The top achievement of my career has been the transformation of my former department as vice president of human resources. In fact, they had talked of stopping supply to that market due to the limited sales volume. Thinking through a relevant response to this question prior to an interview can help you answer promptly and with confidence if the hiring manager does ask about your accomplishments. We had a month of training and a test to show we understood the terminologies used by callers, and I passed with flying colors. Think about school projects, trips, private tragedies, public disasters anything that required you to work to overcome something while contributing to something or someone else around you. How much work are you willing to put in to accomplish something at work? If you have questions about resumes, cover letters, or CVs, we answer hundreds of them here. How to answer "What is your greatest accomplishment?" What is Your Greatest Accomplishment? Try to stick with professional career or job-related strong answers. We raised $20,000 from that cohort by the end of the year. Applying for an academic role or have substantial teaching experience to list on your CV? Research the job and company and tailor your answer accordingly. RESULTS: I rebuilt within a year after the ordeal and learned much about what I can accomplish and how resilient I can be. Give an answer demonstrating your abilities as the best candidate for the job. Training for and completing a marathon. SITUATION: My greatest achievement was paying for college myself. Utilize the STAR Method, Situation Describe the situation in your personal life or professional career that led to the achievement; Task talk about the task you had to do to accomplish the achievement; Action describe the actions you implemented to achieve the accomplishment; Results discuss the results. I was living just a few towns away from the market, so I decided to move there temporarily and observe the behavior of the targeted consumer group to understand why they did not interact with our product. (JOB INTERVIEW TIPS and SAMPLE ANSWERS!) Additional interview resources. When asking this question, the interviewer wants to learn 3 things: Now that weve got that out of the way, lets talk about how to answer this question. And now a few full sample answers to tie all our advice together: My greatest accomplishment happened at my last role as an HR manager. I was part of a small team assigned to redesigning the agency website in hopes of attracting new regional clients.". What is your greatest accomplishment? Look for actions you took that made it possible for you to be in the position to interview for this job. So, to help you learn how to answer behavioral job interview questions better, were going to cover 3 more examples and sample answers below: Other common behavioral interview questions include: Check out even more common interview questions, and sample answers here: 35+ Common Interview Questions and Answers. To answer the interview question what is your greatest accomplishment?, first read the job description so that you can pick an accomplishment that aligns with the job responsibilities. It could be something personal, such as completing a difficult project or achieving a personal goal, or something professional, such as receiving a promotion or winning an award. It's something you're proud of and shows what you're capable of. I also started a reward system - if someone called in sick, youd get rewarded if you filled in for them. But with our CV maker, you can create a CV in the same timeframe. Examples for your greatest accomplishment could be: Giving a presentation for an important event, Providing mentorship to a fellow student or employee, Winning an award for academic or professional activity, Completing a rigorous training or educational course, Exceeding expectations in a metric-based assignment. I can hold 3/4 of a cup (180 mL) of water in my mouth. Check out our full guide on the topic here: Student & Graduate Resume Guide & Sample [Plus 10 Skills for Savvy Job-hunters]. At MatchBuilt, weve counseled 1000s of job seekers on how to answer common behavioral interview questions just like this one. This question is a behavioral interview question. I finished my course and went on to learn more programming languages, and I am now about to graduate as a software engineer. Not only did I graduate with minimal debt, but I also was able to gain practical experience that many of my peers dont have. Instead of simply saying "I increased sales by 600 percent in one year," describe how you did it. The company had instilled fines for that, but certain employees still came in late regardless of multiple fines. Well show you how to create your own. Personal Accomplishment as a Doctor. Its always better to have a recent story versus one from ten years ago, especially if the skills you display are no longer relevant to the modern work youll be doing. This saved me a lot of time, and eventually, the document got repurposed to its own web page. TASK: I was tasked with understanding why people stayed out so long on their breaks, even after the fines were introduced, and how to overcome the issue. List your accomplishments. Choose a professional accomplishment. Professional accomplishments are achievements beyond your daily work responsibilities. "What is your biggest accomplishment at work?". " is a common behavioral interview question, so be sure to practice your answer ahead of time. Find out what they're saying. Considering using materials such as journals, your resume, or school transcripts to help jog your memory. Buying your first car. Some examples could be: Awards or competitions. "So far, my greatest accomplishment was organizing a food drive at my high school. This candidate describes initiative, organization, and insight into the teams needs. The importance of salary expectations Whether you are currently filling out a job application or preparing for an in-person interview, you may be asked A Guide to Delivering an Irresistible Elevator Pitch Picture this: You step into an elevator, and right after you steps in a well-dressed woman. Glassdoors Blog provides valuable content to the conscious job seeker and employees who are passionate about furthering and deepening their careers. This is not one of those times. His parents called to tell me that they had never seen him excited to do homework before, especially when it involved reading. That way, you can tune your answers to every question the interviewer throws at you. Next, its important to understand the company to get a better understanding of what the hiring manager values or is looking for in a candidate. Action: With my supervisors permission, I created promotional posters and asked everyone to suggest the drink to people who seemed indecisive. Follow these steps to help you respond to questions about your greatest accomplishments: Start by making a list of all your accomplishments in the workplace. 