Page 114 - 101 Dynamite Answers to Interview Questions

Answer Questions 107

. What do you like most about your present or most
recent boss?

Focus on something that demonstrates your appreciation for
sound supervisory principles rather than focus on the personal-
ity or personal characteristics of the individual. You want to
generalize beyond this specific case as you link your obsewa-
tions to the position for which you are interviewing:

My current boss is a tewlfic role model who really knows how to
work well with her employees. She doesn’t expect her subordinates
to do things she wouldn’t do. In fact, she has an open-door policy
where everyone has easy access to her and where open two-way
comnzunication is encouraged. She has created a vey congenial and
supportive work environment where everyone perfomis to their best
level. What I really like about her is her constant and sincere efort
to assist her subordinates. She regularly asks us, “How areyou
doing? Can I be of any help? Let me know ifyou have any
questions. ” She’s genuinely concerned that we do the ve y best we
can. She knows the strengths ofeach eniployee and tries to use them
in the best possible combination. Her subordinates really admire
her. They go that e.x%m mile to produce quality work. Sonzeday I
would like to become such a supervisor.

What do you like least about your present/most
recent boss?

Be careful with this question. What negative things you say
about your past bosses probably reflect what negative things you
will say about your future bosses. Even though you may have
had conflicts with a previous boss, focus on a negative that can
also be interpreted as a positive. For example,

What I least liked was the lack of feedback on my perfonnance.
My boss offiveyears ago always gave his subordinates immediate
feedback on their pefomance - whether positive or negative. You
always knew whereyou stood with him. I got used to working in
such an environment where open communication between supewi-
sois and subordinates was actively encousaged. I assumed that was