1. Imagine you are in charge of organizing the grand opening of a new Google office in
Bangalore, India. What steps would you take to plan this event?
Preparing for a behavioral interview at Google is a great opportunity. Your approach to organizing
the grand opening of a new Google office in Bangalore, India should showcase your skills in
planning, organization, teamwork, and attention to detail. Here's a step-by-step outline to help you
structure your answer:
1. Understand the Objective: Demonstrate your ability to grasp the purpose and significance of
the event. The grand opening serves as an opportunity to showcase Google's values, culture, and
commitment to innovation to employees, stakeholders, and the local community.
2. Define Goals and Objectives: Clearly define the goals of the event. Are you aiming to create a
memorable experience, foster connections, showcase Google's products, or highlight the
company's impact on the local tech community?
3. Create a Detailed Plan: Highlight your organizational skills by breaking down the planning
process into smaller tasks. Some key steps might include:
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Budget allocation and management
Venue selection and logistics
Guest list and invitations
Catering and menu planning
Entertainment and guest speakers
Decor and branding
Technical setup and AV arrangements
Security and safety measures
4. Establish a Timeline: Develop a timeline that includes milestones, deadlines, and dependencies
for each task. This demonstrates your ability to manage time effectively and ensure that everything
is ready on schedule.
5. Collaborate with Cross-functional Teams: Emphasize your teamwork skills by describing how
you would collaborate with different teams, such as marketing, HR, facilities, and design, to ensure
a cohesive and successful event.
6. Localize the Event: Showcase your cultural sensitivity by incorporating local elements into the
event. This might involve collaborating with local vendors, artists, and performers to infuse the
event with a taste of the local culture.
7. Communication and Promotion: Discuss your approach to promoting the event both internally
and externally. This could involve creating engaging internal communications, social media
promotion, and leveraging Google's networks for maximum reach.
8. Contingency Planning: Demonstrate your problem-solving skills by addressing potential
challenges or setbacks, such as inclement weather, technical issues, or unexpected changes in the
schedule. Highlight your ability to adapt and find solutions on the spot.
9. Feedback and Evaluation: Explain how you would gather feedback from attendees,
stakeholders, and team members to assess the success of the event. This showcases your
commitment to continuous improvement.
10. Sustainability Considerations: As Google places a strong emphasis on sustainability, consider
discussing how you would incorporate eco-friendly practices in aspects like waste management,
energy usage, and event materials.
Remember to structure your response in a concise and organized manner. Use the STAR method
(Situation, Task, Action, Result) to structure your answer, providing specific examples to highlight
your skills and experience. Good luck with your interview preparation!
2. As a team leader, two of your team members passively pass time without contributing to
the team. What will you do with them?
Here's a structured way to respond to this question:
1. Understand the Situation: Describe the context and how you became aware of the
issue.Highlight your attentiveness to team dynamics and your proactive stance in identifying
problems.
2. Assess the Situation: Explain that before taking any action, you would first assess the
situation to determine the reasons behind their passive behavior. This might involve having
one-on-one conversations with each team member separately to understand their perspective
and any potential challenges they might be facing.
3. Open Communication: Highlight your commitment to open and honest communication.
Address the issue in a non-confrontational manner, expressing your concern about their level
of engagement and contribution to the team's goals.
4. Set Clear Expectations: Explain how you would outline clear expectations for their roles
and responsibilities within the team. Emphasize the importance of their contributions in
achieving team objectives and how their skills can positively impact the team's overall success.
5. Identify Challenges: If the team members are facing obstacles that hinder their
productivity, demonstrate your problem-solving skills by working with them to identify these
challenges and find solutions. This could involve offering additional resources, training, or
support.
6. Offer Guidance and Support: Showcase your coaching and mentorship abilities by offering
to work closely with the team members to set achievable goals and milestones. Offer your
assistance in developing strategies to overcome obstacles and enhance their engagement.
7. Provide Feedback and Constructive Criticism: Explain how you would provide
constructive feedback to help them understand how their behavior is impacting the team and
the company's objectives. Use specific examples to illustrate your points.
8. Explore Motivation and Interests: Demonstrate your interest in their personal growth by
discussing their motivations, strengths, and interests. This can help you find ways to align their
skills with the team's goals, making their contributions more meaningful.
