Situation, Task, Action, and Result. Four words which together frame the STAR technique acronym: a powerful tool for candidates to effectively prepare and answer competency-based interview questions.

Often interviewers will use open questions (think how, what why, tell me about, explain more, etc) to encourage you to share a story in your response. In this blog post, we’ll explore three real-life examples from candidates recently placed by GoGecko, demonstrating how the STAR technique can be applied to answer these questions.

Prefer video format? Watch our breakdown here for comprehensive insights into the STAR technique.

Question 1: Talk to me about a challenge you’ve had in the workplace and how you’ve overcome it.
  • Situation = Working at an event that hosted over 6,000 people.
  • Task = There was a firework show that was planned to go off but none of the paperwork or relevant health and safety tasks had been completed.
  • Action = I sought out and located an external third-party health and safety officer and made sure that between the two of us all the health and safety regulations had been completed and accounted for.
  • Result = On the race day everything went smoothly and according to relevant compliances.

To say something like, “when I was working at an event that hosted over 6,000 people, we had a firework show that was planning to go off but none of the relevant health and safety compliances had been completed. So, in order to solve this I located an external third-party health and safety officer and between the two of us we were able to sort out all the regulations and on the day itself everything went according to plan with no issues”.

Question 2: How do you manage and prioritise tasks?
  • Situation = Directing a university play.
  • Task = During this time I was still a full-time student, so I had to balance my studies with the demands of the play
  • Action = I created a weekly schedule to divide my time appropriately and I also created internal deadlines for the rest of the team so we’re all on track together.
  • Result = the play went off successfully without a hitch and we managed to sell out the 500 people venue.

To say something like, “during my time at University I directed a play in my second year, and I had to balance the demands of the play with the demands of my studies. I created a weekly schedule to divide my time appropriately and internal deadlines and targets to keep the whole team on track. The play went successfully and managed to sell out the venue”.

Question 3: Can you give me an example of where you’ve demonstrated excellent customer service?
  • Situation = Managing a project in which I was implementing new systems in 15 different flats.
  • Task = I had to organise and communicate with all the residents and all the contractors to make sure that everything was running smoothly.
  • Action = I liaised with the engineers and the residents to coordinate times that worked for both and made sure that all complaints were dealt with prior to installation.
  • Result = the systems were put in place with no issues or any complaints from any of the residents and we met all the relevant deadlines.

To say something like, “I had to manage a project where I was implementing new systems for 15 different flats, and I had to organise and communicate with all the residents and contractors. So, I liaised with the engineers and the residents through email and phone calls to coordinate times and make sure that everyone was happy, and all complaints were dealt with prior to installation. As a result, all the systems were put in place with no issues or complaints, and we met all the deadlines”.

Useful tips:

  • Prepare in advance.
  • Practice your responses. You could always ask your peers for feedback.
  • Tailor responses to the job you’re applying for.

By effectively communicating your past experiences using the Situation, Task, Action, and Result framework, you can clearly articulate your capabilities and suitability for the role.

GoGecko are here to give you confidence and support on your career journey. Feeling ready to boost your interview game? Contact us today, and let’s fine-tune your interview skills together!