Interview questions at Capital Group

We analyzed 464 interview reviews for Capital Group from various job sites, social network groups and forums.

Here are the most frequent job interview questions asked by HR managers during initial phone or onsite interviews. This list does not include technical or factual questions.

10 frequent non-technical questions at Capital Group:

According to our research, hiring managers at Capital Group ask soft skills interview questions 94% more than at other companies.

Capital Group interview question statistics

1. Where do you see yourself in 5 years? top question

How to answer

This question belongs to a family of behavioral, or even more precisely, reflective questions.

The interviewer wants to learn two things about you by asking this question.

  • They want to know what you think about the job you are applying for. Remember, they are interviewing you for the job that's open right now. Are you a good fit and will you do a good job for them?
  • Just as important, they want to get an idea of your ambitions and goals for yourself and if your goals align with their needs, especially going into the future.

In this way the employer should see how you see yourself today, and whether you are ambitious and strive to grow as a professional, and whether you like to learn and develop your skills.

  1. About Yourself

    What challenges do you like overcoming? Where are you starting from and where might you be going?

    For example, let's say the position you are applying for is junior accountant. It includes a wide range of tasks such as basic bookkeeping, financial analysis, and reporting. If accounting is your chosen field, then you would most likely want to move in the direction of obtaining your CPA so that you might step up to more responsibility as an accounting manager or senior auditor within the next 5 years. Your responses should make sense in how you see yourself growing in your professional career.

    However, at this point, if you are happy just where you are and want to further your current skills, that is also fine as long as there is a growth path for you that can be imagined and described.

  2. About The Company

    Research the company to learn what career opportunities may be available in the department you are applying to, and what the trends are in the company in general.

    • Is the business expanding, are they opening new locations, or starting new projects?
    • Or are they heavily automating and cutting staff?

    Let’s say you are applying for a UX designer position for a brand-new product.

    In the future, if the product becomes a success - which is what the company hopes for - the company will hire more designers and you may become a lead designer, or you may become a product manager.

    On a side note: If you train your mind to be open to opportunities you will be amazed at how much this world has to offer to you!

  3. About The Fit

    And, of course, try to see where the perfect fit lies between your own potential and aspirations, and the company’s trends and hopes.

    However, beware of the risk of showing too much excitement for future opportunities compared to your attitude towards the current position.

    As we said earlier, you must show interest and enthusiasm for the position you are applying for. If the interviewer senses that you are more enthusiastic about future growth than about the current position, they may conclude that you are not the right person for the job at hand.

Pro Tip

This question gives you a good opportunity to showcase your Key Selling Points (e.g. “As I am very good at delegating tasks, I can easily see myself leading a team of software testers in the future…”), and end your statement by asking about current initiatives and goals at the company.

In thinking about the possibilities that may lie ahead, you also might want to consider taking a personality test (I recommend 16Personalities which is based on the Myers-Briggs test), research the internet on what career paths are possible with your skills and current job.

It is generally NOT a good idea to say something like:

“Oh, I cannot imagine what happens to me tomorrow, let alone in 5 years”.

This will show you as a person who is unimaginative and not forward-thinking enough to grow with and be a good fit for the company.

Statistics

This question is asked 1% less frequently at Capital Group than at other companies.

2. What is your greatest weakness?

How to answer

This question ranks as the most challenging for many people. Fortunately, Mr. Simon is here to help!

Interviewers are not out to trick or trap you! They ask this question to gauge your level of self-awareness, your honesty and openness, and your capability for self-improvement.

  1. About Yourself

    No one is perfect and your interviewer doesn't expect you to be perfect either.

    While it is good to be honest and open, it will not help you to put yourself down.

    What's important is to find a weakness that you have overcome. How you turned what might be considered a negative into a positive.

  2. About The Company

    Research the company (website, social media, etc) to learn about the company culture.

    What personal and professional qualities do they value?

  3. About The Fit

    This is the time to clearly state a true weakness that you have overcome.

    Be as specific as possible and stay away from vague cliches like “I work too hard.” It would be difficult for anyone to try and explain how they overcame a weakness like that

    Mr. Simon emphasizes the Present-Past-Present method of responding to behavioral questions. When you are asked about your greatest weakness, you should be able to successfully use this approach as well. Here is an example of how someone might answer this question.

    Present - "I have always had a fear of public speaking, and believe this may have held me back in my career, especially when having to make presentations to management."

    Past - "Last year I learned about Toastmasters International and decided to join this group to help me gain confidence in myself and improve my ability to present to others in just about any situation."

