Interview questions at Marks & Spencer

1. Who has inspired you in your life, and why? top question

How to answer

1. About Yourself

   The answer to this question is completely at your discretion.

   • Who encouraged you to become who you are today?
   • What qualities do they have that you admire most?
   • What are the common values between you and this person that you can use strategically in your career and life?
   • How did they help you to do proper introspection that influenced your life?

   Maybe it’s your parents, someone else from your family, a teacher or a mentor, a researcher, or a writer you admire. Maybe it’s a public figure that inspires you. Whoever this inspiring person is, remember that the interviewer is looking for a heartfelt response.

2. About The Company

   Read the job description carefully and research the company to learn as much as you can about the company’s culture.

   What qualities does the company value in their employees? See if you are able to match their values to those of the person that inspired you.

   You should not only identify the person who inspires you but, if possible, also tell why and how their influence may have relevance to the company you are interviewing with.

   Be extra cautious while naming anyone that might be controversial (for example a politician or a celebrity) as your inspirer. The interviewer might have preconceived thoughts or ideas about certain people that you might be unaware of. This might lead them to judge you unfarily about your choice.

3. About The Fit

   Be prepared to give examples of how the words, actions or teachings of your inspirer have helped to motivate you in achieving your goals.

   As always, prepare an answer which highlights qualities that would be highly valuable in the position you are seeking.

   Most employers look for characteristics such as adaptability, good interpersonal communication, leadership, creativity, innovativeness, honesty and dedication. Ask yourself, what ‘specific’ attributes have you learned from your motivator? Mention how learning such attributes helped you in your career.

   You should provide a specific example that shows the above-mentioned attribute of the inspirer.

Pro Tip

Statistics

This question is asked 30.9x more frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.

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

How to answer

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

Statistics

This question is asked 3.0x more frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.

3. Tell me about yourself

How to answer

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

Statistics

This question is asked 21% less frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.

4. How would you handle a customer with difficult behavior?

How to answer

1. About Yourself

   Look back on your experience. Have you dealt with a difficult or disruptive customer? Remember how you diffused the situation and how you turned things around.

   • Do you have certain principles, or methodology, to deal with difficult people?
   • Do you have strong people skills, are you good at conflict resolution?
   • Are you high on emotional intelligence? Can you give an example?

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?
   • Knowing their line of business or industry, what can be some examples of difficult customers?

   Do your research.

3. About The Fit

   When a question like this asked in an interview, it is an indication that you will probably encounter difficult customers, or other difficult stakeholders while working for this company.

   This would be an excellent opportunity to use the Present-Past-Present approach to respond to this question.

   Start with the Present. Speak about your “conflict resolution” skills and how you apply these today.

   Next go back to a Past situation - remember your Star Stories to relate a relevant situation that happened in a previous job where you resolved a problem for a difficult customer.

   Finally, come back to the Present, summarizing what you learned from past experiences and how you will apply them to the job you are interviewing for today.

   If you can give an example of how you handled a difficult person in the past in a situation similar to what this company may require from you, this will strongly increase your chances of showing yourself as a good fit.

Pro Tip

Statistics

This question is asked 2.0x more frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.

5. What experience do you have in this field?

How to answer

1. About Yourself

   Start with defining your Key Selling Points you want to emphasize for this position.

   • What job experiences brought you to those points?
   • What were the job titles and the most relevant responsibilities?

2. About The Company

   Do your research of the company and the requirements for the position.

   • What is the company looking for in terms of experiences and qualifications?
   • What problems are they trying to solve with this position?

   Most importantly, make sure you are able to highlight and speak about at least 3-5 of your key experiences that match up with the requirements listed in the job description.

3. About The Fit

   Using the Present-Past-Present method is a perfect way to answer this question.

   Starting with the Present, speak about your experience as it relates to one of the key requirements in the job description. You might say "I noted that the job description requires experience in employee training and this is an area in which I have a great deal of knowledge and skill."

   Then go back to the Past to describe how you improved overall training of staff from 82% to over 97% within your first year on the job. Senior leadership took note of this accomplishment for which you received a company commendation.

   Finally, come back to the Present to describe how you will help ensure that the company maintains the highest possible compliance with all employee training requirements.

   Nowadays, every hiring manager wants results, so think in terms of specific achievements and try to structure your example accordingly.

Pro Tip

Statistics

This question is asked 73% more frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.

