From Susan M. Heathfield,
Your Guide to Human Resources.
FREE Newsletter. Sign Up Now!

• More Job Interview Questions for Employers

The following sample job interview questions about management and supervisory skills enable you to assess your candidate’s skills in management and supervision. Feel free to use these job interview questions in your own candidate interviews.

• If I were to interview the people who have reported to you in the past, how would they describe your management style?



• If I were to interview your reporting staff members, how would they describe your strengths and weaknesses as a manager and supervisor?



• Give me an example, from your past work experiences, about a time when you had an underperforming employee reporting to you. How did you address the situation? Did the employee’s performance improve? If not, what did you do next?



• Rate your management skills on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 representing excellent management skills. Provide three examples from your past work experiences that demonstrate your selected number is accurate.



• Describe the work environment or culture and its management style in which you have experienced the most success.



• Tell me about a time when you had a reporting employee who performed very well. The employee exceeded goals and sought more responsibility. Describe how you handled this situation day-to-day and over time.



• Describe three components of your philosophy of management that demonstrate what you value and add, as an individual, to an organization’s culture and work environment.



• What factors are crucial within an organization and must be present for you to work most effectively?



• Tell me about a time when you reorganized a department or significantly changed employee work assignments. How did you approach the task? How did the affected employees respond to your actions?



• One of the jobs of a manager or supervisor is to manage performance and perform periodic performance reviews. Tell me how you have managed employee performance in the past. Describe the process you have used for performance feedback.



• When you have entered a new workplace in the past, as a manager or supervisor, describe how you have gone about meeting and developing relationships with your new coworkers, supervisors, and reporting staff.



• As a manager or supervisor, one of your jobs is to provide direction and leadership for a work unit. Describe how you have accomplished this in the past.

Management and Supervision Skill Job Interview Question Answers

Pay attention to how your candidate answers your questions. Does he or she appear comfortable responding about each of the situations you describe and question? If not, the candidate may not be experienced as a manager and may be misrepresenting his or her credentials. Aside from this, you are looking for answers that reflect the values and approaches that are acceptable and promoted within your workplace culture.

You are looking for truthful, genuine answers that accurately describe a management style and approach that will “fit” within your environment. Beware of a candidate who persistently says the right things but fails to back up statements with solid stories that demonstrate the requested value or approach in action. You seek demonstrable experience, congruence with your culture, and a solid grasp of management responsibilities and requirements.

More job interview questions...