    Present - "By overcoming this weakness I believe that it has made me a much stronger candidate for this position, someone you can count on to make presentations to management, conduct training and communicate at a high level."

    It's important to show how well you've overcome a weakness by motivating yourself and learning a new skill to grow professionally.

Pro Tip

Use this question to sell yourself!

Statistics

This question is asked 6% less frequently at Capital Group than at other companies.

3. Tell me about a time when you've resolved a problem for a frustrated customer

How to answer

Customers are the lifeblood of any business. How you handle a disgruntled customer can make the difference between closing a sale and failing to do so. Or perhaps even worse the difference between keeping or losing a good customer.

It takes good people skills to handle such situations, and this question is a good opportunity to demonstrate your people skills.

  1. About Yourself

    Think of a time when, as a customer, you had a problem with a company.

    • How did you feel?
    • How did you want to be treated?
    • Was the situation resolved to your satisfaction? If so what was done to resolve it?
    • If not, what went wrong?

    Have you had experience in the past where you helped a frustrated customer? When you were on the serving side of the table, what did you do to make a real difference to the customer and their experience?

    When considering this question, focus on your principles and your approach. You know that when customers are made to feel neglected and unimportant, they tend to get frustrated. You want to demonstrate to the hiring manager that you have the capacity to understand the customer’s problems and issues and can come up with a solution that best addresses their concerns.

    Of course, this may not always be possible in your line of business or profession, but I guess you see what I mean - showing full attention greatly improves your chances of mitigating the situation.

  2. About The Company

    Every company relies on customers.

    Research the company you are applying to and try to find out what their standards of customer relationship or service are, as well as try to find out some real cases where the customers complained about the company, and what the company did to mitigate the situations (a possible source might be Yelp! or another social media platform).

    Based on your research, how does the company treat customers? How do they resolve customer issues?

  3. About The Fit

    How do you demonstrate to the interviewer that you can WOW the customer by making their situation better for them as well as helping the company maintain good customer relations? Mr. Simon recommends using the Present-Past-Present method.

    There are many ways to apply this approach. For example you can start with the Present emphasizing that your approach to good customer service always starts with your great listening skills that enable you to fully understand the customer’s situation.

    Next go back to the Past for an example of just how you were able to resolve a frustrating situation for a customer. Focus on a situation in which you listened to and understood the problem and were able to resolve it and prevent the loss of the customer’s business.

    Finally come back to the Present to discuss how your skills and experience in handling frustrated customers will be a real asset to the company going forward.

Pro Tip

A disgruntled customer generally just needs someone to listen to them.

The three A’s of customer service can help diffuse the difficult situation:

  1. Acknowledge - what the other person is feeling,
  2. Apologize - for the way the other person is feeling,
  3. Admit - that there was an issue that you are working on to get it resolved.

Add the extra “A” - Ask for the customer's contact information so you can update them on any progress on their issue.

Statistics

This question is asked 45% more frequently at Capital Group than at other companies.

4. Tell me about a time when you had to work with a difficult or disruptive person. It may be a client, manager, or coworker. How did you handle the situation? What was the outcome?

How to answer

People skills are highly valued in a company. It is important to show how you can manage difficult personalities, especially if you are applying for a job that involves teamwork, or a lot of interactions with clients.

  1. About Yourself

    Look back on your experience. Have you worked with a difficult or disruptive person? Remember a few such situations and how you diffused them and turned things around. What are your approaches to resolving conflicting situations at work?

  2. About The Company

    • What have you found about the company and its culture?
    • What have you learned about how the employees value each other?
    • How do they treat their customers?
    • Do they have any specific standards and policies?
  3. About The Fit

    Using what you found about the company, choose one of your examples that fits best with the company standards and share your story.

    If it's a customer, how did you turn things around and made a customer happy?
    If it's a coworker, how did you diffuse a tense or difficult situation?

Pro Tip

Use the triple A of diffusing a difficult situation:

  1. Acknowledge - what the other person is feeling,
  2. Apologize - for the way the other person is feeling,
  3. Admit - that there was an issue that you are working on to get it resolved.

If it is a customer, it would add that extra touch if you "Ask" for the customer's contact information so you can update them of any progress on their issue.

Statistics

This question is asked 3.4x more frequently at Capital Group than at other companies.

5. What did you like or dislike about your last job?

How to answer

Your answer to this question will show the interviewer your overall perspective (positive or negative) of your prior role and your approach to what you liked (or didn’t like) about that aspect of your work. While answering such a question remember that diplomacy is the key to corporate success.

