction:

• Reiterate your interest : Showing genuine interest in the job lets potential employers know that you are truly passionate about the role.
• Highlight your skills again : Remind your interviewers of your key skills and how they make you the ideal candidate. You can use a phrase like “ I am confident that my expertise in [your top skills] would make a valuable contribution to [company name] “.
• Stay positive and upbeat : Maintain a friendly and positive tone at the end of your introduction to give the interviewer a sense of your attitude and energy.
• Show gratitude : Don’t forget to express your appreciation for the interview opportunity, because it leaves a good impression and shows your respect for the process.

Following Up After the Interview

In order to make the most of your job interview experience, following up is a crucial step that you should not overlook. Here are some key points to remember when it comes to following up after the interview:

Example 1 Hi [Interviewer’s name], Thank you for taking the time to discuss the [job position] with me. I enjoyed learning more about [company name] and the role, and I believe my skills and experience, such as [mention specific skills], would be a great fit for this position. Please let me know if there’s any additional information I can provide. Best regards, [Your name]

Example 2 Hi [Interviewer’s name],

I hope all is well. I was wondering if there’s any update regarding the [job position] hiring process. You mentioned the selection process might take around two weeks, and I wanted to follow up on my candidacy. Please let me know if you require any further information from me.

Thank you, [Your name]

• Keep track of your interviews: It’s helpful to maintain a record of all the companies you have interviewed with, including their contact information, interview date, and position you applied for. This way, you can easily monitor your job search progress and organize your follow-ups in a timely manner.
• Stay connected on LinkedIn: If you had a positive interview experience and you believe there could be future opportunities at the company, consider connecting with the interviewer or relevant team members on LinkedIn. This can help keep you on their radar for potential future openings and strengthen your professional network.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is an effective structure for a self-introduction in a job interview.

An effective structure for a self-introduction consists of a greet, stating your name, a brief overview of your background, sharing your relevant experience and skills, and expressing your interest in the position. This format allows you to convey the most pertinent information while displaying enthusiasm for the opportunity.

What are some key points to include in a self-introduction as a student in an interview?

When you’re a student, key points in your self-introduction should focus on your educational background, any relevant coursework or projects you have completed, and your passions or interests that align with the job at hand. Be sure to mention any extracurricular activities, internships, or volunteer work that showcase your skills and enthusiasm for the position.

Can you provide an example of a good self-introduction for a fresh graduate at a job interview?

“Hello, I’m Jane Smith. I recently graduated from (…) University with a degree in (…). During my time in school, I developed my (…) skills and completed an internship at (…) Company, where I worked on (…). I’m excited to apply my knowledge and skills to this position, and I believe my strong work ethic and eagerness to learn make me a great fit for your team.”

How should an experienced professional introduce themselves in a job interview?

“Hi, I’m John Smith. I have over ten years of experience in the marketing industry, with a focus on digital marketing. I’ve had the privilege to work with clients in various sectors, including finance and technology. My expertise in social media marketing has resulted in increased visibility and revenue for those clients. I’m enthusiastic about the opportunity to contribute my skills and experience to your organization and help drive further success.”

What are some tips for crafting a memorable and engaging self-introduction for an interview?

To make your self-introduction memorable and engaging, practice emphasizing your unique qualities and experiences that set you apart from other candidates. You can tell a brief, impactful story about a relevant accomplishment or how you overcame a challenge. Also, tailor your introduction to the particular company and role to demonstrate your genuine interest and understanding of their values and goals.

• 26 Examples of Smart Questions to Ask in an Interview
• 3 Detailed Examples: Job Interview Request Email Responses
• 40 Examples: How to Make a Great Impression in a Job Interview
• 8 Examples of Effective Interview Confirmation Emails
• 6 Smart Questions To Ask in an Informational Interview
• 10 Smart Examples of An Interview Thank You Email

6 interview writing prompt examples to qualify content candidates

Share this article

Get monthly executive saas marketing advice in your inbox.

Qualifying candidates for content can be a longer process than you think. After all, your content is how people find you, learn from you, and choose you. And good quality and execution of content are what may set you apart from others. So, how do you make sure they’re fit for the role? Or if they can deliver the results you’re looking for? A good place to start is by asking them to complete writing prompts as an early step in the interview process.

