For other sample interview questions and answers, check out the Top 10 interview questions you have to be ready for.
Last week I had the pleasure of interviewing with a great company for a position I was really excited about. It cemented my enthusiasm when I realized what an experienced interviewer I was working with. Of course I was asked to tell him about myself, and what I knew about the company. One other common interview question that he used was:
What would your last supervisor say about you?
More specifically, he asked what my last supervisor would identify as my strengths and weaknesses. This question has a potential to uncover some valuable information:
- Honesty. All this takes is a reference check. One call to your previous supervisor to ask the same question either verifies or completely torpedoes your story.
- Self-awareness. What is your comfort level with what you have to offer and what might trip you up? Do you acknowledge not only your strongest areas of performance, but also your weakest?
- Your relationship with your previous supervisor. If any kind of “tone” creeps into your answer, the interviewer will pick up on it. Plus, if there’s a difference between your answer and your supervisor’s, it raises a number of questions about your communication skills, your ability to discuss challenges with your supervisor, and more.
So, here’s how to ace this question.
- Prepare for multiple facets of this question. So, think of what your last supervisor would say are your strengths and weaknesses, but also think of what they would say about your soft skills, technical skills, drive, and other facets of your on-the-job performance. Write it all down.
- Provide relevant examples. Think of why you believe this is what your supervisor would say. It should be based on things she has said, or at least implied, in the past. Brainstorm specifics to provide to back up your assertions.
- Have proof at the ready. For the positives, dig up any documentation that will show in black and white what your boss’s opinion of you was. This includes performance reviews, recognition, reference letters, etc. Refer specifically to the documents in question in your answer, and be ready to provide them upon request.
Why this works: Most answers sound something like, “I think he’d say I’m smart, hard-working and dependable.” If you have concrete examples, it demonstrates preparation (you know how much I LOVE that) and that you took your job performance seriously enough to take note of meaningful feedback. All good stuff. Plus, imagine they call your boss and she’s busy/tired/not prepared and she doesn’t give the answer that the recruiter is expecting. It gives the recruiter some concrete fodder for discussion, i.e. “Well, Michael mentioned that he was particularly helpful to you on project management. Would you consider that to be the case?” If all works well, your old boss has a jumping off point for a rave review.
Quick sample answer before we’re through:
I believe if you talked to Jim he would tell you that I was particularly strong in building rapport with clients. In fact, in my second year in the role, he gave me responsibility for one of our toughest clients because I had made a favorable impression during one of our sales presentations. He later mentioned in a performance review that my relationship building skills were critical to both building trust and diffusing challenging situations.
Best of luck!
photo credit: Photo Mojo
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