The answer you give to this question can say a lot about you, for example:

  • Can you handle situations professionally when you deal with pressure?
  • What strong qualities (your Key Selling Points) can you emphasize answering the question?
  • Are you a positive person, and not someone who complains, holds grudges or badmouths their co-workers or boss?
  • Do you exhibit loyalty, enthusiasm, dedication, and energy?
  • Are you easy to work with?
  1. About Yourself

    Reflect on yourself; stick to the facts and don’t go into emotions.

    List the things you were responsible for in your last job.

    • Which of them did you like most? Why?
    • What were the responsibilities you liked less? Why?
    • Was there anything you consider completely unacceptable?

    If you feel that your answer will not be complete without a nod toward the negative aspects, then keep it focused on tasks, situations, or company structure, and not on people. The overall tone must be positive and friendly.

  2. About The Company

    • What does your research tell you about the company you are applying to?
    • Will there be situations like those in your former job you don't want to get into again?
    • What are the requirements for the position?
    • What challenges will you face there?
    • What responsibilities will you be tasked with?
  3. About The Fit

    Which of the responsibilities you liked will also be part of your future responsibilities in your new role? Don’t forget to show your excitement while telling about these.

    If there were responsibilities you disliked that are not part of the job description, don’t bring them up.

    By asking about your feelings toward a previous job the interviewers often aren’t that interested in the list of actual likes or dislikes you can provide. Rather, they’re trying to judge your character by listening to the tone and **attitude **with which you respond to a tricky question.

    However, details of your likes and dislikes can also reveal whether you'll be a good fit culturally at the company at hand. Showing excitement about responsibilities that will most likely be included in the role you are applying for can help strengthen your position as a fit.

    Mentioning that you are ready for more challenges and opportunities, that the position you are applying for is a great match for your skillset and that you feel you would be an asset to the company or department is often a safe way to show your excitement.

Pro Tip

Telling your stories, use the “sandwich method”: start off by mentioning a positive, then mention the negative, and try to pivot back around to something positive.

You can do that by talking about how you managed the aspect you disliked, or by making a connection to the job you're interviewing for.

Statistics

This question is asked 4.8x more frequently at Capital Group than at other companies.

6. Tell me about your greatest professional accomplishment

How to answer

Of all your accomplishments (and I am sure you’ve had a great many of them!), you should choose the one most relevant to this job position.

  1. About Yourself

    In preparation for answering this question, list the top 3 professional accomplishments that you are most proud of. No need for lengthy descriptions, just a sentence or two for each one to help you recall each situation.

    Write down your Key Selling Points - your top 3-5 skills that make you a strong professional.

    Make sure you have developed the story behind each accomplishment and have a strong command of the details of what happened so that you can tell the story clearly and distinctly.

    Along with each accomplishment, mark which of your Key Selling Points they showcase. How exactly?

  2. About The Company

    Based on your research of the company, what are their current needs?

    • What are the major projects going on?
    • What are the expectations for the position you are applying for?
    • Think about which of your accomplishment stories best fit their needs and expectations?
  3. About The Fit

    Once you have decided on the appropriate accomplishment story, think how you will relate it in an interview and how you will make it relevant to the the job you are seeking. One approach is to use the Present-Past-Present technique.

    Let's say that the accomplishment was leading your team in installing a new billing system and bringing it in on time and under budget.

    You might start off in the Present by talking about the importance of having good leadership skills.

    Then move to the Past to relate your story about how you successfully lead your team in accomplishing the objective.

    Finally, come back to the Present to address how you will be able to help them reach their goals (the ones you learned about when researching the company) going forward.

    Be sure to keep practicing your accomplishment story until it flows naturally and convincingly.

Pro Tip

Most enterprises are now going through major transformations, often called Digital Transformation.

Do your research on what it means and what is often involved, to get a better idea of the current goals and environments in companies. But one thing that definitely characterizes this transformation is striving for agility.

Whether the prospective employer is a long-established company or a startup, they are looking for people who demonstrate qualities like agility and adaptability, which are generally considered to be both helpful and quite a safe choice in most circumstances today.

Statistics

This question is asked 89% more frequently at Capital Group than at other companies.

7. Describe a time when you had to learn a new process or skill

How to answer

Why do interviewers ask this question?

