Office Manager Skills Interview
Author:
Haya Bakour, MSc I/OAn Office Manager interview assessing key skills required for success. We've also included a few motivation and values questions to help you make the best decisions about your candidates.
Focus area:
Question
1
Why are you interested in making a career move to our company as Office Manager? How do you see this opportunity within the context of your career?
What does this question reveal?
Candidate exhibits fit and motivation to join the company
Explore tips
- Is seeking an opportunity to grow by applying and developing multiple skills
- Wants to make a defined impact on others and the organization’s success
- Is motivated to add value to the company's culture and work environment
- Is passionate when discussing how this connects with their strengths/interests
- Exhibits awareness of the role expectations and the organizational context
Question
2
Imagine you are managing a team and you know that one employee dislikes a certain task. You need this task completed, and only this employee can take on the workload. How would you motivate them to perform the task well?
What does this question reveal?
Candidate has the ability to inspire productivity in others
Explore tips
- Suggests informing the employee of available resources to assist with the task
- Suggests giving them autonomy and a say in how they complete the work
- Suggests praising their work in a related area
- Suggests telling them they believe in their ability to accomplish the task well
- Suggests scheduling one-to-one time with them to discuss their role in the wor
Question
3
What would you do if you were assigned a project to manage but lacked some of the skills or knowledge you needed to manage it?
What does this question reveal?
Candidate has the ability to implement novel solutions and have them embraced by others
Explore tips
- Suggests leveraging their network to quickly research unknown elements
- Generates multiple solutions to the problem
- Demonstrates eagerness to learn new skills/knowledge
- Is not afraid to take risks and exhibit initiative without gaining approval
- Thinks of unconventional ways to navigate the problem
Question
4
Describe tactics you use to efficiently keep track of important details surrounding company processes. How have you done this in the past, and why was it effective?
What does this question reveal?
Candidate has the ability to efficiently organize and file documents
Explore tips
- Demonstrates logical thinking around filing, organizing and storing information
- Addresses storage objectives (e.g. easily retrievable or stored for compliance?)
- Involves relevant stakeholders and discusses their needs and preferences
- Formulates clear and structured processes and systems
- Discusses implementation and education for the wider team
Question
5
Describe a time you improved an aspect of the office document management system to support efficiency in business operations. What did you do and what was the outcome?
What does this question reveal?
Candidate has the ability to develop an effective office document management system
Explore tips
- Describes the context and identifies why an improvement to the system was needed
- Clearly explains the improvements they made to the filing system
- Elaborates on the outcome of their actions
- Explains how they introduced/communicated the new system to their colleagues
- Discusses best practices and takeaways
Question
6
Tell me about a time you were managing a project and had an unexpected problem that interrupted your work. How did you address the problem without neglecting your other priorities?
What does this question reveal?
Candidate has the ability to use time and task management skills
Explore tips
- Quickly assessed the nature of the problem to determine its urgency/importance
- Prioritized their work effectively and focused on one thing at a time
- Closely monitored the progress of different work streams
- Estimated the time and effort for each task to develop a strategy/action plan
- Managed expectations, assessed resources and considered opportunity costs
Question
7
Imagine you start working in a new office and identify problems - e.g. the filing is disorganized and the office is either too crowded or empty. There are also many ad-hoc tasks for you to complete. What do you do first?
What does this question reveal?
Candidate has the ability to prioritize different office-related tasks
Explore tips
- Considers the impact of the different problems on the business
- Discusses how to prioritize the tasks (e.g. importance versus urgency)
- Proposes strategies to solve the issues and improve efficiency
- Shares relevant examples from past experience to justify claims
Question
8
Imagine you join a company that has multiple vendors for office supplies. You're asked to switch to one supplier to cover all the office's needs. How would you choose a vendor?
What does this question reveal?
Reveals a candidate’s ability to create efficiencies through managing vendors effectively
Explore tips
- Analyzes vendor offerings (items, prices, customer service, shipping, etc.)
- Would create a dataset to track information on suitable vendors
- Checks the recommendations, reviews, or other data to determine best option
- Ensures vendor selection is aligned with relevant business objectives/priorities
- Shares examples from past experience with analyzing and selecting vendors
Question
9
What resources or systems do you use to maintain order in the office? How do these help you keep track of office supplies and resources?
What does this question reveal?
Candidate has the ability to keep an office organized and track office resources
Explore tips
- Conveys attention to detail in their system/approach
- Discusses various strategies (tracking costs, tracking inventory, etc.)
- Discusses useful tools and general best practices
- Ensures everyone can easily access what they need
Question
10
Imagine you are our Office Manager. How would you design a workspace to optimize worker performance? What factors would you consider?
What does this question reveal?
Candidate has the ability to design work layouts to optimize performance
Explore tips
- Identifies spaces needed and used by business/teams
- Explains the main factors that should be considered when making changes
- Discusses limitations (e.g. budget) and opportunity costs
- Considers different needs (focused work, productivity, collaboration, etc.)
- Considers employee wellbeing (ergonomics, movement, standing desks, etc.)
Question
11
Hybrid offices are becoming more common. How would you create and implement a hybrid office policy for us?
What does this question reveal?
Candidate has the ability to design an office policy to accommodate circumstances
Explore tips
- Would solicit input from employees to create a suitable policy
- Would consider short- and long-term business needs
- Would invest in digital tools and technology to facilitate remote working
- Identifies relevant metrics to track regarding policy effectiveness
Question
12
In your previous/current role, how have you dealt with a small budget or lack of resources? Describe a specific scenario and how you managed it effectively.
What does this question reveal?
Candidate has the ability to operate with a tight budget
Explore tips
- Clearly explains the situation, objectives, challenges, and steps they took
- Revisits expenses, analyzes costs and checks priorities
- Analyzes pros and cons of potential outcomes and solutions (opportunity costs)
- Discusses the results and their impact on the business and stakeholders
- Discusses key learnings and takeaways
Question
13
Imagine you notice an issue with attitudes toward a specific topic within the organization (e.g. diversity and inclusion, employee well-being, etc.). How would you design and promote an initiative to address this issue?
What does this question reveal?
Candidate has the ability to promote and implement HR policies
Explore tips
- Works to understand the root cause of the problem
- Analyzes the context and the company's current HR strategy
- Highlights specific tactics they would use to promote the HR policy/initiative
- Educates and informs using different mediums (e.g. training, activities, etc.)
- Encourages and incentivizes employees to take part in the policy or program
Question
14
Based on your past work history and professional experience, in what type of work environment were you the happiest and most productive?
What does this question reveal?
Candidate shares preferences for organizational culture and workstyle aligned with your company
Explore tips
- Discusses attributes that align with your organization
- References different organizational factors (people, place, work, etc.)
- Highlights the values that shaped the environment/culture
- Shares a story from past experience to support their claims
- Justifies why it made them happy and productive
Question
15
What is one thing you wish I had asked you in our conversation today?
What does this question reveal?
Candidate displays self-awareness of unique strengths and value-add
Explore tips
- Gives a response that is relevant to the role in question
- Justifies their suggestion by explaining their value-add
- Exhibits strengths that were not previously covered
- Further demonstrates their value-add and competitiveness as a candidate
