Behavioral Interview Questions

A list of top frequently asked behavioral interview questions and answers are given below.

Behavioral interview questions are the very important part of the interview section. These questions are asked to candidates to recount the past experience that the interview can judge them well and access their likely future performance. We can say that the behavioral questions work very well to judge a candidate smartly because past behavior is usually a decent predictor of future behavior.

You should follow the STAR method to answer these types of questions.

• S/T: Situation/ Task
• A: Approach
• R: Result

First, look at the situation or the task given by the interviewer, understand it well and then apply your approach that how can you fulfill the requirement of the interviewer and satisfy him. The STAR method always allows you to structure your response.

Let's see some pretty typical behavioral interview questions. The behavioral interview questions can be divided into following types:

• Teamwork related
• Leadership ability
• How to handle conflicts
• Failure

Teamwork related

Interviewers are really interested to know about your teamwork ability. Teamwork question is one of the most common questions asked in the HR round. This question is quite obvious because the ability to works with others is considered critical for most positions. Most of the interviewers just want to know that are you appropriate to work within a team or not. They can ask you questions like this:

Q) Are you a team player? Describe it.

(Or) Tell us about a team project that you worked on.

(Or) Share your team experience of your past company.

How to answer: You should demonstrate your team skills by sharing a relevant example. First, you should know what interviewers want to know by this question, they want to find out:

• Are you easy to collaborate with other employees?
• Can you communicate effectively with different personalities?
• Can you mediate disagreements?

You should answer this question in a very easy manner. We all have team experience on the job, during school, or in extracurricular role etc. You should better to remember your team experiences of your past and deliver it confidently. You should choose your recent experience.

Top Teamwork related interview questions

• Que: Tell me about a team project in which you are involved.
• Que: Tell me why you consider yourself as a good team member.
• Que: Tell me an example when you had worked as a leader of your project team.
• Que: Describe a team experience that you found rewarding.
• Que: Give some examples of teamwork.
• Que: How do you feel about working on a team?
• Que: Describe your ability to work as a team member.

Leadership ability

Many competency based questions come up in behavioral interview questions. Leadership ability is one of the most common questions which are asked in the behavioral interviews. There may be a lot of questions on this topic, the theme of the question are same and based on your leadership ability but these questions are asked in different manners. Let's take some examples:

Most popular behavioral interview question based on leadership quality:

Q) Give me an example when you show your leadership skills?

(Or) Tell me about a time when you lead an important meeting?

(Or) Tell me about a time when you delegated effectively?

How to answer: This question is asked to find out the candidate's true leadership potential. This question is asked generally for senior level roles. The best way to reply this question is to demonstrate that you have done it successfully in the past.

Sometimes for entry level position jobs also, company ask about leadership because they want to hire people with leadership potential.

You should answer this question with a strong example. You can customize your example according to the job description and role. Always spell right things. Don't try to reply like this type of answer:

"I consider myself a born leader and have always sought out leadership opportunities over the years."

This is the worst answer for a fresher as well as for an experience holder. You should get specific about what you did.

Top Leadership ability interview questions

• Que: Give me an example when you led an important meeting.
• Que: Tell me about a time when you shown your leadership skills.
• Que: Give me an example when you led a difficult project.
• Que: What is your vision about this group?
• Que: Tell me a time when you effectively delegated?

How to handle conflicts

Q) How do you handle conflicts?

How to answer: Most of the case you should avoid to express your conflict situation of your previous job. You can answer this question like: I don't believe in disputes or conflicts, generally I prefer to mind my own business and do my own work properly without a chance of complaint. Conflicts are not a bit beneficial for the company as well as for the employees, so it is always better to avoid them. But, unfortunately, if I stuck in any this type of situation, I will use my head calmly and patiently and solve that problem with a healthy conversation.

Failure

This is the one of the toughest behavioral interview questions. It is very hard for candidate to open his own secret. It is obviously a difficult and tricky question because the interviewer wants to know your negative experience.

Q) What is your biggest failure in your past life?

(Or) How do you handle success, failure, and risk in general?

(Or) What is your greatest professional regret?

How to answer: It is totally upon you that how you disclose your failure but always remember don't express negative things which work as a hindrance in your job profile. Always answer a positive point with some limitations.

Top Failure interview questions

• Que: How do you view success and failure?
• Que: Do you take smart risks?
• Que: What is your greatest professional failure?
• Que: Tell me about a decision that you regret?
• Que: Tell me about a time when you fail?