What Are Behavioural Interview Questions?
Behavioural interview questions lead you to provide practical insight into your working style, your values, and your ability to handle whatever the workplace situation brings to your table while collaborating with your current team. Instead of asking, “Are you good at teamwork?” the interviewer might say, “Tell me about a time you worked with a difficult team member. How did you handle it?” These questions dig deeper beneath the surface, prompting you to share concrete examples from your past experiences that reveal your decision-making and approach to challenges.
The difference with the traditional interview questions, which focus on your knowledge or hypothetical responses, is that the behavioural questions are embedded in your real-life experiences from previous positions, especially if you held a leadership role. They reveal your thought process and problem-solving skills by reflecting on what you did, why you did it, and what you learned along the way. This method provides a glimpse into the real person behind the CV – finding out about your values, resilience and ability to adapt.
Why Do Employers Use Behavioural Interviews?
Limitations of the standard interview questions have brought many discrepancies and bad decisions to interviewers and employees. The answers can be easily rehearsed and manipulated, while behavioural questions leave no room for that. First of all, they are unexpected and catch the interviewee off guard. By asking you to recall actual actions and share examples from your previous role, interviewers gain an advantage and can quickly identify how you operate under pressure, such as when facing a tight deadline, how collaborative you are, and how you approach real-life problems, instead of imagined ones.
Behavioural interviews also reduce the risk of unconscious bias by concentrating on actions and outcomes based on your gut feelings and personal characteristics. With their help, companies can do a quality company fit assessment based on the job description and determine whether the candidate’s work ethic and approach are those of a prospective team player aligned with the company’s ethos and mission.
How Behavioural Questions Reveal Core Competencies
Your professional development and core competencies can be seen on your CV. Still, employers need to hear from you in person and to demonstrate how you have learned and executed these important skills while facing new challenges. When an employer asks for real-life, specific examples of how your previous company got your latest major client and what your role was in doing so, you reveal the evidence, and not just your claims.
Behavioural interview questions aren’t random. Each one is carefully crafted to reveal the core competencies that matter most for the role. Think of them as a spotlight, focusing on your skill set and traits. If an interviewer asks you to describe a time you had to adjust quickly to a significant change at work, they are looking for a role that requires resilience and adaptability.
The STAR Method: Your Secret Weapon for Answering Effectively
Don’t worry if you land on behavioural interview questions on your next interview – we’ve got you covered with the best tool to tackle this challenge – it’s called the STAR method. This acronym stands for Situation, Task, Action, and Result. What does STAR mean? A simple framework for structuring your answers following clear communication rules:
- Situation: What was the challenge you faced?
- Task: What was your responsibility or goal in that situation?
- Action: What steps did you take to address the challenge?
- Result: What happened as a consequence of your action?
Following these four steps of the STAR method keeps your answers focused and your discussion streamlined. Now, let’s see this method in action, answering an example question: “Tell me about a time you disagreed with a colleague.”
- Situation: “In my last job at a Bristol-based marketing agency, I worked with a designer with a very different vision for a client campaign.”
- Task: “As the account manager, it was my job to ensure the campaign met the client’s brief and deadlines.”
- Action: “I arranged a meeting to hear his ideas, then explained the client’s needs, and suggested a compromise incorporating both perspectives.”
- Result: “The final campaign was a hit with the client, and the designer and I built a stronger working relationship.”
Common Types of Behavioural Interview Questions
With the help of the STAR approach, you can mostly prepare and gain confidence for your future interview.
In this table, you will see the 4 most common types of behavioural interview questions, grouped across 4 areas of competency, which are essential for candidates, and conflict resolution and communication. Get yourself ready for any questions by having an answer for each of them.
Leadership and Initiative
Companies are curious about whether you can step up when needed. It’s not about having a “manager” title. It’s about showcasing a proactive mindset, one that moves things forward by setting a new system, a new direction and by inspiring others in your team. Think about times you’ve volunteered for extra responsibility, initiated important tasks, or rallied your colleagues around a common goal.
Teamwork and Collaboration
No employer has ever succeeded in isolation. Teamwork involves working with colleagues, building relationships, and contributing to shared goals. Use this question as an opportunity to highlight your communication skills, your openness to feedback, and your willingness to support others in any work environment.
Problem-Solving and Critical Thinking
Employers seek evidence of your analytical skills, creativity, and ability to work under pressure. Examples include finding a methodical approach to save money and time by improving the processes, or spotting a risk before it becomes a crisis. Here, you should roll up your sleeves and showcase your resourcefulness and determination to accomplish things, providing a concrete example.
Conflict Resolution and Communication Skills
Disagreements are everywhere, even between the best teams. What matters is their ability to handle the situation appropriately, by listening, empathising and finding a compromise. Resilient teams turn conflicts into opportunities for growth when they pay close attention to each member’s perspective.
Tips for Acing Behavioural Interviews
Here, we will list 4 tips for embracing and acing behavioural interviews, highlighting the key takeaways for your preparation.
- Preparation is key
- Be authentic and genuine
- Focus on “I”, not “We”
- Maintain positive body language and enthusiasm
Preparation is Key
Don’t wait until you are in the hot seat to think of your examples. Set aside time for going back to your past roles and extracting and recalling stories suitable for the STAR model.
Be Authentic and Genuine
Interviewers can easily spot a rehearsed answer. But, if you’re honest and tell situations where you felt stressed and things didn’t go perfectly, you will show your human side, your vulnerability that builds trust and helps you genuinely connect with your interviewer. Remember, they are not looking for perfection, but real people with real experiences.
Focus on “I,” Not “We”
People tend to hide behind the team, but these interviews are where you need the spotlight on yourself. Set aside group achievements, and use “I” statements to highlight your actions and decisions through your answers. This doesn’t mean taking all the credit, but being clear about your role and the impact you had.
Maintain Positive Body Language and Enthusiasm
All three previous tips lead to this last, but most important one. Their proper usage will promote a mindset of continuous learning, resulting in a confident interviewee shining with enthusiasm, a genuine smile and positive energy.
Get a Job Interview With Olive Recruit
Do you feel ready to implement these tips, generating positive outcomes for your future career? In that case, Olive Recruit is here to help you every step of the way, from supporting you in polishing your CV to preparing you with the best answers for the behavioural interviews. Please send us your CV and let’s get started.
