Stand out with the S.T.A.R technique for competency-based interview questions

It can be somewhat confusing to answer competency-based questions if you don’t prepare. Competency-based questions let a recruiter understand your reaction to certain problems or situations you have faced or might face on the job. A good answer here can be the difference between getting a job or not. These questions are asked in video and phone interviews, as well as face-to-face. 

The S.T.A.R (situation task action result) technique is the perfect strategy to prepare for such questions and stand out at the interview stage. Practising some example questions before you go will help you give a successful job interview. 

🌟 S.T.A.R TECHNIQUE: SITUATION – TASK – ACTION – RESULT (EXAMPLE Q&A)

➤ Q – “Can you give me an example of a time when you faced pressure at work and what you did to handle it?”

➤ A – “While working as a care assistant for my previous organisation, my colleague suddenly fell sick and had to take a week off. I had to take on some extra responsibilities as we were understaffed but I managed well working longer hours and taking fewer breaks. There were days I had to work twelve-hour shifts but it was all worth it as we received no complaints regarding our services and all the patients were taken care of.”                

In the above answer, we explained all aspects of the S.T.A.R method in order of –

➤ Situation – Your colleague fell ill and took a week off which increased your workload.

➤ Task – Increased responsibilities (you could talk about the tasks you had to do in that situation)

➤ Action – What you did to fix the issue: working longer hours and taking fewer breaks 

➤ Result – Benefit for the business: you handled a greater number of responsibilities and delivered increased customer satisfaction. 

💬 SOME MORE EXAMPLE QUESTIONS

❌  “What do you do if a team member refuses to do his quota of the work?”

💪 “Give me an example of a situation when you showed initiative at your workplace?” 

😡 “Can you give me an example of a situation when you had to deal with an angry customer? How did you resolve the situation?”

If you have any more questions for us, please don’t hesitate to send them our way. We will be happy to help you!