When you answer, provide specific details and avoid generalities. Your answer should include what you did before you address the problem, how you managed the difficulty, and how you followed up afterward to ensure the same problem did not happen again. When you are presented with one of these questions, choose a strong example that will fully demonstrate your ability to overcome difficult situations. Think about past difficult situations you encountered in the workplace and develop a framework with how you addressed the incident. How to show off your problem-solving skillsīy preparing for scenario-based questions ahead of time, you will be more confident in your answers when you encounter them. How did you deal with that situation and how would you deal with it in the future in our organization?”īy asking difficult questions, hiring managers evaluate how you would move forward and what resources you may have available to work through an unfamiliar problem. For example, they may ask you to describe a particular process or difficulty within an organization that you may not be familiar withĪn example of this type of question is: “Give an example of a time you noticed a coworker made a mistake. The third type of problem-solving question revolves around your overall knowledge and skills related to unknowns. Instead, they’ll ask you to walk them through a hypothetical scenario and explain how you’d deal with potential issues that arise - including ones they won’t necessarily ask about outright.Īn example of this type of question is: “Tell me the steps you would take to make a great impression with a client during a meeting.” The process question In this case, they wouldn’t ask you about something that’s already happened to you. So, employers use problem-solving questions to learn how you’d deal with unexpected or unknown situations in the workplace. Obviously, a new job in a new company means you’re not going to be familiar with everything. A question that is formed to elicit information on a past experience may be formed like:Ī second kind of problem-solving question is the hypothetical. Scenario-based questions are the most common form of problem-solving questions that usually focus on your past knowledge and experiences.īy using past successes and failures, employers want to know how you handled a similar situation in the past, how you manage problems that may occur in the future, and how you navigate the problem from start to finish.īy evaluating how you handled previous situations in the workplace, hiring managers can decide how you’re likely to address similar problems in the future. The easiest way to identify these questions is to evaluate whether the question is scenario-based. This correlation indicates that continuing education may be a great route if you’re looking to prove your problem-solving skills. To effectively answer a problem-solving question, employers are looking for people who can see the overall goal and mission of the organization while also dealing with the more minor details needed to accomplish the task at hand.Ī study published in the International Journal of Education discovered that students with higher secondary education possessed higher problem-solving abilities.