6. Describe a time you went above and beyond for a customer

How to answer

1. About Yourself

   Think about a time you were the customer, how were you treated when you had a problem or issue that needed to be resolved? Did the company solve your problem with great service and a memorable experience?

   Now think about a time you had to help a customer. What did you do to make that experience unforgettable for them?

2. About The Company

   Think carefully about the company and what they are looking for. Read online reviews and any other available information.

   • What are their standards for treating customers?
   • What complaints have you seen that can give you a hint of some of the challenges associated with customer service?
   • How focused is the job description regarding customer service functions? This will give you a strong hint that customer service is an area to be aware of for the upcoming interview.

3. About The Fit

   A great way to show your fit for the job is to use the Present-Past-Present method in answering this question. The following is an example of how you might apply this approach:

   Start with the Present by telling the interviewer what skills you have that will ensure the best customer experience. These might include attributes like patience, listenting, attentiveness or any other customer service related skills you might possess.

   Next go back to the Past to tell a story of how you went above and beyond for a customer. Use the STAR method to help frame your story and be sure to bring your skills into the narrative.

   Finally, come back to the Present to describe for the interviewer how you will bring your customer service skills to the job you are applying for, to help ensure that the company can always rely on you to provide the highest level of customer service.

Pro Tip

Statistics

This question is asked 91% more frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.

7. Why did you leave your last job?

How to answer

1. About Yourself

   There are a number of reasons why people leave or plan to leave their jobs. One very important recent factor has been the impact on jobs and job security due to Covid-19 and all of the issues raised by remote vs. on-site work.

   Regardless of the causes, there are three possible reasons that you left your last job or are planning to leave your current job:

   • You are looking for a career change
   • You are unhappy with your current employment
   • You were let go.

   Whatever the reason, it's best to always speak in a positive light.

2. About The Company

   Based on your research about the company and the position you are interviewing for, what do you like most about the company? What excites you about the work as it is outlined in the job description?

3. About The Fit

   Let's take a closer look at how you might respond to each of the three reasons for leaving your last job.

   1. You were let go

   You should simply state the facts (e.g. the company was downsizing, your position was eliminated, your department was offshored, etc.). Focus on the positive. You might want to share your accomplishments at your previous employment by relating a pertinent STAR story if you feel that would be relevant.

   2. You are looking for career advancement or a career change

   In your response you should be upfront, honest and as enthusiastic as you can be about the position. Consider using the Present-Past-Present method when giving this answer. Start with the Present by describing a career goal that is important to you. For instance you are a data analyst applying for a data management position and you are ready for this move. Then go back to the Past to indicate that at your previous job, there were little or no promotional opportunities in your field. Then come back to the Present and say that you are ready to take on the manager role and know that you will do an outstanding job for the company.

   3. You are unhappy with your current employment

   Sometimes a job just isn't going to take you to the next step in your career.

   Keep two things in mind when answering this question, 1) never "bad mouth" your current employer and 2) focus on the postive when speaking about the job and your reason for wanting to leave.

   The following is an example of how this question might be answered. This individual was looking to move up to a project manager position and did not feel that her current employer was the right place to achieve her goal. You might find her answer helpful in crafting your own response.

   "I really like my job as assistant project manager and love working with all of my coworkers on the team. However, the way the department is set up there is no real path to promotion. There are currently 3 project managers and they are all relatively new in their jobs. As far as I can see, they are all doing a good job and opportunties for promotion may not be opening up in the foreseeable future."

   Her comments were positive and her reasoning was clear and consise. Always try to keep your reasons positive and try not to create an impression that you were unhappy with the way you were treated.

Pro Tip

Statistics

This question is asked 15% more frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.

8. Describe a time you worked on a team with individuals from different cultural backgrounds

How to answer

1. About Yourself

   Answering this question highlights your ability to navigate cultural differences at work.

   Think about your team experiences and times when you’ve had to overcome differences with colleagues.

   • How do you adapt to working with team members of different communication styles?
   • Are you open-minded enough to consider all their ideas even if you don't agree?
   • How do you handle the differences in attitudes and values between you and people from other countries or backgrounds?
   • Do you show respect and are you diplomatic with people who may hold different beliefs?

   Maybe you haven’t worked with people from different cultures, but you may have been studying or been friends with people from different backgrounds.

   Address your personal life, if necessary, and emphasize your curiosity and openness to other cultures.

