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When hiring for senior management positions, interviewers are looking for individuals who demonstrate the decision-making and leadership skills necessary for guiding a company towards success.
In this article, we'll discuss the most common senior management interview questions and the top answers to showcase your mastery of these key abilities.
Key Takeaways:
Candidates for senior manager positions should highlight their leadership skills in their answers.
Interviewers should ask senior manager behavioral interview questions to get a better understanding of who the candidate is and what their skills are.
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Tell me about yourself. This is a common interview question used to break the ice at the start of an interview. You should highlight your relevant skills and qualifications. Any personal details should relate back to the position.
Example answer:
I have over 12 years of experience as a senior manager, and I have a proven track record of leading high-performing teams and delivering results and going above and beyond. Throughout my career I have held various position and led teams in areas such as operations, project management, and business development.
I am passionate about leadership and I believe in empowering my team members to take ownership and drive results. I am excited about the opportunity to contribute my skills and experience to this organization.
Why should we hire you? This is another common question that is asked. You should be highlighting your best achievements and accomplishments and sell yourself as to why you are the best candidate for the position.
Example Answer:
My experience in previous roles has provided me with the skills necessary to lead high-performing teams and deliver top results. I have managed budgets and projects of up to $10 million and have implemented process improvements that led to significant cost savings and increased efficiency.
I am passionate about continuous improvement and have a strong commitment to ongoing learning and development. I believe my experience, leadership style and commitment to improvement makes me a strong fit for the position.
What is the most important trait for senior managers to have? There are a variety of top answers you can choose from, each saying something different about your management style.
Key senior management traits include:
Team-building and interpersonal skills
Flexibility and creativity
Critical thinking and problem solving
Example answer:
It's critical for senior managers to know how to build effective teams. By developing their skills and leading them in the right direction, you can accomplish anything.
How do you know when you've delivered something exceptional? Hiring managers ask this question to assess which of the two candidates value more:
Personal advancement and bonuses
Results and value generated for the company
The key is to align yourself with the latter and give an answer that shows that you focus on results.
Example answer:
I measure my success in terms of the company's success. I always strive to deliver projects that exceed client expectations and generate significant value for the business.
What can employees learn from you? This is a clever question designed to learn several things about you, such as your:
Positive-traits
Ability to influence team members
Level of self-awareness
Touch on all three of these points, and make sure to inject a little bit of modesty into your answer.
Example answer:
Many past employees have told me that my positive spirit has motivated them to succeed, even in poor situations.
I always strive to stay diligent in the face of all challenges to set a good example for my team.
How do you deal with underperforming employees? Using discretion to know whether to train, speak with, or fire an employee is a difficult part of being an effective manager.
Demonstrate this discretion in your answer by walking the hiring manager through your process, ideally with a real-life example.
Example answer:
At a previous senior management position, I had two workers who were underperforming even after three months on the job.
I scheduled a face-to-face meeting with them to determine the appropriate course of action. Identifying their genuine dedication to the job, I decided to give them another chance.
We discussed at length their challenges on the job and developed a targeted improvement plan. By periodically checking their progress and offering advice, I was able to build the staff members into two of the highest performers on the team.
How would you describe our company? It's a serious red flag if a candidate for an executive management position has done zero internal research on the company.
However, that doesn't mean you need to get too creative with your answer. Just make sure to touch on a few of the company's main values and distinctive features.
Example answer:
I see [Company Name] as an innovative leader in the X industry with limitless potential for the future.
Why do you want to be a leader at this company? This is another common question designed to assess whether your own professional values are aligned with the company.
Example answer:
Your goal to create more environmentally friendly home appliances greatly inspires me, and I want to dedicate my skills to furthering that vision.
How do you reward your team members for exceptional work? Knowing how to properly incentivize workers is critical to maximizing their productivity.
Example answer:
In terms of individual achievers, I would praise them in front of the team. In order to motivate team-wide success, I often offer incentives such as allowing them to leave early on Fridays or buy them lunch.
When conducting employee performance reviews, what do you treat as the most important metrics? As a leader, you need to demonstrate an ability to build your team. Knowing how to perform effective performance reviews and promote the right people are important parts of that process.
Example answer:
I focus primarily on raw productivity and quantifiable results, followed by traits such as optimism and leadership.
How do you sell ideas to your teams? Effective leaders don't just dictate actions; they communicate with their teams so that each employee also has their eyes on the goal.
Example answer:
I set up presentations and communicate with my team members to help them understand the benefits of an idea.
I also ask questions to make sure that each employee understands and has mutually aligned goals.
How do you react when your strategies aren’t going according to plan? All executive managers face failure at some point, no matter how skilled they are.
It’s critical that you’re able to identify the reasons for any such failure and adapt accordingly.
A great way to answer this open-ended question is to reference an actual instance in your career using the STAR method.
