Can you tell me about a time when you disagreed with a team member's approach?

Question Analysis

This question is seeking to understand how you handle conflict and disagreements in a team setting. The interviewer is interested in your interpersonal skills, ability to communicate effectively, and how you contribute to a team dynamic, especially when opinions differ. They want to see your problem-solving abilities and how you navigate and resolve conflicts constructively.

Answer

Situation: In my previous role as a project manager, our team was tasked with launching a new marketing campaign. One of my team members proposed an approach to target our audience through traditional print media, which I disagreed with, as our target demographic was more active on digital platforms.

Task: I needed to address this disagreement constructively and guide the team towards a strategy that would maximize our reach and engagement.

Action: I scheduled a meeting where we could discuss our perspectives openly. During the meeting, I shared market research data that highlighted the digital habits of our audience. I encouraged my team member to present their rationale too. We then brainstormed together and considered integrating a digital approach with a smaller print component, allowing us to test both strategies.

Result: By combining the strategies, we were able to increase our engagement by 30% more than the previous campaign. The blended approach also provided valuable insights into our audience's preferences, which we used to refine future campaigns. This experience strengthened our team’s collaboration and problem-solving capabilities.