2. About The Company

   A careful review of the job description, along with some research of the company will help you anticipate what aspects of global/cultural awareness are most important for a particular role in the company you are applying to.

3. About The Fit

   The ability to demonstrate openness, inclusiveness, sensitivity, and respect are the hallmark of a person capable of working with and understanding others and their individual differences.

   Your task is to prove to the interviewer your ability to build strong and caring relationships based on trust and shared goals.

   We recommend using the Present-Past-Present method to put forth your ability to work on a team with individuals from different cultural backgrounds.

   Start with the Present by telling the interviewer about your approach to teamwork - for example, your positive view of teamwork itself and how you believe that people from different backgrounds strengthen the team effort by adding perspective to the challenges it may face.

   Next, go back to the Past and use the STAR method to tell a story about how your experience helped you to create an open and inclusive workplace environment, so all team members felt empowered to contribute. You might say something like: “At my recent work, representatives of different cultures participated in one common project to fix our company's multi-national shipping problem. My understanding of how team members from different backgrounds, with different political views and various levels of English language skills had to effectively work together. My leadership enabled the team to bring our project to a successful conclusion.”

   Lastly, come back to the Present to ensure the interviewer that you are very comfortable working with team members from other cultures and possibly with different communication styles.

Pro Tip

Statistics

This question is asked 4.3x more frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.

9. Tell me about a stressful situation and how you dealt with it

How to answer

1. About Yourself

   In order to form a response to this question, think back to a time when you encountered a stressful situation at work, and answer the following questions.

   • Was the situation a challenge just to you personally or to your entire team?
   • What was your approach to the problem and how did you handle it?
   • What role if any did emotions play in the process of dealing with this situation?
   • What was the outcome, was it successful?
   • Did the outcome meet the company’s expectations as well as your own?

2. About The Company

   • What do you know about the company, where you may encounter a stressful situation?
   • Are they working on a major project which is approaching a due date?
   • Are they going through what appears to be a difficult time where cost-saving is a top priority? Perhaps the company culture is full of negativity and mistrust, or they have gone through massive layoffs. Is there any chance that customers are being neglected?

   Any of these situations may lead to stressful times at the company, and you should try to know more about their expectations, and how realistic those expectations are.

   Or, are they just a dynamic, highly agile company run by smart and creative folks, which may work excellently for some people and be confusing and mind-blowing for others?

   Do your research.

3. About The Fit

   Once you have determined which STAR story will best answer this question, use the Present-Past-Present method for your response. The following is an example of how someone might apply this method.

   The candidate started with the Present by telling the interviewer that she is able to rise to the challenge of the situation regardless of the level of stress that may come with an assignment.

   She then went back to the Past to describe when she and her team had to hit a tight timeline for a customer that depended on the outcome of her team's work. It was an emotional time in which the team worked long, hard hours with lots of overtime. As hard as it was at the time, in the end they successfully completed the assignment and the customer was so pleased with the results that it increased its business with her company.

   Finally, the candidate came back to the Present to explain how much she enjoys taking on challenges because they help her grow as a professional and she knows that she can successfully complete assignments for the company, no matter how stressful or difficult.

Pro Tip

Statistics

This question is asked 15% more frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.

10. What is your greatest weakness?

How to answer

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

Statistics

This question is asked 69% less frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.

11. Do you prefer working in a team or working alone?

How to answer

1. About Yourself

   To prepare for this question, try to think of your previous experiences. Which type of work suited you best and why?

   For instance, someone who prefers working by themselves may be able to focus better on the problem and a person who prefers a team approach may like having others to help figure out problems.

   If you're a fresh graduate or someone that does not have much work experience, you can think of schoolwork or the times that you worked with others in an organization.

2. About The Company

   • What has your research found out about the company and its culture?
   • What have you learned about how the employees work?

   Review the job description as it may give you clues to whether the job focuses on teams, independence or both.

   Try to expand your search into social media posts at Glassdoor or others where employees/former employees may have posted about working conditions you would be working under.

   Remember: knowledge is the key! The more you know about the company, the better prepared you will be to answer questions like this.

3. About The Fit

   Based on your research, what did you find is the company's preference?

   • What type of workplace does the company appear to have?
   • What kind of challenges could you help the company/department resolve by working as part of a team?
   • What about the challenges that can be resolved by working independently?

   Emphasize both independent successes as well as group successes (be sure to mention actions you took to help the team).

Pro Tip

Statistics

This question is asked 4.0x more frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.