As a manager of a content team, writing is one of the most important things I need to vet in order to see if a candidate is fit for the role. And I don’t just want to see writing they’ve done in the past, I want to test them now . That’s why I’ve come up with several different written task prompts to put candidates to the test. Are they a good fit for the role? For the company? For the team?

When you're building your first marketing team, a content writer will be one of the first roles you should consider hiring for , and when working with a small team it'll be essential that you hire the right person the first time, rather than wasting time and resources training someone who's a poor fit. Writing prompts are a perfect way to allow candidates to show off their skills.

When should you ask content job candidates to complete a written task?

There are different stages of the interview process in which you can offer written assignments. First, if candidates maybe lack a portfolio or you need more information upfront, you can ask candidates to complete writing prompts before you even speak to them. Second, and my preferred method, you can ask them to complete writing prompts later on in the process. Alternatively, you can do a mix of both. I’ll let you decide what works best for your hiring funnel. 

Here are examples of what a typical interview process may look like and where the writing prompts may fall:

• Resume, portfolio & video introduction reviewed
• Pre-interview writing prompts completed
• Phone screen or initial interview
• Writing prompts completed
• Interview with the hiring manager (where writing prompts are presented)
• Interview with another member of the team 
• Interview with higher-level managers/CEO if needed
• Hired :) 

Let’s take a look at 6 different sample writing exercises for job applicants you may find helpful in your next round of interviews.

3 short writing prompt examples 

Now that your hiring pipeline is full, you’ve reviewed resumes, portfolios, maybe a quick applicant video introduction, and the like, and you’re probably ready to start scheduling interviews. At this stage, it might be wise to ask some of your top choices to do a bit of homework that applies to your product/company to kick it off. You can do this before you start the first round of interviews, or after.

These short writing prompts should give you just enough to test the legitimacy of their work. To make the most of their time and yours, make sure that all assignments and expectations are clearly explained to candidates, especially if it’s before they get the chance to speak to anyone.

Short writing prompts to choose from

These examples can be tweaked and modified to the position at your company or depending on what exactly you’re looking for. Nonetheless, they can help you get started on how to develop short writing prompts. 

1. ‘Wow’/awareness prompt  

Please choose something on our website that you can build upon and write a blurb to ‘wow’ our audience. Make sure to use language that draws them in and makes them the center (it should be less about us and more about them). Consider a headline that sparks interest or curiosity from the reader. 

Add a short description explaining what you expanded on and why you did what you did. 

2. ‘How’/Consideration Prompt

Write a short blurb that helps our audience answer questions they have or learn something to help them along their buyer’s journey—whether they’re in the awareness, consideration, or decision stage. This can be for website copy, an email—just something to show you know how to write for this stage of the funnel.  

Add a short description explaining how your writing piece guides readers along in their journey.  

3. ‘Now’/decision prompt 

Please write an email inviting someone to do something—download our new guide to X, reach out to us, schedule a demo, etc. Make sure to describe why you wrote what you did and how it requires action from the audience. 

These are good tests that force candidates to really think about their targeted audience and the stage of the funnel they’re in and how to write for them—a true marketing skill. They are interesting, yet broad topics you can have job candidates complete to really challenge them—both in writing and in marketing knowledge. 

Now, let’s take a look at project-based writing prompts that are a bit broader. 

3-part project-based sample writing prompt 

I personally prefer to ask candidates to complete a project-based writing exercise after an initial interview. This gives us the opportunity to learn more about them and their experience, so instead of short samples, the project-based writing prompts allow us to further determine if they are a good fit. 

For this project-based writing prompt, I ask candidates to complete 3 stages of a writing assignment. First, I test their ability to edit and improve their writing. Second, I test their ability to write a piece, and third, I test their ability to plan and build a content strategy. 

Of course, this is specific to what the content role does here at Kalungi on a day-to-day basis, but I’m confident any content marketer or content manager should know how to do these 3 tasks (or hopefully you can get some inspiration for how to tweak this for your company). As a note: no matter what, this longer, project-based writing prompt should specifically do 2 things:

• Allow the candidate to get a taste of what they will be doing during their day-to-day
• Allow you as the hiring manager to see if they will be a good fit for their job depending on the work they deliver 

Let’s dive into this 3-part writing project. You can choose to assign all the parts, or select one or two. However, we’ve found this to be a good test of whether they’re a good fit for us, and we’re a good fit for them.

