Hi there, my name is Richard McMunn from the interview training company, PassMyInterview.com.
And in this tutorial, I'm going to teach you how to pass a leadership interview. So, it
does not matter which leadership or management role you are being interviewed for, please
make sure you watch this tutorial fully from beginning to end, because I promise to help
make you the standout candidate! To achieve that goal, this is what I will cover: I will
give you a list of common leadership interview questions that I recommend you prepare for.
I will explain how to structure your answers to those leadership interview questions, to
gain the highest marks possible. I will also give you TOP SCORING ANSWERS to give you an
idea of how to structure your own responses. And then I will also talk about further resources
you can get access to, to successfully pass your leadership interview. Now, very quickly,
before I get into those leadership interview questions and answers, a very warm welcome
to this presentation. My name is Richard McMunn. That is me there in the center of the screen.
I've been helping people for 20 years now to pass their interviews. I am a former Fire
Officer myself, so I have vast experience of being a leader. And I always focus on giving
you TOP SCORING ANSWERS you can't find anywhere else! On that basis, please make sure you
SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHANNEL by clicking the red button below the video, and then you are not
going to miss out on any of the weekly training videos I upload. Please also connect with
me on LinkedIn. I have put my LinkedIn.com link in the description below the video, and
it's always good to connect with like-minded leaders and professionals such as yourself.
And please also make sure you HIT THE LIKE BUTTON, because that tells me you enjoy the
video and I will, therefore, create more content for you to help you pass your interviews.
Okay, let's get into those leadership interview questions, the tips, and the top scoring answers.
So, first of all, what are leadership interview questions? Well, leadership interview questions
assess a number of things. They assess your ability to TAKE RESPONSIBILITY for situations
that require direction and control. They also assess whether or not you have the QUALITIES
needed to excel within the leadership role that you are being interviewed for. And also,
they assess whether or not you will be able to LEAD A TEAM OF PEOPLE confidently towards
the organization's goals and objectives. So, how do you prepare for a leadership interview?
You do three things. Number one, you look at the organization's values and their mission
and you think to yourself, what are they trying to achieve? Because that will help you to
align your own skills to their objectives. You should also, when preparing for a leadership
interview, think of situations you have been in previously where you have demonstrated
strong leadership capabilities. And I will give you some examples in the answers to the
leadership questions that are coming very soon. Also, think about how you can align
your leadership skills to their needs. This proves to the interviewer that you are able
to ADD VALUE to their organization. And I'm going to give you a list of 8 LEADERSHIP SKILLS
that will impress the interviewer. The first one is your COMMUNICATION capabilities. When
you are communicating as a leader, you need to communicate with clarity and purpose. The
second one is that you should always insist on SETTING THE HIGHEST STANDARDS achievable
for both yourself and the members of your team. The third skill is having DECISIVENESS.
Now, great leaders make decisions and they take responsibility for them, and they don't
blame other people. They take responsibility. The fourth leadership skill is RELATIONSHIP
BUILDING. Building positive relationships, both with people within your team and external
contractors and stakeholders, will help you to achieve the organization's goals easier
and quicker. Leadership skill number five is having the ability to TEACH A MENTOR people.
When you are a leader, you have to identify those people within your team who have potential,
and then you encourage them to develop. Number six, make sure you have VISION as a leader.
Great leaders always focus on the long term vision or the goal of the organization they
are working for. Number seven, one of the most important leadership skills is being
able to INFLUENCE AND NEGOTIATE. Great leaders can persuade people to follow their course
of action. And number eight is SELF-AWARENESS. Be aware of your own strengths and your limitations.
It is perfectly OK to have limitations. Just be aware of them, OK? Let’s now get into
those Leadership Interview Questions and start putting those leadership skills into our answers
to the questions. The first question: How would you describe your leadership style?
Keep your answer to this leadership interview question relatively short. But focus on your
main STRENGTHS and how these will benefit their organization. Here is a top-scoring
answer to that leadership interview question: How would you describe your leadership style?
“I am a visionary led, transformational leader who always focuses on achieving the
commercial and strategic goals of the company I am working for. To me, leadership is all
about persuading people to willingly follow your course of action, and I would achieve
that through empowering and motivating my team to be the best they possibly can be.
