First and foremost, what is STAR? What does it mean? Well basically, these kinds of questions are called situational questions or behavioral. So what you're doing is you're answering the questions using the STAR technique. Okay? So what do I mean by that?Star stands for situation, T-task,A- action,R- result. And it means that you answer these interview questions in detail and you give them a specific answer where you've actually done it before.
Now, the reason why interview panels will ask you these questions is they want to see evidence of where you've already done this kind of thing. So if they say to you, "Can you give us an example of where you've worked really hard under pressure?" Now, if you've already done this, then it's likely that you're able to do it again in a work-related situation. So you answer each of the questions specifically, but you're going to explain what the situation was, what task you had to do, what action you took, and then the important bit, which is the result. What happened as a result of your action.
Now, put the results in green because it should always be positive. So what you don't want to do is say, "Well, I was doing this and the result was negative" or "I didn't achieve anything." That's not good. We want to always make sure it's positive. Just to quickly recap,STAR stands for situation, task, action, result. So when you're preparing your responses to the questions, and I'm going to give you the answers to the questions as we progress.
Situation is you will tell the panel what the situation you were in and you do it in this order. So you say, "The situation I was in was X, Y, and Z. The task that I had to carry out was." And then you explain what the task was. You say, "Now, I did the following things. I took the following action or the following steps." And then finally, "The result following what I did was a positive one. This is what happened." Now, if you prepare your response is using the STAR technique,you won't go wrong.
Having been an interviewer myself, I can guarantee that you will get higher marks if you follow this golden tip. Really important. Make sure your answer to all of the questions is specific. What I mean by that is you tell the panel that you actually did something. You do not say, "Well, if that situation came up, this is what I would do." You have to give a specific response. Don't forget they're looking for evidence. So that means you would say, "Well, whilst at work I was tasked with delivering a project." And that's the situation. "The action I took was X, Y, and Z" and so on and so forth. So do not be generic.
What generic means is you would say, "Well I've not been in that situation, but if it did arise, this is what I would do." Okay? Now, you're going to get less marks with that. You want where possible to be specific. "This is what I have done." So obviously, you need to think carefully about the kind of interview questions that you were going to ask, the situational ones or the behavioral ones. And this is what we're going to get into right now.
So question number one. When have you handled huge pressure in a work-related situation? Now, this is a common one that could get asked at your interview. So here's the answer. So, in my previous job, a work colleague left unexpectedly. He had been responsible for a project that had to be delivered within a very tight deadline. Now, my supervisor asked the workforce for a volunteer to take on the project, and I decided to step up and take responsibility. To be honest, I prefer to work under pressure anyway and I saw this as an opportunity to help out the company in their hour of need. I studied the brief carefully and then created a plan of action for getting the project delivered on budget and also on time. It was tough going, but I put in the extra hours work needed and I am pleased to say I managed to get the project finished on time and to specification. My supervisor was thrilled with my work ethic and effort, and he thanked me for my commitment and dedication to delivering this important project. You see, it's relatively short, but I follow situation, task, action result. And you can apply that to any kind of situation so you can use it for your response.
Question number two. Can you describe a stressful situation and how you handled it? Now it's important that you give a work-related situation, not one in your personal life. Make sure it's work related. Here's my answer for you. Whilst working in an office one day on the fifth floor, the fire alarm activated due to a small fire being reported on the first floor. Now, people within the office did not appear to take much notice as the alarm usually sounded only when there was a false alarm. I decided to take responsibility and I shouted across the office that everyone needed to leave by the quickest and safest fire escape immediately. Some people started complaining, but I insisted they leave immediately. I was aware that we were all on the fifth floor and any time wasted could endanger life, especially considering we could not use the lifts in the event of a fire alarm activation.
Now eventually, people within the office started leaving by the escape stairway as per my request. I stayed until the end to make sure everyone had evacuated and I made my way outside. I took a roll call to make sure everyone was safe. Now, when the fire services arrived, they did in fact find a fire on the ground floor area, so it really was a genuine emergency. Now, after the fire was extinguished and we could return to the office, I reminded everyone of their responsibilities in the event of a fire. I believe I handled the situation with confidence and resilience, and although it was stressful at times, I was determined to follow company health and safety procedures to ensure everyone was safe. So what you're doing there is you are demonstrating that you can handle stress, but also you're taking responsibility and more importantly, you're following company rules and procedures. Really important.
