It is an established fact that every business organization prefers to hire employees that are competent, skillful, and persevering in nature. An interview is a way or measure to find out whether or not you match the requirements of your employers. “Competency” is a common expectation of business organizations, and is an important trait, which ensures benefits for the company. This is a broad term and comprises several meanings and interpretations.
Most Used Interpretations Of The Term “Competency”
Usually, interviewers interpret the word competency in the following ten manners:
| 1. Flexibility in operations | 6. An ability to draft excellent business writings |
| 2. An ability to manage stress | 7. Maintains accuracy in taking important business decisions |
| 3. Adaptable to the different situations | 8. Has the skill to prioritize different tasks |
| 4. Excellent knowledge of the required core subjects | 9. Can work with minimum supervision and guidance |
| 5. Competent in communicating with others | 10. Able to maintain harmony and camaraderie with the co-workers |
21 Best Interview Questions Based On Competency At Workplace
1. How Adaptable Are You To The Frequent Changes In Technology?
Sample Answer
Sir, in my opinion, moving with the changing time is a necessity and every employee working in the company must be flexible and adapt according to the requirements of a business organization. It is common to experience frequent changes in the technology at the workplaces, such as a change in software, change in cloud partner, etc. I am open and willing to adapt myself to all such technological changes.
2. Effective Communication At Workplace Is A Necessity. Comment On This Statement.
Sample Answer
Communication is one of the most important traits that every employee must possess at the workplace. It not only helps in the effective flow of information but also improves the prospects of understanding and effectiveness of the communicated information. In this regard, I have done two short-term online courses of 3 months and 4 months respectively. Hence, I could tell you that I am proficient in delivering speeches and possess excellent communication skills
3. You Will Be Supposed To Work Rigorously At Your Workplace. How Do You Manage Stress?
Sample Answer
Business organizations work in an environment that is highly dynamic, technical and requires greater effort and perseverance. This pressure is ultimately transferred on the employees of the company and they have to work under immense stress in a hectic work environment. Stress management is a common expectation and I have developed techniques to manage my stress levels. I practice deep-breathing exercises daily along with engaging myself in positive pep talk whenever necessary.
4. How Competent Are You In Taking Important Business Decisions?
Sample Answer
The success or failure of a business organization depends upon the quality of business decisions that it takes. These decisions are primarily taken by the employees of the company and thus maintaining adequate competency in this sphere is of prime importance. Sir, I never rush or jump to conclusions while taking these business decisions, and always prefer to gather as much information as possible. Post this, I analyze everything and then make a decision.
5. We Need Someone To Perform Repetitive Tasks. How Comfortable Are You In This Regard?
Sample Answer
Performing repetitive tasks at the business organization is a common requirement and I am completely ready and open for it. In my opinion, such tasks are not at all burdensome, rather when you perform a task consistently, it improves your performance level and efficiency. You tend to perform the same tasks in a much lesser time.
6. How Do You Work In A Team?
Sample Answer
Sir, I completely understand the relevance of this question. More and more organizations now prefer to divide their employees and group them into a team. I am and will always be a team player. I never hesitate in sharing the workload and have the ability to take as well as give valuable guidance to my team members. In my opinion, I can be a productive team player and will be able to deliver some stellar results.
7. Conflicts At The Workplaces Are Common. How Do You Deal With Them?
Sample Answer
When people from different backgrounds, ethnicity, religion, caste, and creed would work together under a common roof so as to achieve a common objective, it is highly possible that there would be frequent quarrels and conflicts among them. The best way to deal with such issues is by keeping your ego aside and understanding the root cause of the difference in opinions. Post this, try to communicate and detente the crisis.
8. You Will Be Given Several Tasks That Needs To Be Done In A Single Working Day. How Do You Prioritize?
Sample Answer
Sir, the several tasks allocated need to be managed and arranged in a specific order on the basis of some pre-defined strategy or technique. There are various such techniques, however, I rank the tasks on the basis of their difficulty levels. The tasks which are the toughest and need a greater application of mind are always executed in the beginning by me. These tough tasks are followed by some easier ones. This strategy helps me to not only complete all the tasks in a time-bound manner but also maintain my efficiency and productivity levels.
9. Failures Need To Be Managed. What Is Your Strategy In This Regard?
Sample Answer
Sir, success is not a guarantee, and we can just never be successful at every walk of life. We will surely face failure at some point and we must be ready to face it with all our strength. It is true that failure has a devastating impact upon the human mind but we must not let it seep through our minds and affect our performance at the workplace. For me, the best way to manage failure is by controlling my thought process and stopping the continuous replay of that thought of failure. This way I am relieved of negative emotions and narcissism.
