While searching for work as a team leader, it’s important to be prepared for the most common team leader interview questions. Knowing what questions to expect in advance will help to ease any nervousness during the interviewing process by giving candidates a chance to rehearse them. This gives candidates an air of confidence, which is a desirable trait in a team leader. Common team leader interview questions include general questions, behavioral-based questions, and competency questions.
General team leader interview questions can include “What abilities do you have that qualify you to lead teams?” “What do you do to assign team members to specific duties?” and “Explain how you became a leader in your past jobs.” A candidate for a team leader position can shine by giving concrete examples of projects and goals completed as a result of his ability to lead others. In addition, it’s a good time to bring up credentials, special training, and the testimonials of colleagues that can back up any claims.
Behavioral questions that many team leaders encounter during interviews include “How well do you work as part of a team?” or “What do you do when you have a dispute with a team member?” The goal of the interviewer is to find out how well a candidate can lead a team of workers. The job candidate should provide clear examples of how he has led a team, how conflicts have been resolved, and that working in a team is a productive experience for him. He should highlight the ways in which conflicts and problems have been solved to produce stellar work.
Additional team leader interview questions are designed to determine the qualities and attributes of the candidate that qualify him for the position. These questions include specifics about working as a team leader on past projects. Questions can include “What technology tools do you use to manage projects to completion?” and “How do you identify the strengths within your team to delegate work to others?” Team leader interview questions like these shed light on the candidate's projects that have been completed in the past. By sharing the specific details of projects and focusing on how problems have been solved and teams have been managed, it’s possible to demonstrate competency in team leadership.