Project-based writing prompt for job candidates

1. editing & improving writing .

Please edit, leave suggestions and optimize this blog: [insert blog here]. Let us know what you’d change or improve to make it the best it can be.

2. Writing a blog 

Please showcase your ability to create high-quality content that adds value, drives organic traffic, and boosts keyword rankings. Write an 800-1,000 word blog post on ‘[insert keyword here]’ for [website].

3. Planning & strategy 

Demonstrate your ability to strategize, plan, and advise a topic cluster content strategy . Put together a topic cluster strategy in this spreadsheet [insert link here]. 

This 3-part writing project requires the hiring manager and the job candidate to discuss the decisions that were made in the next interview. I prefer to invite candidates to schedule an interview with me right when this project is completed so we don’t delay the process. This is because I’ve found that although sometimes people don’t ‘nail’ these projects, or do complete them with the quality I hoped for, I can tell if they are on the right track or if they can learn quickly when they explain the approach they took—especially for the editing and planning projects. 

An example of what I added to the end of the project description: 

Present your work! Please schedule a 30-minute content interview with the hiring manager. Contact [email protected] to schedule.

An optional portion of the project I also like to include is a self-review where the candidate answers the following questions. 

• How do you think you did? What do you think you did well? 
• What did you struggle with? What do you want to learn more about?

I give them the option to answer these questions in the project document or to be ready to discuss them in our interview. These are questions that allow you to tell the kind of person they are and the attitude they have towards work and learning. I think it also opens up the conversation and makes us more human. After all, honesty is key, especially during interviews :)

Good luck with your next hire

I hope these writing sample prompts help you better determine which candidate is best for your business. Remember, it’s the work that should impress you, not their resume or their experience. 

If you do use any of these writing prompt examples—we’d love to hear your feedback on what you (or the candidate!) thought about them and how they helped you in your hiring journey. You can reach out to me personally at [email protected] . 

Looking to build your marketing team? See our resources on " What roles to hire first " and " How to hire your B2B SaaS CMO " or get in touch with our team to learn more about how Kalungi's outsourced marketing services could provide you with a full-service, instantly-on marketing team .

CTO and co-founder at Kalungi, Fadi has helped SaaS companies grow with Inbound Marketing strategy and tactical best practices. as well as Marketing & Sales alignment to generate over $250MM in revenue for companies globally.

Similar posts

What a saas cmo can learn from ikea instructions.

If you have to dismantle your project and start over, the impact on your trajectory can be devastating. Can you get it right the first time?

How to create a persuasive customer success story

If your B2B SaaS product has customers who are willing to provide positive feedback, start conducting those customer interviews so you can show it...

Build What You Sell, Sell What You Build

You can't build your product in a vacuum. The customers drive engineering priorities. You also can't let your customers control your engineering team.

Get notified on new marketing insights

Be the first to know about new B2B SaaS Marketing insights to build or refine your marketing function with the tools and knowledge of today’s industry.

5 Examples of Take-Home Tasks for Different Roles

Assigning take-home tasks when hiring is much like marmite, coriander, or Hawaiian pizza. Your candidates will either love it or hate it.

The ‘love it’ camp likely welcomes the opportunity to showcase their skills and appreciate the time to think it through versus answering questions on the spot in an interview.

However, the ‘hate it’ group sees it as doing work for free, might already have portfolios of work that give a much fairer picture of their experience level, and resent the infringement on their personal time (regardless of how this might be their dream job).

What we can learn from this dichotomy is that while a take-home assignment is not right for every role, it’s still worth it for some. To figure out if it’s a fit for the role you’re hiring for, let’s look at five good examples of take-home tasks that your candidates will (hopefully) love.

TL;DR — Key Takeaways

A take-home assignment is an important part of the interview process that focuses on candidates crafting and completing real-world tasks .

Incorporating a take-home assignment will give your organization better insight and skill observation over candidates. However, job seekers may see take-home tests as time-consuming, exploitative, or manipulative.

