Tell me about a time when you had to work collaboratively with a multidisciplinary team
Theme: Collaboration, Teamwork Role: Medical Researcher Function: Medical
Interview Question for Medical Researcher: See sample answers, motivations & red flags for this common interview question. About Medical Researcher: Conduct scientific studies to advance medical knowledge This role falls within the Medical function of a firm. See other interview questions & further information for this role here
Sample Answer
Example response for question delving into Collaboration, Teamwork with the key points that need to be covered in an effective response. Customize this to your own experience with concrete examples and evidence
- Context: Provide a brief overview of the situation and the multidisciplinary team you worked with
- Objective: Explain the common goal or objective that the team was working towards
- Collaboration: Describe how you actively collaborated with the team members
- Communication: Highlight the communication methods used to ensure effective collaboration
- Challenges: Discuss any challenges or conflicts that arose during the collaboration
- Resolution: Explain how you resolved the challenges and maintained a productive collaboration
- Outcome: Share the positive outcome achieved through the collaborative efforts of the team
Underlying Motivations
What the Interviewer is trying to find out about you and your experiences through this question
- Collaboration skills: Assessing your ability to work effectively with diverse professionals in a team setting
- Communication skills: Evaluating your ability to communicate and coordinate with individuals from different disciplines
- Adaptability: Determining your flexibility and willingness to adapt to different perspectives and approaches
- Problem-solving skills: Exploring your capacity to solve complex problems by leveraging the expertise of various team members
- Leadership potential: Assessing your potential to lead and coordinate a multidisciplinary team towards a common goal
Potential Minefields
How to avoid some common minefields when answering this question in order to not raise any red flags
- Lack of teamwork: If the candidate fails to mention any experience working collaboratively with a multidisciplinary team, it may indicate a lack of teamwork skills or an inability to work well with others
- Poor communication: If the candidate does not provide clear examples of effective communication within the multidisciplinary team, it may suggest a lack of communication skills or difficulty in conveying ideas and information
- Conflict resolution: If the candidate does not mention any challenges or conflicts faced within the team and how they were resolved, it may indicate a lack of problem-solving skills or an inability to handle conflicts effectively
- Dominating behavior: If the candidate only focuses on their own contributions and fails to acknowledge the contributions of other team members, it may suggest a tendency to dominate or take credit for others' work
- Inflexibility: If the candidate does not mention any instances where they had to adapt or be flexible in their approach to accommodate different perspectives or expertise within the team, it may indicate a lack of adaptability or resistance to change