12. What are your strengths? Give an example

How to answer

1. About Yourself

   Reflect on your best professional qualities. What are they? Are you dependable, flexible, friendly, hardworking, a strong leader, formal, punctual, good team player?

   Pick at least three personal strengths that will help you at your new workplace, and make sure you can give specific examples to demonstrate why you say these are your strengths.

   If no key strengths spring to mind, ask your friends or colleagues what they think your greatest strengths are. What examples can demonstrate your success due to these qualities?

2. About The Company

   Make sure to research the company and read the job description thoroughly in order to identify the key strengths required for the role.

3. About The Fit

   Recruiters and hiring managers want to know how your strength relates to the job you’re applying for.

   Match the skills required by the position with your list of strengths. Choose up to 5 top skills. These are your Key Selling Points! Prove your point by providing examples.

   Craft your stories using the STAR method.

Pro Tip

Statistics

This question is asked 97% more frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.

13. Share an example of how you were able to motivate other people

How to answer

1. About Yourself

   • Did you have someone in the past at work who helped you to realize that you needed to be self-motivated to succeed?
   • Can you remember a time where you helped someone else to find the motivation to accomplish something, ideally related to the work they were doing?
   • What strategies did you use to motivate your team or coworkers?

   On the other hand, have you found it difficult to motivate others, and if so, what have you done to overcome this trait?

2. About The Company

   Do your research about the company and its culture.

   • What are the job requirements of the position that you’re applying for?
   • How do managers and employees value one another?
   • Do they have any specific standards and policies?
   • What motivational techniques do they use?

3. About The Fit

   If you’re working on a team where you are depending on the work of other team members to accomplish your goals, you need to be able to motivate your co-workers.

   This is a great opportunity to show the interviewer that you are able to motivate others and to sell your skills by describing a specific situation that you encountered during your career.

   • What were your key motivating factors that kept your team more energized and ready for work?
   • Will this experience help you in the new role?

   Mention

   • recognizing positive aspects of an employee’s performance, which is critical to motivating most employees, especially introverted people that tend to stay in the background
   • regular and concrete feedback, which is important when dealing with an employee who is not performing up to his/her potential
   • understanding what someone can bring to the team, because staff members are definitely more motivated when they understand their role and its impact on a project
   • the ability to set a good example yourself through your actions.

Pro Tip

Statistics

This question is asked 10.9x more frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.

14. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

How to answer

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

Statistics

This question is asked 85% less frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.

15. What do you do if you disagree with someone at work?

How to answer

1. About Yourself

   Think of the times you had to deal with disagreement with your co-workers.

   • What were the different ways you were able to address the situation?
   • Did you try to look at the matter at hand from the other person's perspective or did you always stick with your own viewpoint?
   • What were the key lessons you learned through your experience?

2. About The Company

   Research the company and its culture.

   • What do they value?
   • How do they deal with conflict resolution?
   • How do the employees value each other?
   • Do they have any specific standards and policies?

3. About The Fit

   Your response should show that you are reasonable and thoughtful, always trying to keep the situation under control, avoid disputes if you feel that dialogue may become aggressive.

   Tell the interviewer that if you disagree with someone, you

   • always focus on facts
   • listen to the points they are presenting
   • never attack his or her ideas and beliefs, because that's not at all helpful or productive
   • recognize the good.

   These statements will help you to highlight your skills like listening, communication and emotional intelligence.

   Give examples from your own experiences of how you used politeness and adaptability.

   Phrases such as “What you are saying may be correct, but I do not think it is applicable in this situation,” “I think ABC is a better solution. What do you think?” Or “Can we try out this option instead?” show how you master potential conflict situations.

Pro Tip

Statistics

This question is asked 3.4x more frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.

16. Tell me about your work experience. What was the most interesting?

How to answer

1. About Yourself

   Review the details that you shared in your resume. Select the three to five best points to highlight and relate to the position to which you're applying.

2. About The Company

   Carefully research the company and the job description.

   Find out what duties you'll be taking on to determine which of your top skills to emphasize. Try to find out what current challenges they are trying to solve by opening this vacancy.

3. About The Fit

   Knowing the duties for which you will be responsible will help you identify which prior experiences to highlight.

   How well you connect your previous experiences with the job requirements can tell the interviewer how prepared you are for this role and how enthusiastic you will be about your job.

Pro Tip

Statistics

This question is asked 19% less frequently at Marks & Spencer than at other companies.