The perfect take-home assignment should be structured around providing the candidate with clarity about the role, respecting their time, and ensuring consistent testing criteria.

Toggl Hire introduced homework tasks in our skills assessment library! It’s never been easier to raise the quality of your hires with reliable proof of competence.

What are take-home tasks?

A take-home assignment is given to candidates during the interview process to complete in their own time and shows the hiring manager how the job seeker is able to complete a task.

These assignments generally consist of coding tests for developers , presentations for upper-level management, and campaigns for marketers. They’re given to candidates after the first interview round. The success will determine if the candidate makes it to the second round.

Pros and cons of a take-home assignment

Obviously, there are pros and cons to using a take-home assignment, right? Of course! So let’s go over the big ones.

• Skill observation : It allows the hiring company to understand the candidate’s skills in action and their thought process.

• Insight : The take-home interview assignment will allow the candidate to have a better understanding of the position, break any key assumptions, and what the company expects of them.

• Supplemental information : If done early in the interview process, an interview assignment allows the candidate’s skills to do the talking as opposed to the hiring manager only relying on the resume.

• Less pressure : Because a Q&A interview can be a pressure cooker, the take-home assignment makes the interviewing candidate feel more at ease.

• Time-consuming : A hiring team may claim the assignment will only take several hours to prepare and complete, but any interview assignment over more than an hour is cutting into the candidate’s personal time and current job.

• Ethical concerns and lost earnings : Asking a candidate to complete an unpaid work assignment can be seen as unethical and equivalent to unpaid labor. Some companies may even go so far as to steal the ideas of the candidate, use them, and not give credit or compensate the candidate.

• Limited personal evaluation : While the interview take-home assignment can assess a candidate’s skill set, it may not capture important aspects such as personality and behavior.

How to structure a take-home task

Creating a take-home assignment that strikes the perfect balance of helpful but not exploitative can be tricky. Regardless of what kind of take-home task or homework assignment you’re creating for hiring, it’s crucial for hiring managers to approach their creation with careful thought and attention.

Your hiring team will need to consider all of the following:

What are the common mistakes?

It’s normal to make mistakes, and learning from them can help you hire better, faster, and more fair.

So, let’s explore common blunders to steer clear of when designing and implementing a take-home assignment during the interview process, ensuring fairness and an effective evaluation process that respects candidates’ time and effort.

• Appropriate Task Alignment : Avoid assigning tasks that aren’t directly relevant to the role.

• Reasonable Task Length : Create a take-home assignment that can be completed within a reasonable timeframe.

• Providing Sufficient Context : Avoid requesting candidates to answer or solve company-specific problems without providing adequate information.

• Ethical Treatment of Work Requests : Refrain from asking candidates to produce work for free that the company may later exploit, such as writing a blog post for publication.

• Timely Introduction of Tasks : Including a take-home assignment as an early screening requirement can discourage candidates. Do this after their first interview.

• Constructive Feedback : Don’t miss the opportunity to provide candidates with constructive feedback on their completed tasks.

• Balancing Mandatory and Optional Tasks : Avoid making the take-home assignment mandatory for all applicants, as circumstances may prevent some candidates from completing it.

• Conduct post-assignment interviews : Once you have received a few tasks back from candidates, we highly recommend that you schedule a take-home assignment interview to better understand any pain points the job seeker may have had.

5 thorough examples of great take-home assignments

Now that you better understand the how , the when , and the why of take-home assignments, we’ll show you five examples. The example take-home assignments will cover tasks for:

• Developer – fixing a broken site
• Product manager – redesigning a feature
• Marketing lead – creating a marketing campaign
• Designer – redesigning the onboarding flow
• Customer success executive – running a mock QBR

Example #1: Take-home task for a developer role

This challenge is geared towards a mid-level developer who can identify and fix errors and optimize the code of an eCommerce website. The goal here is to see how well the candidates understand debugging techniques, approach problem-solving, and how they will communicate with the rest of their team.

Task: Fixing a Broken E-commerce Site

Introduction

Your mission is to debug the broken e-commerce site, fix errors, and ensure it runs smoothly. Customers are unable to place orders due to the significant increase in errors.

