Do you know how to earn trust from your team?

Question Analysis

This question is designed to assess your ability to build and maintain trust within a team setting. Trust is a fundamental aspect of effective teamwork and leadership. The interviewer wants to understand if you are aware of the strategies and behaviors that contribute to earning trust from your team members. They are looking for specific examples where you demonstrated these abilities. The STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) method will help you structure your response by providing a clear narrative of how you have successfully built trust in the past.

Answer

Situation: At my previous job, I joined a project team that was behind schedule due to communication issues and a lack of trust among team members.

Task: My task was to lead the team to complete the project on time and improve collaboration.

Action:

• Open Communication: I initiated regular team meetings where everyone could voice their concerns and share updates. This transparency helped to address misunderstandings early.
• Lead by Example: I consistently met my own deadlines and was open about my own mistakes to show accountability.
• Support and Recognition: I made an effort to recognize team members' contributions and offered support when they faced challenges, creating a more supportive environment.

Result: By fostering open communication and being accountable, trust within the team significantly improved. As a result, the team was able to collaborate more effectively and we successfully completed the project two weeks ahead of the revised schedule. Team feedback was positive, highlighting the improved team morale and trust.