In competitive job interviews, there is one thing which is sure shot – A question concerning leadership. An interviewer might directly ask you about your leadership experience or simply state a scenario to check your leadership skills.
So, here are some leadership examples that you can use in your job interview to make it a level up.
Leadership Examples for Job Interviews
1. Being a team head at school.
I recently completed my bachelor’s degree in finance, and the majority of my final-year subjects required collaboration. I aim to take on the role of leader whenever feasible since it helps me to hone my communication, delegating, and time management abilities.
We were divided into four teams of four in a senior-level accounting class and had to finish a huge assignment for the semester. Because I established a timetable early in the project and distributed work to people based on their skills, my team received the highest mark in the class. I like leading and delegating, and I intend to do so in my work life as well.
2. Took initiative to help the sales team
As production work was progressing, I volunteered to assist the sales team. Not only had sales returned by the second quarter of the new year, but earnings for that product had increased by 15%. Our team was awarded for increasing sales, which motivated us to keep improving.
3. Organizing an event
Strong organizational abilities, in my opinion, are among the most critical qualities that a leader should possess.
My employer hosts an annual summer BBQ, and the individual who used to arrange it every year recently departed for a new position. I offered to run it this year because I had previously assisted them.
We normally have a few structured activities during the day because it’s a potluck gathering. I sent out a poll to see who wanted to contribute what meals and what activities were the most popular.
4. Leading a meeting
To solve the problem, I took the initiative and called a team meeting. I proposed that we put together a bargain package that would allow clients to buy large quantities of the goods at a discount. I set up weekly check-ins with my coworkers to analyze sales and listen to any complaints.
5. Supporting employees
My employee who was supposed to deliver the presentation was scared at first, but he wanted to give it a shot. I worked with them to make sure they were prepared, including holding a practice session so they could practice in a more relaxed setting.
They nailed it when it came to the actual thing! We were successful in landing the client, and the account is still active today. And that individual became the go-to guy for big customer meetings. I’m pleased I took the time to listen to everyone’s concerns so I could rethink my strategy and assist my team in being the best it could be.
6. Managed last-minute changes
There were a few minor glitches on the day of a high-level casual meeting—we ran out of ice briefly—but the meeting went successfully overall, and everyone was able to react to last-minute modifications since everything had been prepared and discussed ahead of time.
Following the event, I received a lot of positive comments in person and letters from employees at all levels of the firm. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves!
7. Assisting colleagues
After barely two months on the job, I was given the burden of training another employee in my old role. Even though I still had a lot to learn, she and I worked together to do so, and I found I had a lot to teach others as well. We got through the ordeal together, and by working together and being clear, we were able to speak through any concerns and find solutions to our questions.
8. Taking initiative for customer’s welfare
I recall one time when we needed to help a client with an item exchange, but our manager, who handled the swaps, was gone for lunch. We used our corporate manual to find the relevant codes and processes to employ rather than keeping the customer waiting.
We didn’t have to interrupt our manager’s lunch since we followed corporate protocol and the consumer was happy. The ability to truly listen to people and communicate oneself effectively is a quality that is very useful when interacting with consumers, and I eagerly anticipate the opportunity to assist in increasing customer happiness wherever possible.
9. Learning from setbacks
Last year, my team and I had to rethink a plan that wasn’t doing as well as we had hoped. We felt like we’d struck a brick wall since everyone was disheartened. Instead of adding to the worry and stress, I suggested we take a break and treat everyone to lunch. We got down and spoke about some of the most successful campaigns in history, as well as the factors that contributed to their success.
10. Working with competitive people
I was teamed with another engineer at my former job, and it was my obligation to proof code. Because she had more expertise and followed a precise approach, it was a challenging task for me to do. Despite this, we worked together, I improved my skills and got the task done with flying colors.
11. Working on challenging areas
I was assigned the duty of correcting the coding once. I constantly seek readability, and after many hours of searching, I discovered an area where we might make improvements. We discussed it and came up with the best solution. The changes increased the efficiency of the code by roughly 20%.
12. Handled a tricky situation
I used to work for a modest retail store. A coworker once expressed dissatisfaction with the manner I handled a client complaint.
Following a debate, we decided that the customer’s pleasure was the most important factor to consider and that granting a refund was the best option. I reassured the coworker that their worries were legitimate and that I valued their feedback. The consumer was pleased with the result and praised our complaints system.