Example answer:
I would conduct a thorough analysis to identify the reasons for failure. I would then examine the available options and adapt my strategy according to the findings.
This is exactly what I did as a senior manager at Costco when our expansion efforts into Oregon were missing our sales by 13%.
I immediately established a panel of experts to conduct an analysis of our operations. I examined their report and identified flaws in how we were displaying various items in our stores, and created a new strategy designed using that knowledge.
As a result, we overshot our quarterly sales goals in the region by 17%.
What are your ways of creating a positive workplace culture? There are many different leadership strategies that you could refer to.
Example answer:
The most important thing is to let all employees know that mistakes are expected and totally fine to make, as long as we learn from them.
This creates an environment where team members feel free to experiment and express their ideas.
How do you address employee complaints? As a leader, you need to learn how to accept criticism and use it as a tool to better yourself and the effectiveness of your team.
A candidate’s self-awareness and willingness to learn are among the greenest flags that hiring managers look for when interviewing applicants.
Example answer:
I always take employee complaints very seriously and consider them deeply. If there is room for improvement, I am always quick to make appropriate changes.
What satisfies you the most when you're in a management role? This is a fairly common open-ended question designed to learn a little bit more about you as a person and your values.
Example answer:
I love the feeling of setting ambitious goals, as well as working hard to develop strategies and teams to reach them.
What leadership positions do you take on outside of work? The hiring manager wants to know if leadership is a core aspect of your personality, rather than simply a job title.
Example answer:
I'm a youth leader at my local church, as well as a tennis coach that helps senior citizens.
What leader inspires you and why? For this question, who you specifically choose matters less than your reasoning.
Point to the leadership and decision-making skills and actions of the person, as that will reflect onto your own values.
Example answer:
I'm a great fan of Ryan Cohen, the founder of Chewy.
I think it's incredible that he stuck to his vision and strategies that he was confident in, despite everyone doubting that he could compete against Amazon in the pet supplies industry.
Do you have a mentor, and if so, what was the last challenge you sought their advice for? No matter how experienced and smart someone is, there's still plenty of room for them to learn and improve.
Companies ask this question to see if you recognize this fact and want someone who sacrifices their pride in order to seek guidance in areas that you are weak in.
Example answer:
Yes, I have a friend who provides me advice in technical matters, which I'm fairly proficient in but would still like to master.
The most recent question I asked them was how to set up a Jenkins pipeline.
How would you design an effective employee onboarding program? Although you likely won't ever take on this task, it's important to demonstrate that you know what makes for a successful employee.
Example answer:
I would collaborate with HR to design a program that first teaches employees about our company's goals and values, followed by team-building activities to teach them how to integrate into the company.
What do you think our company is succeeding at, and what would you improve? The hiring manager isn't actually expecting you to offer specific solutions to their problems but is rather assessing your general thought processes and making sure you did some basic research.
Example answer:
I believe that the company currently excels in terms of technological innovation and marketing. However, I think we could still improve the quality of the customer service.
How have you implemented effective change management strategies in your previous roles, and what were the key challenges you faced in doing so?
Can you describe a time when you had to navigate a complex regulatory environment, and how you ensured compliance while still meeting business objectives?
How have you utilized data analysis to inform your strategic decision-making, and what tools or methodologies do you find most effective in this process?
How have you managed teams through challenging periods of growth or restructuring, and what strategies have you found to be most effective in maintaining morale and productivity?
How have you implemented diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in the workplace, and what measurable results have you achieved as a result?
How have you successfully managed large-scale projects, including identifying and mitigating potential risks, while ensuring timely delivery and staying within budget constraints?
Can you discuss a time when you had to handle a difficult or sensitive HR-related issue, such as employee conflict or harassment, and what steps did you take to resolve the situation while upholding company values and policies?
What strategies have you used to effectively manage and allocate resources, such as budget, staff, and time, to ensure successful project outcomes?
As the Candidate:
Highlight your leadership skills. It's important to have leadership skills when you are a manager. By highlighting how you are an effective leader and things that you have done in your past will help the interviewer get an understanding of how you are as a manager and leader.
Mention your professional development. Being a senior manager means having to go through different trainings and levels of development. Highlight any certifications or programs that you have completed to show that you are the top candidate.
Create a list of responsibilities. List some of your previous responsibilities such as training or monitoring new employees or coordinating and managing the monthly close process. Reread the job description to try and align your previous responsibilities to what is required for this position.
As the Interviewer:
Create your list of questions. Ask senior manager behavioral interview questions to help you get an understanding if the candidate is qualified or not. These questions will help you get an understanding of the candidates communication and leadership skills, which are important to the position.
Set expectations. Set clear expectations for what the candidate can expect the position to be like if they are hired.
Take notes. Taking notes during the interview will allow you to recall more details when it comes time to evaluate candidates. Take note to the skills the candidates mention and the experiences that they have that are not listed on their resume.