10. What Is Your Perception Of Team Work and An Ethical Work Culture?
Sample Answer
Sir, in my humble opinion, teamwork is the best way to enhance the productivity levels of the employees and also to maintain as well as create a sense of belongingness. An ethical teamwork culture is nothing but employees working in harmony and peace so as to achieve one common goal and objective. If the team members are supportive, educated, skillful, and supportive, it will ultimately lead to the creation of an ethical work environment.
11. We Are Looking For Someone Who Has Excellent Academic Knowledge. Do You Have Academic Competence?
Sample Answer
Yes sir, absolutely. I have some excellent academic records and the same can be seen by scrutinizing my mark sheets and academic certificates. Further, not only theoretically, but also practically, I am well versed with all the key requirements for this job. Thus, I could say with the greatest strength at my command that I am competent academically for this job.
12. How Competent Are You In Drafting Business Communications?
Sample Answer
Sir, I have developed writing skills and an ability to use several transition words in my writing so as to improve overall readability and understanding. In my opinion, I have the ability to create some excellent business drafts and communications. Given an opportunity, I will not let you down.
13. Challenges At The Workplaces Are Common. How Do You Overcome Them?
Sample Answer
Sir, businesses operate in a challenging business environment that not only constantly changes but is also influenced by a variety of factors such as legal, political, technological, etc. Therefore, the employees of the companies must also be ready and willing to overcome all such challenges by using patience, wit, and intelligence at their workplaces. My strategy is to keep it simple, and first of all, understand the root cause of all the challenges and then find out measures to solve such issues.
14. What Is “Quality” In Your Opinion?
Sample Answer
“Quality” is a term that is capable of several interpretations. In my opinion, when an employee is able to perform as per the established benchmarks or standards and is able to complete almost all the tasks, he is required to perform, then that is a quality task. Further, such a task must contribute and generate positive traction for the business organization as well.
15. How Flexible Are You To The Changing Surroundings At Your Workplace?
Sample Answer
Sir, the surroundings keep on changing and an employee must be ready for it. You might be working in a personal cabin till now, but from the next week, you might be working from a cubicle. You might be having your office that was near to your place of residence till now, but let’s say after a month it can shift farther. These are uncontrollable changes and an employee must be flexible enough to adapt quickly and expeditiously.
16. Are You Competent Enough To Work Under Minimum Guidance and Supervision?
Sample Answer
Yes, sir, I have a good grip on my primary skills and possess excellent knowledge of the tasks to be done. I am working in this field for the past 4 years, and have developed my own style or procedure of working. Further, I prefer to work in my own bubble and need little to no supervision. However, I am bold enough to seek guidance whenever I need some.
17. Share A Situation In Which You Resolved An Issue Using Your Knowledge and Skills.
Sample Answer
Sir, this is an incident that happened when I was undergoing my internship with a reputed business organization. The entire organization was in a dilemma as to whether we should switch over to the new accounting system or prefer to use the existing one. The newer system was more expensive and had more features, but lacked the number of reports that it could generate. Then, I used my knowledge and effort to compare the two systems. I entered the financial data of a company into both the accounting systems and compared the results in terms of presentation and depth. The existing system was better, and I was praised for my efforts.
18. Describe A Time When You Gave A Below Par Performance.
Sample Answer
Not all days are equal and there are a few circumstances when we are just not able to give our best. I remember how during my previous tenure with a company, I gave a sub-standard performance that lead to project failure. However, we learn from our mistakes, and I seriously analyzed what went wrong in my personal work.
19. We All Change Our Opinions. Share A Time When You Made Changes At The Last Moment.
Sample Answer
Sir, planning is a continuous process and in a world as dynamic as today’s, we can just never be sure of our strategies. These need to be constantly modified and updated in accordance with the requirements of the time. Last year, while working for my current organization, I just made some major changes in the team required to execute the project. I changed 4 out of 7 members of the team and replaced them with less experienced members. It was because of the favorable conditions, which unexpectedly were turned in the favor of our company. This way, I saved substantial employee expenditures and deployed the experienced ones to some other challenging projects.
20. How Do You Handle Ethical Dilemmas?
Sample Answer
Sir, ethical dilemmas are quite challenging and when faced, leave employees in the lurch. However, no matter what, I am a committed and dedicated employee of the company, and would always favor my employer. I might be unethical while performing such an act, but I will be disloyal too if I go against my company, which is a source of my livelihood.
21. Describe About A Time When You Were Supposed To Perform A Task Of Which You Knew Nothing?
Sample Answer
Sometimes, we have to face some really challenging situations in our employer organizations. I remember when during my previous tenure, I was supposed to work on a task related to software testing when I belonged to the commerce field. This was really tricky, but I used Google for my help and taught myself some best ways to do software testing. Eventually, I was able to deliver a decent performance, and there were no complaints.
References
- https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1362361320981319
- https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12874-021-01385-9
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