Requirements

• Identify and fix all of the errors on the site.
• Ensure that customers can place orders without any problems.
• Optimize the site to improve its performance.
• Document your approach and explain your reasoning behind your changes.

Instructions

• Clone the repository from the following Github URL: https://github.com/debugging-challenge/e-commerce-site.git .
• Install all the dependencies by running npm install .
• Start the development server by running npm start .
• Debug and fix all errors.
• Document your approach and explain your reasoning in a README file.

Your submission will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

• Identification and fixing of all errors
• Site optimization
• Completeness of documentation and reasoning
• Code cleanliness and adherence to best practices
• Clarity and organization of documentation
• Submit your code as a ZIP file.
• Include the README file that explains your approach and reasoning.
• Send the ZIP file to the hiring manager by email.

Example #2: Challenge for a product manager

Our next example focuses on testing product manager candidates on how they approach problem-solving, communicate with customers, and conduct user research while implementing open-ended questions.

In a sense, how well they’ll actually do their jobs in a product management role. This assignment is bound to produce better product management interviews for your organization.

Task: Redesigning Filma’s Collaboration Features

You are the Product Manager for collaboration features at Filma, a leading collaborative design platform. Recent feedback from customers has shown that they are not happy with how collaboration features work on the site. Your mission in this product management task is to redesign the collaboration features to better meet customer needs and preferences.

• Review the problem statement and develop a list of open-ended questions to better understand the issue.
• Conduct user research to validate assumptions and identify pain points and user needs.
• Develop a new design for collaboration features.
• Prioritize features and functionality based on customer needs and business goals.
• Outline the implementation plan.
• Document your approach and explain your reasoning.
• Review the problem statement and develop a list of open-ended questions to better understand the issue and customer needs.
• Conduct (mock) user research to validate assumptions and identify pain points and user needs. Schedule a call with a team member to role-play a customer interview. Include data points such as user feedback, user behaviour, and competitor analysis in your research.
• Develop a new design for collaboration features. Identify the key features and functionality of the new design, and prioritize them based on customer needs and business goals.
• Outline the implementation plan. Include a timeline, resources required, and technical feasibility.
• Document your approach and explain your reasoning in a presentation or document.
• Quality of open-ended questions and user research.
• Soundness of the new design and prioritization of features and functionality.
• Clarity and feasibility of the product management implementation plan.
• Completeness of documentation and reasoning.
• Clarity and organization of presentation or document.
• Submit your open-ended questions, presentation, or document as a PDF or PowerPoint file.
• Send the file to the hiring manager by email.

Example #3: Testing marketing managers

Let’s now explore an exciting marketing challenge that aims to find a candidate who can skillfully design an innovative user acquisition growth loop. This task involves leveraging valuable market research insights to craft a robust strategy that showcases a deep understanding of growth concepts.

Task: Designing a User Acquisition Growth Loop

You are the Marketing Lead at a Product-Led Growth (PLG) company that provides a collaboration tool for remote teams. Your team has conducted market research to identify target customer segments. Your mission is to design a new user acquisition growth loop based on the insights gained.

• Review the market research insights provided by your team.
• Design a new user acquisition growth loop, with a structured approach, based on the insights gained.
• Identify metrics to measure the effectiveness of the growth loop.
• Review the market research insights provided by your team. Use the insights to identify areas where a new user acquisition growth loop can be designed.
• Design a new user acquisition growth loop based on the insights gained. The growth loop should identify key stages, such as awareness, interest, and activation, and prioritize them based on customer needs and business goals.
• Identify metrics to measure the effectiveness of the growth loop. The metrics should be tied to the key stages of the growth loop and should be used to track progress and optimize the loop over time.
• Soundness of the new user acquisition growth loop and prioritization of key stages
• Creativity and effectiveness of the growth loop design
• Identification and feasibility of metrics to measure the effectiveness of the growth loop
• Clarity and organization of presentation or document
• Submit your presentation or document as a PDF or PowerPoint file.

Example #4: Take-home test for designers

This challenge is centered around an intriguing product design assessment designed to narrow down a candidate who excels in analyzing user recording sessions and crafting an improved onboarding flow design.

