What are the most effective ways to answer behavioral interview questions for account management roles?

2 Choose relevant examples

Once you have identified the competencies, you should choose recent, relevant, and impactful examples from your past or present work experience that demonstrate them. Aim to have at least one example for each competency, and preferably more. For example, if you want to showcase your customer focus, you could select an example where you resolved a complex issue for a key client, delivered a customized solution that exceeded expectations, built a long-term relationship with a new account, or received positive feedback or recognition from a customer. This will help to illustrate your positive contribution and the outcome of your actions.

3 Use the STAR method

The STAR method is an efficient way to answer behavioral interview questions. It helps you to provide enough detail, avoid rambling, and emphasize your accomplishments. To use the STAR method, you need to explain the context of the example, what your goal or responsibility was, what steps you took to achieve the task, and the outcome of your actions. For each step, you should include information about the challenge or opportunity you faced, the skills you used, the challenges you overcame, what impact you had, and any feedback you received.

4 Practice and refine

The final step to prepare for behavioral interview questions is to practice and refine your answers. You can do this by writing down your answers using the STAR method, or by rehearsing them out loud with a friend or a coach. You should aim to make your answers concise, clear, and confident. You should also avoid using vague or generic terms, and instead use specific and quantifiable facts and figures. For example, instead of saying "I increased customer satisfaction", you could say "I increased customer satisfaction by 15% in six months, as measured by NPS surveys". Practicing and refining your answers will help you to improve your delivery, avoid mistakes, and impress the interviewer.

5 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?