  1. They want to see that you not only have the qualifications for the job you're seeking but that you have the potential to learn and grow in a position as well.
  2. They want someone who thrives on challenges, who’s open and eager to learn, not someone who’s going to be close-minded, do the bare minimum, or not get anything out of their experience.
  3. They also want to see that you are willing to develop a new skill or take on a new assignment for the good of the team even when it may seem difficult for you.
  1. About Yourself

    Think about each of your jobs and make a quick list of all of the responsibilities you had at each. This will help you to determine the skills that you have developed.

    • Are you a quick learner?
    • How do you deal with learning new skills when under pressure?
    • How do you cope when you face a challenge you’ve never previously experienced?

    It’s your chance to speak about your Key Selling Points, qualities and skills which you gained in the process of learning and improvement and which have become your professional strengths.

    Choose examples that relate directly to the type of skills you will need in the position you're applying for. Be articulate in your responses - interviewers are also judging how you present yourself.

  2. About The Company

    Research the company and analyze the job role you are applying for. What specific skills are in the job description that they looking for in their candidates?

    See if you are able to match their values to those you learned from your previous experiences.

  3. About The Fit

    Identify a time when you had to learn something completely different from your area of expertise or interests.

    For example, you can tell about the times when your company implemented new software and you had to attend intensive technical training.

    Provide examples of training programs you participated in to learn how to effectively brainstorm, deal with contentious clients or customers, or resolve inner-office conflict. Or mention a time when you learned the art of compromise and applied it to work situations that had positive resulting outcomes.

    Tell how you learned to convince a supplier to make a rush delivery order without charging the company extra.

    Remember, these are only examples. Choose your own example from your professional experience. Highlight what you learned in the process and how it helped you in subsequent professional situations.

Pro Tip

This question is best answered using the STAR method.

It will help you to stay focused and consistent sharing your story.

Statistics

This question is asked 27.8x more frequently at Capital Group than at other companies.

8. Tell me about yourself

How to answer

Most job candidates expect this to be one of the first interview questions and probably think of it as an “icebreaker” to get the interview started. It is much more than that! It is your opportunity to show the interviewer your relevance for the job. You want the employer to know that you are qualified to do the job, you are interested in doing the job and capable of getting it done.

  1. About Yourself

    What is your current occupation? Define yourself professionally in one statement.

    Pick 3 key skills that make you great at your work (your Key Selling Points). How have you applied these skills?

    Try to give some numbers to support your statement.

  2. About The Company

    Your first step is to Research the company to find out as much as you can about what they do and their approach to their business and their employees.

    Based on what you know about the company and the job description, why are you interested in the position you are applying for?

  3. About The Fit

    Now is the right time to show the fit between your skills and the company's requirements. Your answer works best if you emphasize your relevance. How do you do this? You will have already researched the company, studied the job description to identify their needs and possible pain points and prepared the relevant Star Stories that show how you addressed similar issues in the past. Your next step is to develop your Present-Past-Present approach.

    Start with the Present. Focus on the skills and experience from your most recent positions. What has enabled you to get the job done successfully and how this relates to what the employer is looking to accomplish.

    Next go back to the Past. Here is where your Star story comes in. Explain how you were able to use your skills and experience to accomplish a task that relates to an area of concern for the employer.

    Finally come back to the Present – summarizing the lessons you learned and how they shaped your response and approach today.

    Remember, the whole conversation is about the present, not the past. Just one sentence can summarize why your approach works, and its applicability and relevance to this position.

Pro Tip

You can also end with a question like:

“Do you know what the current needs in the company/department are, where my skills and experience can help?”

That can help you learn more about the company and the job, turn the “interrogation” into a conversation and will allow you to relax some tension.

Read our blog post to learn more about how to answer this question.

Statistics

This question is asked 73% less frequently at Capital Group than at other companies.

9. Tell me about a successful project you were involved in. What was your role? What was the result?

How to answer

At first glance you might think that this question is only asked of project managers. That is clearly not the case. In the modern business environment, work is often organized in the form of projects across multiple disciplines involving many people at many different levels.

Projects allow companies to plan objectives and milestones in order to reach their goals, to monitor progress and performance, to clearly define deliverables and success.

  1. About Yourself

    Think about a few projects you have been involved in, regardless of your level of participation. These might range from small projects like organizing a party to large-scale multinational projects with participants and teams across the globe, million-dollar budgets and high risk and reward stakes.

    Develop one or two project-based STAR stories.

    Remember, all project-based STAR stories should start with the following descriptive elements:

    1. Project name
    2. Its purpose and goal
    3. Your role in it
    4. The duration of the project or its phases (in case only some phases were successful)
    5. The approximate number of people or stakeholders involved in it.

