Are you a team player?

Are you a team player?

Alternative and related questions:

• Are you a team player?
• Do you prefer to work independently or on a team?
• How do you feel about working on a team or in team environment?

The meaning behind the question:

The job interview question, “Are you a team player?” is often asked to check whether the interviewee is comfortable to work alone or as a team. The answer should always be positive as most office performs operation in project basis and within a time frame which needs a group of employers to be working as a team.

 Understand the Nature of Teamwork

Before you answer, consider how you best contribute to a team.

• Do you get along easily with people?
• Are you an effective collaborator?
• Can you communicate with people from various backgrounds and with different personalities?
• Can you motivate people?
• Do you know how to push back tactfully?
• Can you mediate conflicts?
• Can you deal with difficult personalities?

Your Answer should be:

Every company wants their employees are capable of working in a team environment. Thus, every interviewee must have this quality to work comfortably as a part of a team. The project basis work is normally big which needs a lot of different skills to be combined for a positive result. It is not possible for a single person to do all the work and submit it in ahead of deadline. Every employee won’t be the best player in every sector as well, which is a fact. The best way to go is forming a team, dividing the responsibilities between different players, compromising the work and take the one which fits best for the project. When interviewers ask this question, the answer should always be “Yes, I am a team player”.

After that you must add some examples as evidence and back up your statement. If you don’t, then the next question will be, “Show some samples of your team work”. So, prepare some samples before the interview session. You can add some volunteer work that you did earlier or in college. You can also mention about your involve in the hockey team of college, where all the players nicely combined a team and won a few tournaments etc.

Sample Answers About Working on a Team

• I enjoy working in a team environment, and I get along well with people. In my past work experience, I implemented a system to help organize the communication between my coworkers to enhance our productivity as a team.
• Very much so. In fact, I've had opportunities in both athletics and academics to develop my skills as a team player. I was involved in _____ at the intramural level, including leading my team in assists during the past year--I always try to help others achieve their best. In academics, I've worked on several team projects, serving as both a member and team leader. I've seen the value of working together as a team to achieve a greater goal than any one of us could have achieved individually. As an example.
• I believe that I have a lot to contribute to a team environment, and am comfortable in both leadership and player roles. I'm outgoing, friendly, and have strong communication skills.
• I prefer teamwork. Different team members contribute different perspectives and the synergy between team members can produce creative and productive results.
• Collaborating with others helps to teach you more about yourself and your own strengths and weaknesses. Are you a better listener than a leader? Are you better at coming up with big ideas or putting them into action?
• Working in teams is both beneficial and challenging. It can help you help develop communication, negotiation and problem-solving skills while enabling you to share ideas. It can also be more enjoyable since we all like to belong. However, it's also a challenge in that it exposes you to new and perhaps unfamiliar ways of working along with new ideas that you might not be comfortable with. 
• Team work give me a greater sense of responsibility in creating unity among the team members and thus helps to further my professional development. I think it's also a fruitful process in that team members with certain strengths balance out people with certain weaknesses and we can all learn from each other.
• I think teamwork leads to increased productivity and performance: groups that have a good synergy can achieve more than employees working on their own. Teamwork brings together people with a broad range of skills and allows me to deepen my understanding of a particular challenge.
• Teamwork helps me sharpen my interpersonal skills -- speaking confidently and assertively while also actively listening to others. It's a great scenario in which to develop leadership skills.