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5 Job Interview Questions About Teamwork

Unlike many hard skills where you can simply look at a candidate’s qualifications and experience, their teamwork skills are a bit harder to gauge. Before you make a final decision, you’ll want to get a sense of how well the candidate will work in a team setting. Here are five interview questions that will give you a better idea of whether they’re a team player.

>What is a successful project you were on?

This is a good question to start with and will let you know how much experience a candidate has with being part of a team. Ideally, they will provide you with a detailed account of how they effectively cooperated with other team members and how their skill set added value to the overall group. This question also provides a great opportunity for a job candidate to show their actual role on the project. If they take credit for the entire success, that could be a red flag. Following up with a question to really pinpoint their role or with a reference should lead to a more informative (and accurate) answer on their role in the project.

How did you work with a personality you had a conflict with?

It’s inevitable that conflict will arise at some point within a group. But it’s important that team members are able to come together and resolve any issues they may have. Ideally, the candidate will exhibit signs of self-awareness and sound communication. You’ll want someone who is willing to put their personal differences aside for the greater good of the team.

Do you have more energy when working alone or in a team?

Generally speaking, individuals with introverted tendencies draw their energy from working alone. Those with more extroverted tendencies draw their energy from working as part of a team. Although, you can’t necessarily say that introverts don’t make good team members (they often do), your best bet is to aim for a candidate who thrives in your workplace setting. In other words, if the role requires frequent teamwork, avoid someone whose batteries are drained by frequently working on a team.  Take the culture of your company and find the characteristics of a successful employee in your job candidate pool.

When did being part of a team make you do a better job?

One of the main advantages of teams is that everyone comes together with their own unique skills to form a greater whole. Asking this question will lend insight into how a candidate’s job performance fares when they’re part of a team. Look for a candidate whose performance is clearly elevated in this type of work setting.

When is a team going to be successful?

There are several different qualities that are critical for building an effective team. Some of which include:

  • Strong work ethic
  • Sense of responsibility
  • Acceptance of other ideas
  • Conflict resolution
  • Acceptance of one’s unique role

Analyze a candidate’s response to this question, and see if they mention any of these or similar qualities. Any examples they provide can be great testimonials to their experience and provide more context into the job candidate’s history.

Knowing the right interview questions to ask about teamwork is important when your employees consistently work in a team setting. Asking the right questions for your employment opportunity should give you the right sense of how an individual will fare if they’re hired, and whether they’re someone who would be a good fit for your company.

Do you need help finding top-tier talent? Contact the staffing professionals at Axiom Staffing Group to work with our top-tier recruiters today!

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