    Once you have establish the base facts, its time to describe the challenges and results:

    1. What were the top 3 challenges?
    2. What was the end result?
    3. How did the company (or other stakeholders) benefit from the results?
    4. How can you define your contribution in 3-5 key phrases?

    If you received any praise for your efforts from your boss, peers or clients, what did they say exactly?

  2. About The Company

    Based on the research you did on the company, what kinds of projects can you expect here?

    • What do you know about the goals they are trying to achieve?
    • What do you know about their current challenges?
    • Can you imagine what success will look like for the projects in this company?
  3. About The Fit

    Once you decide which project best fits this question, use the Present-Past-Present approach to answer it.

    Start with the Present by explaining your thinking on what you believe makes a project successful. You might say that your approach to all new projects is to set up the right project framework and tools before you begin, to help ensure that you get off to a good start.

    Next go back to a Past situation in which you and your team took on a project and used your method of clarification to ensure that everyone knew their assignment and through hard work and focus, brought it to a successful conclusion.

    Finally, come back to the Present to show how you will use your approach to help the employer tackle projects going forward.

    Practice telling your story, using the STAR method.

Pro Tip

End your answer by asking the interviewer how they define success for the role you are applying for.

This will provide you with an insight into the company's environment and expectations for this role, as well as helping to transform the “interrogation” into a conversation as the interview continues.

Statistics

This question is asked 3.6x more frequently at Capital Group than at other companies.

10. Describe a time when you had to overcome a significant obstacle on a job

How to answer

Why do employers ask this question?

It is designed to help the interviewer understand your problem solving and decision making skills. They want to know that they’re hiring someone who can think on their feet and who is resilient when facing challenges.

Think of this question as a great opportunity to turn what may have been a big challenge into a great accomplishment on your part.

  1. About Yourself

    The employer is looking for the skills needed to overcome a significant obstacale on the job. This is not the place to discuss the ordinary problems that you might face on a daily basis at work.

    Start with recalling a few examples of real obstacles and challenges you faced. For each of them, consider:

    • What was the project or task you were trying to accomplish?
    • What was the obstacle? This can be a specific problem related to your job or a higher-order issue across the organization.
    • What steps did you take to address the issue?
    • What decisions did you have to make?
    • How did the company benefit from your decisions?
    • How would you describe your approach, or what lessons have you learned?

    Be careful how you respond to this question. The problem you faced and resolved for the company should not have been of your own making.

    See this as your chance to show how you stepped up by turning to your skills and inner strength to find the right solutions.

  2. About The Company

    When you research the company, try and find out what kind of challenges they are facing. Try to find out what they need in terms of problem resolution.

    Search for online reviews, complaints and any other useful resources. What problems and obstacles can the employees face with this position?

    Pay particular attention to the requirements listed in the job description. It is quite possible that you have a a STAR story about overccoming an obstacle that relates directly to one of their needs. This would be a great opportunity to answer this question.

  3. About The Fit

    This is your opportunity to showcase your problem-solving skills, resilience, and strength of character. We recommend that you use the Present-Past-Present method to answer this question. The following is an example of how this method might be applied for the position of Blog Writer. The job description mentions that a successful candidate must have experience working “in a dynamic environment.”

    Starting with the Present you might say "I really enjoy working in a fast-paced and dynamic environment" (repeating the words used in the job description is reinforcing to the interviewer).

    Next go to a Past situation in which you had to write an article on extremely short notice. Your boss came to you at the last moment because your coworker failed to complete a very important assignment. The pressure was on but you worked extra hours to prepare the article successfully and on time. This story shows your sense of responsibility, ability to achieve results under stress, your willingness to go the extra mile, and your problem-solving skills.

    Finally come back to the Present to again reiterate how working under pressure is a skill that you are proud of and you will bring to any assignment for the employer.

Pro Tip

This question is not about your past, it's how you deal with things that will happen in the future, so try to keep your answer short and focused.

After all, the interviewer is really looking for what you took away from the situation and doesn’t need to know the full backstory of what happened.

Use the STAR method to prepare your story and practice it so that you can stay within 1-2 minutes.

Make sure to show that you remained positive when overcoming a hurdle at work. Positive attitudes lead to positive outcomes.

Statistics

This question is asked 2.5x more frequently at Capital Group than at other companies.

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This page has been updated on February 23, 2024.

You can practice answering this question, as well as over 160 other common job interview questions from Capital Group by engaging in a mock interview with Mr. Simon. As an artificial being, his undeniable benefits include:

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