9. Monitor Progress: Outline your commitment to tracking their progress over a defined
period. Regular check-ins and feedback sessions can show that you are invested in their
improvement and that you're willing to adjust your approach if necessary.
10. Escalation if Necessary: Explain that if the passive behavior persists despite your efforts,
you would involve HR or higher management as appropriate. Emphasize your dedication to
maintaining a productive and positive team environment.
11. Focus on Team Cohesion: Finally, highlight your intention to maintain a cohesive team
atmosphere by fostering open communication, mutual respect, and shared goals.
Remember to tailor your response to your own experiences and the specific qualities Google
values in its employees, such as leadership, collaboration, problem-solving, and empathy. Use
the STAR method to structure your response, and provide specific examples that showcase
your abilities in addressing team challenges effectively.
I believe direct honest communication is the key. I’d pull them aside and talk to them one-on-one
about their behaviors and how it is impacting the team. Asking questions, not launching judgments, but
asking them - are you aware of your behavior and how it is affecting the team? Something like that always ask questions rather than make assumptions. You never know what is going on in their life and
better to give grace we’re all human doing the best we can.
I also always encourage setting team Ground Rules prior to launching any project. That way everyone
knows what is expected, like being on time, completing your tasks on time, asking for assistance when
needed, being respectful of different opinions, etc. That way the team shares in managing the outcomes
and expectations - because everyone has agreed on the Ground Rules. Takes the heat off the leader
and makes it a unified approach.
One team, I was leading a person was making it a habit being late to the team meetings and I pulled
her aside and explained we had agreed that everyone would be on time and by being late it was
disrupting the meetings and showing disrespect for the rest of us and our time. We’re all busy and yet
we have to work to manage our time to be here on time. She was apologetic and it never happened
again.
So sometimes calling someone out in a respectful goodwill manner can correct problems. So many
people hate confrontation and let bad behaviors go on - I’m not a fan of that approach. I believe and
have experienced directness and clearness about expectations can make it a much easier and more
productive course.
3. How do you balance your workload as a team leader?
As a team leader, you have multiple responsibilities and tasks to manage on a daily basis. You need
to plan, delegate, communicate, monitor, and support your team members, while also handling
your own work. How do you balance your workload as a team leader without compromising your
quality, efficiency, or well-being? Here are some tips to help you achieve a better balance and lead
your team effectively.
A. Prioritize your tasks
One of the first steps to balance your workload as a team leader is to prioritize your tasks according
to their urgency and importance. You can use a simple matrix to sort your tasks into four
categories: do first, schedule, delegate, or eliminate. This will help you focus on the most critical
and valuable tasks, and avoid wasting time on low-priority or unnecessary ones.
B. Delegate wisely
Another key step to balance your workload as a team leader is to delegate wisely. You don't have
to do everything yourself, and you shouldn't. Delegating tasks to your team members can help you
free up some time, leverage their skills and talents, and empower them to take ownership and
responsibility. However, delegating is not just dumping work on others. You need to choose the
right person for the right task, provide clear instructions and expectations, and offer feedback and
support.
C. Communicate effectively
Communication is essential for any team leader, especially when it comes to balancing your
workload. You need to communicate effectively with your team members, your peers, and your
superiors. You need to share your goals, priorities, and progress, as well as listen to their feedback,
concerns, and ideas. You also need to communicate your boundaries, limits, and needs, and respect
those of others. Communication can help you avoid misunderstandings, conflicts, and stress.
D. Monitor your performance
As a team leader, you need to monitor your performance and the performance of your team. You
need to track your progress, measure your results, and evaluate your outcomes. You also need to
monitor your workload, your stress level, and your well-being. You need to be aware of your
strengths and weaknesses, your opportunities and threats, and your challenges and achievements.
Monitoring can help you identify gaps, problems, and areas for improvement, as well as celebrate
successes and learn from failures.
E. Support your team
One of the most important roles of a team leader is to support your team. You need to provide
them with the resources, tools, and guidance they need to perform their tasks. You also need to
motivate them, inspire them, and recognize them for their efforts and contributions. You need to
create a positive, collaborative, and respectful team culture, where everyone feels valued, trusted,
and supported. Supporting your team can help you build strong relationships, foster loyalty, and
enhance productivity.
4. Imagine you are working on a project and you notice that one team member is not
meeting their deadlines consistently. How would you address the issue and ensure the
project stays on track?