Question number three. Can you give an example of how you dealt with conflict in the workplace? Now, this might be, can you give an example of when you've dealt with a difficult work colleague or you've not got on with someone at work? And the fact is we don't always get on with everybody at work, but as an employer, I want to know that you can deal with issues, you can put your differences aside and you can resolve them amicably. So again, it's about taking responsibility. Here's my response for you.Yes, I can. In my previous job as an office administration worker, there was one particular work colleague who seemed to dislike me. Now, during meetings, he would ignore my contributions and he made a number of unacceptable comments in the canteen on more than one occasion. Now, I decided to tackle the situation in a calm manner. However, before I approached him to discuss the situation, I needed to decide what it was I wanted to achieve from the meeting or the discussion. I understand that we can't always get on with everyone in a workplace environment, but the problem with this type of situation is it can be detrimental to the organization as a whole. And on that basis, I wanted to first of all try and see if there was anything I was doing that irritated him before trying to reach a constructive solution to the problem. Now, once I determined my goal, I approached him whilst he was on his own and I asked him if we could have a private discussion away from other office workers. Now, we sat down in a room away from everyone else and I explained my concerns to him with regards to how I felt he was treating me, I also asked him if there was anything I was doing the irritated him. His initial reaction was extremely defensive, but I maintained my position and I repeated my feelings with regards to how he was treating me in a calm and non-confrontational manner. Now, after a while, he accepted he was in the wrong and he apologized for his comments and his behavior. He reassured me that it would not happen again and we both agreed that a positive way forward would be to create and maintain a friendly and professional working relationship. I believe it's really important to tackle any form of conflict in a calm and professional manner with a view to reaching a positive outcome for everyone. So what you're doing there is you're basically showing that you are mature and you're responsible and you're not letting a situation get even more out of hand. You are tackling it, but you're not tackling it in front of people. You're doing it in private away to get the situation resolved. And you also have a clear goal of what you want to achieve.
Number four. Can you tell me about a mistake you made at work and how you handled it? Now we all make mistakes at work, so what you don't want to do is say, "I've never really made a mistake." Everybody does, but what the interviewer is looking for here is that you take responsibility, you admit to it, but then you resolve it. Okay, so honesty and integrity are really important. Here's a response you can use. Yes. One particular time I was working in the company warehouse, I made a mistake and the company did not have sufficient stock available over a busy seasonal period. As soon as I noticed I had made the mistake, I informed my line manager as I feel honesty and integrity are essential in a situation like this. Now, whilst my supervisor was annoyed with the mistake I'd made, he was thankful that we had the opportunity to try and rectify it. Now, I asked him to give me the opportunity to sort it out, which he agreed to. I immediately contacted our supplier to see if there was any way the additional stock I had missed could be shipped to us in time for the seasonal period. Although it took some time and persuading, the supplier agreed to ship the additional stock the next working day, much to my relief. I then set about putting things in place to make sure I did not make the same mistake again. So what you're doing, you've identified it, you're being honest, you're acknowledging it, you're letting your boss know, then you're resolving it. So once you've resolved, you are then putting things in place to make sure it doesn't happen again. Again, it's demonstrating that you're taking responsibility, but also you are honest. It's really important that an employer employs people who are honest, trust me, it's really important. Very important.
Question number five. Can you tell me about a time you had to deal with an irate customer or an irate client? Here's a response. Yes, I can. Recently I was serving a customer beyond the checkout. They had purchased some goods in our Winter Sale the week before and they wanted to return them as they were not what they wanted. Now, unfortunately, because the goods were purchased in the sale, they would not be eligible for a refund. I started to explain this to the customer. She immediately began to get irate and angry. I listened to her concerns but stated calmly that it was company policy to not refund good goods purchased in the sale. Now, the customer continued to complain and was becoming even more irate and vocal. I noticed a large queue forming behind her, and so I asked my colleague to take over from me whilst I took the situation away from the till area. After I had listened to the customer I explained to her in a calm but firm manner that the receipt she had made it clear that sales items were non-refundable. I explained to her that I could understand the frustration, but that there was nothing I could do in this situation to help her and I apologized for the inconvenience. I explained to her that if I could have helped her I would. She then began to calm down and accepted my explanation. Now, whilst she was not completely satisfied, she did leave the shop with an understanding of the situation and why I was unable to assist on this occasion. I believe that by remaining calm, listening to the customer's complaint, and also by taking the conflict away from the other customers' eyes and ears, I was able to resolve the situation as amicably as possible.
Let's look at a few more STAR questions that you should in my opinion prepare for. When have you been flexible in a work-related situation? Have you ever had a disagreement with a supervisor? This is a tough one. If so, what happened? When have you completed a difficult task or project? When have you learned a new skill or qualification? How would you feel about relocating? Can you describe a time when you achieved excellence at work and what's the best customer service you have ever witnessed?
So that's all on STAR method interview questions and answers.Thanks for reading and don't forget to subscribe to our newsletter and share the post if you found it useful.
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