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Mark & Mike,
An open query here based on the fact that you both use this question hiring managers. What do you believe would be the impact on results should you make this question known to the candidates prior to the interview ?
Thanks

TomW's picture
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Personally, I think if someone is not ready to answer this question, they are not ready to interview. I don't see this as any different from "tell me about yourself" and "tell me about some of your accomplishments." Anyone interviewing for a management/leadership position should have an answer ready.

tlhausmann's picture
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[quote="TomW"]Personally, I think if someone is not ready to answer this question, they are not ready to interview. [/quote]

You may be right but, for me, introspection as to my leadership style is harder to articulate. It seems like a situation where "you know it when you see it" but it is hard to communicate it.

When re-listening to the interview podcasts this weekend and thinking about how to improve my briefing skills, I've tried to think about my leadership style and I am having a hard time articulating it.

I am certainly more task oriented than most, I know my DISC profile, etc. but I have not sat down and really thought it through.

tlhausmann

tlhausmann's picture
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Argh. I'm off-line for a few days and there's a PODCAST on this very topic.

:oops:

vcgreen's picture

tlhausmann, Your initial reply is one of the considerations why I asked the question.

Many of us will not consider the question until we are being interviewed. Then it may get equal consideration with many other possible questions. I had a similar reaction listening to the podcast - "Have I given that question consideration in the context of answering someones question during an interview". Further compounded by the thoughts that an interview may not be the only situation that question could come up. Here, as you indicated and M &M mention we need to be able to communicate the message contextually.

When interviewing our goal is to place the most effective individual in the role. With MT and others preparing interviewees for interview expectations I want to know from M & M what the impact on results might be if candidates know that will be a question.

A large part of the value of the leadership style question appears after a full answer via our probing of the candidates answer. Mark & Mike indicated that this is a high value question, yielding a lot of information. They thought enough of it to create a great podcast.

Would it not follow to want the best answer from candidates by preparing them so that we may probe and explore how their management / leadership style might benefit our organization and them?

tlhausmann's picture
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[quote="vcgreen"]tlhausmann, Many of us will not consider the question until we are being interviewed. Then it may get equal consideration with many other possible questions.

[...]They thought enough of it to create a great podcast.

Would it not follow to want the best answer from candidates by preparing them so that we may probe and explore how their management / leadership style might benefit our organization and them?[/quote]

Indeed. No argument from me. When I reflect on the interviews (3.5 years ago) for my current role, my response to the leadership style question was (fortunately) one sentence with an example.

Now that I am working towards being a MT leader/manager I'll do even better should I ever need to interview again. For those who are *not* interviewing, M&M's outline for answering the question "Tell me about a significant accomplishment" may be applied to providing an update for an executive briefing.

1. One sentence statement on Project X (BLUF)
2. Background: situation, terms, "state the problem"
3. Describe the approach/solution

tlhausmann