Behavioural interview: how to succeed

You are in an interview.
The recruiter looks you straight in the eye and says: 
«Tell me about a mistake you’ve made and what you learnt from it.» Surprised? That’s only to be expected. 

Welcome to the behavioural interview. 

Unlike “standard” questions such as «What are your strengths?» or «How would you describe your management style?», this type of interview aims to explore your professional background. This is because, for the recruiter, the best way to predict how you will react in the future is to understand how you have already acted in real-life situations. 

Some typical examples: 

 «Give me an example of a goal you’ve achieved and how you went about it.» «Tell me about an unpopular decision you’ve had to take responsibility for.» 

 «How did you motivate a colleague who was struggling?» 

 «Tell me about a bad decision you made and its consequences.» 

 The aim isn’t to trick you. The recruiter wants to know: 

• How do you analyse a situation?. 
• The measures you are putting in place. 
• Your ability to learn from experience. 

 So, how should you prepare? 

 Make a list of your achievements, the challenges you’ve faced and the unexpected situations you’ve dealt with throughout your career. 

 Choose a variety of examples: a successful project, a conflict that has been resolved, a mistake that has led to a learning experience. 

 Structure your answers using the STAR method: 

• Situation: the context of a particular situation 
• Task: what needed to be done 
• Action: what you have actually achieved 
• Outcome: the result of this situation and the lessons learnt 

Be genuine: an imperfect but authentic example will always be more convincing than an answer that’s too “polished”.

 A behavioural interview is an opportunity. It allows you to move beyond theoretical discussion and demonstrate your value through concrete examples. 

So, do give this question some thought: 

 If tomorrow you were asked «Tell me about a difficult decision you’ve had to make», what story would you tell?

Find even more experience sharing and advice on nOur media OSAM Training.