'What is your greatest accomplishment' is one of the best questions you can be asked in your next interview because it's really just a chance for you to brag about something great that you did. 1 people already answered this question. After a while, I started noticing a trend with the questions I was getting from our customers. Your answer could look something like the following: Situation - I think my greatest accomplishment was during my last job as an HR administrator. A year later, we had met and exceeded the goals I set when I took on the position. The whole experience taught me how to effectively manage and prioritize my time. Thats all for this one! As an experienced professional, you have a wealth of professional achievements on your resume. When the interviewer asks you this question, they want to know what you are most proud of as a nurse. No matter how you frame up your answer to this sometimes tricky question, you should have a prepared answer to maximize an opportunity to showcase why youre a good fit. E.g. The finance team of my organization was struggling with a project involving our . My greatest achievement was getting to work with wonderful people at Atlas Copco Power Technique. Short on time or simply dont like writing? Like with all good interview questions, when an interviewer asks you about your greatest accomplishment, theyre not just taking that answer at face value. It could be from a previous job, volunteer position, or another event. Check the job listing to see what skills the company is looking for in a candidate, and tailor your answer accordingly. For 16 months, I often stayed late to make additional sales calls and would go on-site to dormant accounts one to two days per week. What is your greatest accomplishment in life so far?#minecraftshorts #AskReddit #youtubeshort #short #AskReddit A realization of your values or goals. Learn why employers ask this question, how you can answer, and some sample answers that can be useful as you craft your own response. ACTION: I was still new to the job and had no car, so I could not stay late in the office for safety purposes. Unfortunately, he had been leading a client project that was due in a week and no one else was as familiar with the client or could code at his level. However, I decided to find a way to get to the office at least four hours before opening to pull in my weight and help with the extra work. TASK: Find a way to still deliver each project on time per customer expectations. 99%+ of the customers were happy, and we didnt receive a single bad review.. As a sales manager, I saw my coworkers struggle to find information about leads and accounts, sometimes at the cost of a new client. When I took on the position, turnover was high and our cost-to-fill was skyrocketing. I lost everything in a fire two years ago, and it couldnt have come at a worse time as I was also supporting a sick family member and was trying to finish my degree. While academics is the basic scale of measuring success for students, what they do and learn beyond their textbooks also plays a vital role in forming their personal attributes. Its easy to get carried away talking about your proudest accomplishment. Failure; The Unsuccessful Accomplishment. You cant borrow or copy an accomplishment, but you can borrow structure, style, and delivery. What did you do? Results - In the end, we managed to decrease the average monthly ticket count by around 25%. While finding an accomplishment that's relevant to what the company is looking for is an important first step, how you structure your story is also something you should consider. It isn't uncommon for the details to fade a bit as time passes, making it difficult to add in the information. I would get to the office at 5 am by hitching a ride on one of my neighbors cars and managed to work extra four hours each day for a month. 5 Tips for Your Answer. During an interview, a hiring manager is evaluating not only a candidates skills and abilities but also their personality to determine how well they will fit within the organization. When I got to my previous company as a human resources manager, employees spent so much time on lunch breaks, which would interfere with the working hours and the teams output. If thats not possible which it often isnt at this level you can still pick something that impacts others. Ideally, the greatest accomplishment you answer with should be from the last two to three years. Be respectful of your current, or previous, employer's "confidential" information. Honesty is the best policy. Try to stick with professional career or job-related strong answers. Interviewers ask this question to gain insight into your proven work and what achievements you view as most valuable and important. ACTION: I started by talking to my neighbor who could speak a bit of English, and then my interest grew to me signing up for a French class and dedicating hours a day to learning the new language. The hiring department had difficulty locating specific files and managing documents, especially during busy periods, and this ate up too much time., Task So, I thought there was room for improvement with employee file management. I learn to prioritize my time between family and work. I learned that younger potential donors found our materials out-of-touch. If you need to simplify your story for simplicity and the sake of keeping it brief, thats fine as long as the essential terms of your accomplishment are accurate. Pick a Recent Accomplishment. Task: "As a senior member of the team, I was tasked