Although I do have a set, preferred style of leadership, I am also flexible and adaptable
and I will change my approach to leadership as and when the situation requires me to do
so.” That is a very confident answer! You are giving your style of leadership. You are
explaining what leadership is, and then you are also demonstrating that you are flexible
and adaptable, which is very important. The next question of your leadership interview.
How do you handle disagreements in your team? Now, disagreements in a team can actually
be helpful and constructive. However, if they turn to conflict, they do need resolving.
And as a leader, it will be your responsibility to facilitate that process. So here's my suggested
answer to the leadership interview question: How do you handle disagreements in your team?
“I am the type of leader who encourages team members to challenge decisions professionally
and constructively, as this facilitates open debate, the creation of new ideas, and continual
improvement. However, if the disagreement turns to conflict, I would step in to resolve
it using a four-step process. STEP 1, I would ACKNOWLEDGE THE CONFLICT and establish the
root cause quickly. STEP 2, I would encourage the team members to RESOLVE IT AMICABLY for
the benefit of the team, and the organization. STEP 3, I would FACILITATE THE RESOLUTION
of the conflict myself if the team members were unable to do so. Finally, STEP 4, I would
ask ‘WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED FROM THE CONFLICT’ so we can all continue on our journey of improvement
and development.” You are mentioning there in your answer, that you see there is a benefit
sometimes to disagreements. However, you also have a simple, four-step process for dealing
with conflict at work. The next question: When have you had to make a difficult decision
as a leader? It's really important you use the STAR technique to answer this leadership
interview question. Here's a model answer to help you. By the way, don't forget, I hope
you're enjoying this? Please do HIT THE LIKE BUTTON. Thank you very much! Here we go. “Whilst
leading and managing a previous team, an opportunity came up for two team members to attend a much
sought-after training development course that was to be paid for by the organization. It
was my duty to choose two people from the team whom I felt were best placed to attend
the training course and help the organization to achieve its goals. This was a very difficult
decision to make, primarily because I had one particular team member who deserved the
training course more than anybody else. However, she was currently working on a vital inter-departmental
project and I simply could not spare her. When I informed her of my decision, she was
extremely disappointed and I could detect she felt demotivated as a result. I started
to explain to her the thought-process behind my decision, and how I valued her immensely
within the team and that other opportunities would arise later on at some stage in the
future. She took on board my comments, and whilst she was still disappointed, she carried
on her current role with professionalism. Later that year, I put her forward for a temporary
promotion and she went on to be very successful within the company.” That question is a
difficult leadership question. But your answer there is showing that you can make tough decisions
in the best interests of the organization! And you can also motivate the individual who's
disappointed to keep them progressing within their role by explaining the reasons and the
thought process behind your decision. Now, you'll notice that by using the STAR technique,
situation, task, action and result, I am able to construct a rock-solid, confident answer
that provides EVIDENCE of where I've been in that kind of situation previously. The
next question: How do you monitor the performance of the people you are leading? This is a tough
leadership interview question to answer, but make sure you have a SET PROCESS in place
for monitoring your team with both structure and purpose. And I will give you an answer
now that demonstrates how I personally have led teams previously, both in the Fire Service
as a Station Commander, and also whilst running my own business. Here we go. “I start off
conducting performance appraisal reviews to ascertain where each person is within the
team, what their strengths and weaknesses are, their career aspirations, and also to
set them targets and objectives to work towards. This gives them something to focus on, and
me as their leader, something to measure their performance by. I will then encourage and
motivate them, hold period discussions with them to check how they are progressing, and
also make sure they have the necessary training and the resources to achieve their objectives.”
That's a simple answer, but it is highly effective! Now, the next thing to do is to CLICK THAT
LINK in the top right-hand corner of the video. It will take you through to my website…
PassMyInterview.com. Have a look at the leadership competency interview questions that I've included
on that page. And please make sure you prepare for them during your interview preparation.
You can also DOWNLOAD THE ANSWERS if you want to. And they are all top-scoring answers to
the same caliber of the ones I've just gone through. Don't forget to connect with me on
LinkedIn.com. My LinkedIn.com link is in the description below the video. Please SUBSCRIBE
TO THE CHANNEL and make sure you HIT THAT LIKE BUTTON because that tells me you love
the content and I will, therefore, spend more time creating it for you! Thank you for watching,
and I wish you all the best for passing your leadership interview. Have a brilliant day!