Every job requires you to use quick decision making skills from time to time. No one want to hire people who always asks the entire staff before making a decision. Doing so would be too time consuming and hurt productivity. Employers may then ask you how you make quick decisions, in order to see:
- That you can make decision quickly.
- That you put thought into how you make fast decisions.
Behavioral Interview Question: Give me an example of a time when you had to be quick in your decision making process. What obstacles did you face?
Any time an employer wants an example, they’re hoping to see that you understand the importance of good decisions. They want to know that you recognize that decisions should not simply be instinctual. If possible, try to integrate stories of successful actions you’ve taken. This can help make sure the employer learns more about what type of worker you are as well.
How to Answer:
“My boss had left early because of an emergency health issue. We had a deadline coming up on Monday which required us to complete data analysis that would determine school awards. The IT department was also down that day, and as a state government job, there are certain rules that we have about how to manage and provide overtime. It is difficult. But the only other option was to be late with the data.
So I had to decide if we could run the data over the weekend, how to manage the process given that weekend support is not available, and how to arrange to make sure the process was running and completed effectively.
I received last minute approval for the overtime hours and arranged for someone from IT and someone from our department to be available. I also came up with specific instructions and an action plan should something go wrong with the system, and made sure that they would have enough time and resources to finish by Monday morning so that it could be assessed before sending it in. We were successful in meeting the deadline.”
Specific examples are paramount. The employer does want to know that you are not someone dependent on everyone else at the office to make decisions. If you can come up with a good, specific example, the employer will be impressed by you.
See more:
- 5 Key Steps for Difficult Decision Making – Show That You Can Apply Them
- How to Problem Solve Before Making a Decision
- How to Show You Can Make Unpopular Decisions With Courage
- How to Explain Business Decisions You Regret