13. Managing work efficiently
I’d made a new spreadsheet for managers to keep the daily sales on track at the end of the night. This spreadsheet was required every morning in an email and allowed us to track our progress daily.
After a few months, our sales system was improvised for entering the sales data which gave allowance to our managers to enter the data of sales on a daily basis. With the introduction of this new technology, I decided to ditch the excel sheets in favor of having the managers utilize the application to collect data and submit it to me.
14. Decision making
I had to select whether or not our company would participate in a new social media marketing effort to promote our products. Our organization didn’t have any data about the success of our recent strategy of social media marketing. If we went through, I planned to devote a minimum of one member of the team for the success of the project.
It would be time-consuming and, if it is not successful it would require an enormous amount of time leading to wastage of productivity. We were able to create a highly effective marketing strategy with demonstrable outcomes.
15. Working as a team leader
We rebuilt the campaign with low expense as a team leader with a creative team and observed an 8% boost in product sales. Helping my team unwind provided the impetus we all needed to bring new ideas to a campaign in desperate need of assistance. Working as a marketing manager, I’ve seen that when we put more emphasis on the people around us, our goods and campaigns succeed because our employees feel appreciated.
16. Being a volunteer for a college project
As a volunteer, I took the initiative in the college project group to initiate an informal conversation with respect to the division of work during semester meetings along with setting up a deadline for enhanced productivity.
I instantly collected all the team member’s email addresses and established a group email to keep a track of our progress in the project and to help each other even outside of class. My group received a 95% on our assignment towards the conclusion of the semester.
17. Training new team members
In my previous position, I was in charge of managing a team of five people, as well as scheduling, training, and mentoring them. I like leading, and I’m glad to announce that two of the five persons I mentored were promoted while I was mentoring them. Before that, I was in charge of a team of three designers who worked on a variety of projects.
Although I was not their direct manager, they were responsible for the projects I was in charge of. As a result, I have a combination of project management and direct management expertise from that position and my most recent position. Both of these things interest me.
18. Being a motivator for the team
My original aim as a Retail Team Leader was to inspire my team to provide excellent customer service. I made a point of praising team members who went above and beyond to help consumers. When numerous customers expressly phoned the head office to laud our store’s customer service, we knew we’d succeeded.
19. Managing clients
Once I had a client who wanted me to work on the operations with given information. I determined which operations could be handled by workers and which would necessitate bringing in someone from outside the organization.
I managed the budget to ensure that we had enough food and alternatives to accommodate any dietary needs, as well as as many of the popular activities as feasible. I sent out reminders to everyone to double-check that we had everything we needed. I also sent out a schedule that detailed when everything would take place and when individuals would need to arrive and set up.
20. Handling projects
In my previous position, my team and I were in charge of making a large presentation to a potential customer that required much research. I rapidly delegated several duties to members of my team, including the opportunity for the newest employee to deliver the presentation herself.
The initiative, however, never got off the ground. I questioned my team about their problems and offered everyone a chance to voice their thoughts, and it came out that they were having trouble with the jobs I’d assigned them. I had to rearrange a couple of people.
21. Directing reports
When I first started at my prior job, the office and people were in chaos owing to a long-term inability to hire. I filed, sorted, and rearranged as much as I could in a hurry. I also converted the most important papers to digital forms and established a consistent process for following up with customers and scheduling appointments.
Then, through weekly emails, I assisted in the development of an internal communication system to keep everyone informed about corporate policies, deadlines, and praises. Employee productivity increased by 16 percent as a result of this, and general morale rose, according to employee surveys. I can put my unique organizational method to bear on already established procedures.
References
- https://books.google.co.in/books?hl=en&lr=&id=lhrPS_s7EawC&oi=fnd&pg=PT11&dq=leadership&ots=kTlI3WXvUK&sig=oIq_s02iWsnHqyrYacYER5I1Yg8
- https://books.google.co.in/books?hl=en&lr=&id=NxXGFwDhLicC&oi=fnd&pg=PR9&dq=leadership&ots=TCRsQt-DqI&sig=bem75T8Q_avj4U1s7TZ6aqE90ag
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Sandeep Bhandari is the founder of PrepMyCareer.com website.
I am a full-time professional blogger, a digital marketer, and a trainer. I love anything related to the Web, and I try to learn new technologies every day.
All the team management, content creation, and monetization tasks are handled by me. Together with the team at PrepMyCareer, the aim is to provide useful and engaging content to our readers.