Here’s what to do.
A. Sit down with the staff member and ask what’s going on, and listen with an open mind.
Start out by simply naming the problem and asking for the staff person’s perspective:
“You’ve been missing deadlines lately. What’s been happening?” Then, give her some room
to talk. You might learn that deadlines haven’t been as clear as you thought, or that
someone else is causing a roadblock in her work, or that her systems haven’t been sufficient
for the number of projects on her plate. If you have trouble getting an understanding of
what’s causing the problem, try digging in a bit by asking questions like, “So that I
understand, what’s involved in making X happen?” and “What sorts of things are getting in
the way?”
B. Talk about the impact of the missed deadlines.
The idea here is to demonstrate that these aren’t simply arbitrary deadlines; they have realworld consequences. For example, you might say, “When you turned in your billings so late,
Jose ended up having to work over the weekend to get invoices out on time.” Or, “We
agreed that I’d be able to look at the brochure three days before it was due to the printer,
but I received it too close to the print deadline to be able to give meaningful feedback.”
C. Ask what tools your employee is using to track projects and deadlines.
Does she have a system or is she relying on memory? Or is she using tools that aren’t up to
the job, like a spreadsheet when a more robust project management software is needed?
Also, is she blocking out time to work on projects well in advance of deadlines, or is she only
turning to them close to the due date? With complicated projects, is she scheduling out
each moving piece and allowing buffers for things to go wrong? It may be that she needs
better systems or that some coaching on project management work habits would help.
D. Clearly state your expectations for what needs to change going forward.
Often this won’t just mean “meet all deadlines”; in some environments, especially ones with
heavy workloads and competing priorities, it might mean “come talk to me well in advance if
something is getting in the way of you meeting a deadline.” In that context, what you want is
both a heads-up and an opportunity to help move other priorities around.
E. Talk about next steps.
If the conversation hasn’t already produced clear ideas that the employee will try, ask
directly, “What would it make sense to do differently going forward?” You want the
employee to have a clear sense of what specific steps she’ll take to solve the problem –
something more than just “try harder.” Ideally she’ll come up with these on her own, but if
she’s struggling, it’s okay for you to be fairly directive about what you’d like her to try (for
example, “start entering interim deadlines in our shared project management tracker” or
“front-load your week so you’re getting time-sensitive work out of the way before tackling
other projects”).
1. Private Conversation: Explain that you would initiate a private conversation with the team
member to discuss the issue. Choose a comfortable and non-confrontational environment for the
discussion.
2. Understand the Situation: Demonstrate your empathy by asking open-ended questions to
understand the reasons behind the missed deadlines. It could be related to workload, personal
challenges, lack of resources, or any other factors.
3. Active Listening: Highlight your active listening skills by attentively listening to their
perspective. This will help you gain insights into their challenges and show that you value their
input.
4. Clarify Expectations: During the conversation, reinforce the importance of meeting deadlines
for the success of the project. Clearly communicate the impact that missed deadlines can have on
the team's progress and the overall project timeline.
5. Collaborative Problem-Solving: Showcase your problem-solving skills by discussing potential
solutions together. Ask for their input on how the challenges can be addressed and deadlines can
be met moving forward. This encourages ownership and engagement.
6. Set Realistic Goals: Discuss the importance of setting achievable goals and deadlines. Work
together to establish a realistic timeline for their tasks, considering their workload and any potential
obstacles.
7. Offer Support: Demonstrate your willingness to support them in overcoming obstacles. This
could involve reallocating resources, providing additional training, or offering assistance in
managing their workload.
8. Regular Check-Ins: Outline your intention to schedule regular check-ins to monitor progress.
This shows your commitment to their success and the project's success.
9. Escalate if Necessary: Explain that if the issue persists despite your efforts, you would escalate
the matter to higher management or HR for further assistance. Emphasize your goal of maintaining
project momentum and team productivity.
10. Positive Reinforcement: Discuss how you would recognize and celebrate improvements in
their performance. Positive reinforcement can help motivate them to meet deadlines and
contribute more effectively to the team's success.
11. Maintain Team Cohesion: Highlight your commitment to maintaining a positive team
atmosphere by fostering open communication, support, and collaboration among team members.
5. Imagine you are working on a project and you notice that one team member is not
meeting their deadlines consistently. How would you address the issue and ensure the
project stays on track?