with being both the content strategist and the overall project manager. Reflect on your time in education, extra-curricular activities and hobbies to identify something you accomplished that made you feel proud. What you choose as your greatest assignment depends on your background. This ultimately saved the company thousands of dollars a year in materials and lowered our cost of goods sold, which had a big impact on company profitability. In addition, good answers are concise and entice further follow-up questions. SITUATION: One of my greatest achievements at work was wearing numerous hats and working long hours to achieve a huge goal. The accomplishment that Im most proud of is how rapidly I was promoted to the team lead position for our sales team. In my first job out of college, I was tasked with managing a companys social media channels. You should review the job description, any social media sites, the company website, and any employee reviews you can find online. The first step when handling such what is your proudest accomplishment question is to give a good thought about it. The most compelling answers to this interview question will be the most relevant ones. My part of the project was [your duties]. RESULTS: After one month of the new demonstrations, that region was our biggest market, and our sales as a company increased by 10%. Summary. Sample Answer 2 - Cashier Job at a Fast Food Restaurant. Just keep in mind: No matter how few jobs youve had before the one youre interviewing for, you should always have an answer to this question. The candidate proves their ability to meet and exceed HR objectives on a large scale, while focusing on what they did to get there. Describe the challenge you were up against, your plan of attack, and the success you saw on the other side. For the next three months, I was able to begin a weight training program and hitting lessons. For example, if you notice that taking ownership of projects and exceeding expectations is a core value for the company youre interviewing with, you might choose to tell the hiring manager about a time you stepped up to take responsibility for something, even when it may not have been your responsibility. Running your first marathon. Companies . Copyright 2008-2023, Glassdoor, Inc. "Glassdoor" and logo are registered trademarks of Glassdoor, Inc, How to Answer 'What Is Your Greatest Accomplishment? e. Be honest. What Sets You Apart From Other Candidates? When you can demonstrate that your work produced results that helped the business serve its customers, manage its finances or achieve its mission, you are . The employees have spoken. Answering interview questions is more of a skill, but don't worrywe'll go into greater . My parents could not afford the tuition fees initially for me to attend college, but I knew I wanted to further my education no matter the circumstances. What is your greatest achievement? 1. In my research, I learned about SEO and engagement, which made me drop a few things I was doing on the side to focus on the blog fully. The following are common types of accomplishments followed by a few more specific examples. your challenge or responsibility). Heres what your greatest achievement might sound like. This can help you have specific accomplishments in mind that you could refer to based on what youre discussing in the interview. Additionally, ask friends, family, and former coworkers for their opinion. Learning how to cook an exotic dish. Be the first to rate this post. You can start by describing the problem that your team or company faced. Your response provides them with insight about your personal and professional achievements, and your ability to establish and achieve goals. A business driver is often a key metric (e.g., quality) but not always (e.g., best practice). Because of this experience, next time I run into this challenge, Ill be able to use my newfound abilities with [skill or concept].. Mistakes continued, even after teaching the waitresses all of the receipts so they could explain the ingredients clearly to the guest. To answer just about any behavioral job interview question right, we recommend using the STAR method. It may seem to be a simple question, but asking "what is your greatest achievement?" is a clever way for interviewers to examine your personality, work ethic, and suitability for the job. When Is the Best Time To Interview for a Job for Optimal Results? Achievements also provide tangible evidence that colleagues, competitors and the wider world use to judge a person as more or less successful. I shortened the time for onboarding by 50% and once our sales reps were out in the field, they started making sales on day one, which was unheard of before. By the end of the year, his reading scores had gone up by over 15%, but the real accomplishment for me was getting him interested in learning something that had previously frustrated him. Why Interviewers Ask "What Is Your Greatest Accomplishment?" Let's start with the basics: what's the point of this job interview question? She graduated from the more, 25+ Common Interview Questions & Answers for 2023, 15 Best Job Interview Tips To Get You Hired, 17 Common Phone Interview Questions & Sample Answers, How to Successfully Answer What is Your Greatest Strength? in an Interview, 35+ Most Common Behavioral Interview Questions, How to Ask for Feedback After an Interview, How to Send a Follow-up Email After An Interview, 2023, Sonaga Tech Limited. Choose anything that is as recent as feasible and at least tangentially related to this position or your career. 2. This response is focused, specific, and goal-oriented. A change in your condition or outlook. See the Best Places to Work 2023! Answering the interview question 'what is your greatest accomplishment?' Certainly it was a team effort, but I was the main man on the sales floor, helping customers to . While finding an accomplishment thats relevant to what the company is looking for is an important first step, how you structure your story is also something you should consider. First, I decided to create a document of the Frequently Asked Questions I was getting, for personal use. Second, this is a classic behavioral interview question, so a strong answer starts with a strong success story.