Task: Redesigning the Onboarding Flow Introduction

You are a Product Designer at a web-based Product-Led Growth (PLG) company that provides a collaboration tool for remote teams. Your team has recorded user sessions for the past 3 months to help identify areas of improvement for the onboarding flow. Your mission is to redesign the onboarding flow to improve user engagement and activation based on the insights gathered.

• Analyze the user recording sessions to identify user needs and preferences.
• Develop a new design for the onboarding flow.
• Prioritize design features based on user needs and business goals.
• Ensure that the design aligns with the company’s minimalist, intuitive design philosophy.
• Analyze the user recording sessions to identify user needs and preferences. Use the insights gathered to identify areas for improvement in the onboarding flow.
• Develop a new design for the onboarding flow. Identify the key stages of the flow, and prioritize them based on user needs and business goals. Ensure that the design aligns with the company’s minimalist, intuitive design philosophy.
• Prioritize design features based on user needs and business goals. Identify the most important design features that will enhance user engagement and activation.
• Quality of analysis of user recording sessions and identification of user needs and preferences
• The soundness of the new onboarding flow design and prioritization of key stages
• Alignment with the company’s minimalist, intuitive design philosophy
• Creativity and effectiveness of the prioritized design features

Example #5: Testing customer succes

Our final challenge example focuses on a customer success assignment. The perfect candidate will showcase their expertise in defining success metrics for a simulated account, devising impactful tactics to drive feature adoption and enhance metrics, and effectively presenting their approach and results in a mock Quarterly Business Review (QBR) presentation.

Task: Driving Feature Adoption and Improving Metrics

You are a Customer Success Manager at a PLG company that provides a project management tool for remote teams. Your mission is to work with a mock account to define success metrics, develop tactics to drive feature adoption and improve metrics for Q2, culminating in a mock QBR presentation.

• Define success metrics for the mock account.
• Develop tactics to drive feature adoption and improve metrics.
• Document your approach and results in a mock QBR presentation.
• Define success metrics for the mock account. Assume that the mock account is a remote team of 20 people that uses your project management tool for all their projects. Assume that they have been using the tool for 6 months, and that they have expressed interest in increasing feature adoption and improving metrics related to on-time delivery, collaboration, and budget management. Use your own assumptions to define success metrics that measure the impact of the product on their business.
• Develop tactics to drive feature adoption and improve metrics. Use the success metrics to identify the actions needed to increase feature adoption and improve metrics, and assign responsibilities to your team. Use customer success best practices, such as regular check-ins and training sessions, to ensure that the tactics are on track and that the mock account is engaged and satisfied.
• Document your approach and results in a mock QBR presentation. Create a deck that’s less than 10 slides, with consistent title and object placement, fonts, font colors, and different ways of visualizing insights. Use the mock QBR presentation to realign on the mock account’s goals, review their performance, present the tactics and their impact on the success metrics, and recommend the next steps to improve product performance next quarter.
• Quality of success metrics defined for the mock account.
• Soundness of the tactics to drive feature adoption and improve metrics.
• Collaborative execution of the tactics with your team.
• Clarity, organization, and persuasiveness of the mock QBR presentation.
• Submit your mock QBR presentation as a PDF or PowerPoint file.

Try a Homework Assignment by Toggl Hire

Ready to add homework assignments to your hiring process? Our homework assessments provide invaluable insights for hiring managers evaluating candidates ‘ ability to solve job-specific assignments.

Designed to test the hands-on skills necessary for day-to-day work, these assessments offer a glimpse into a candidate’s potential future job performance . With over 500 pre-built tasks available in Toggl Hire’s library, you can quickly implement comprehensive tests that align with your hiring needs.

Toggl Hire’s homework assessments are highly flexible, allowing for either integration with other assessments or standalone use. Create your free account now to explore a few examples!

Juste loves investigating through writing. A copywriter by trade, she spent the last ten years in startups, telling stories and building marketing teams. She works at Toggl Hire and writes about how businesses can recruit really great people.

Subscribe to On The Clock.

Insights into building businesses better, from hiring to profitability (and everything in between). New editions drop every two weeks.

You might also like...

Related to Talent Assessments

How to Hire an Accountant for Your Business

The 11 Best Recruiting Software for Small Business Hiring Teams

50 Phone Interview Questions to Ask Candidates (With Answers)

Take a peek at our most popular categories: