10. Tell me about a time you and your supervisor disagreed on a decision. How did you approach that discussion? What was the outcome?

What you are looking for:  A Players can’t be micro-managed. They want ownership over their role, and as such, they will have opinions and recommendations on how to best approach situations. They are also likely to be closer to the problem with a different perspective than leadership. You want to see courage, tact, genuine respect, and constructive discord between the candidate and their leaders. You want team members who can converse respectfully about difficult topics with all kinds of people, but most importantly, you, their supervisor. Pay close attention to the degree of pushback they provide or the amount of seeking to understand the candidate brings to the discussion.

‍Example Good Answer: We don't typically disagree about work. We have an understanding of how to handle things work-wise. It's more about "how" to test something. I think I want to handle it a certain way. The "conflict" never gets out of control. We just talk about it.

‍[Interviewer: Give me an example.]

‍Like disagreement on how to handle team touchpoints. For instance, before COVID, we all worked in the office. Now, we're remote. We didn't have morning calls, and we didn't communicate. I suggested we have a call in the morning because we were working on tickets that other members of the team didn't know about. We ended up doing the same jobs twice. My supervisor didn't like the idea of a morning call at first, but I pushed. After a week, he relented; he scheduled a call. Now he loves it.

‍Example Bad Answer: A supervisor should supervise. They should be there for a reason and should know better. I really haven’t disagreed with the supervisor. Work is work and personal is personal, so I don’t get offended. I’ve just been a QA person, so I’m just a "mortal". If the supervisor disagrees with me, you follow what the supervisor needs.

‍Traits: Candor, Social Skills, Working Style