| Front |
What could you have done to improve your
relationship with a manager you didn't like?
"What
could you have done to improve your relationship with a manager you didn't
like?"
This question could be a follow up to the question about having a bad manager.
In my case, I didn't know he was a bad manager until I switched managers. But
here is a generic answer that shows professionalism.
Short Answers
"If
I communicated my problems earlier, I feel we both would have benefited. I
waited several months before approaching my manager, and after our talk, our
relationship got much better. So I could have improved my relationship by
talking about problems sooner than later."
"I
feel I should be more understanding of different work styles. I didn't like my
manager not communicating enough, but that didn't mean we couldn't approach
him. So I'm learning to work seamlessly with different types of people."
"One
of my managers gave too much criticism. I value criticism, but hearing
something negative every other day was difficult. I think I could have
communicated how the criticism affected me in order to improve our
relationship."
Long Answer
"I
had a manager in the past I didn't like that much, but I couldn't say he was a
bad manager. Our personalities conflicted and we had some arguments. This
affected my performance and willingness to work in the beginning, but I asked
myself this same question. I thought I should try to get along with my manager
despite my personal feelings. I set them aside and maintained a professional
relationship. Taking this approach really helped. Because I was willing to look
past minor differences, our work relationship got stronger and I performed at a
higher level."
This answer shows that this person took proper actions before it was too late.
It shows that this candidate has the ability to work with managers and team
members despite personal differences or feelings of dislike. When you think of
your own answer, make sure you answer this question showing that you dealt with
this problem before and that you overcame the situation. |