Give an example of when you made a decision that was unpopular.

Question Analysis

The question is asking for a specific instance when you made a decision that was not well-received by others. This type of question is common in behavioral interviews to assess your decision-making skills, leadership qualities, and your ability to handle conflict or opposition. The interviewer wants to understand your thought process, how you communicated the decision, and how you dealt with any fallout.

Answer

Situation: In my previous role as a project manager, I was responsible for overseeing a high-stakes project with a tight deadline. We were using a particular software that the team was accustomed to, but it was causing significant delays due to frequent crashes and bugs.

Task: As the deadline approached, it became crucial to ensure that the team's productivity was not hindered. I had to decide whether to continue with the current software or switch to a new one that was more reliable but unfamiliar to the team, a decision that was not popular among the team members.

Action: After evaluating the pros and cons, I decided to switch to the new software. I organized a training session to quickly bring the team up to speed and provided additional support to address any concerns. I communicated the long-term benefits of this change clearly to the team, highlighting how it would ultimately lead to a smoother workflow and meet our project deadline.

Result: Initially, there was resistance and frustration from the team due to the learning curve. However, as the team became more comfortable with the new software, our productivity increased significantly, and we were able to meet the project deadline successfully. In retrospect, the team acknowledged that the decision, though unpopular at the start, was beneficial for the project's success.