FIRST-TIME SUPERVISOR Interview Questions & ANSWERS! (How to PASS your FIRST Supervisor Interview!)

Summary

In this tutorial from passmyinterview.com, Richard McMahon equips first-time supervisor applicants with strategies to ace their interviews. He outlines a list of common questions, offers tips for crafting compelling responses, especially for those without prior supervisory experience, and provides example answers. The video also guides viewers on downloading a comprehensive PDF of 21 interview questions and top-scoring answers, enhancing their preparation. McMahon emphasizes the importance of confidence, leadership skills, and articulating a clear plan for the first 30, 60, and 90 days in the role.

Takeaways

• 😀 Richard McMahon from passmyinterview.com offers a tutorial on acing a first-time supervisor interview.
• 📝 The tutorial covers a list of common supervisor interview questions and provides tips on how to answer them effectively.
• 💡 Tip 1: When answering 'Tell me about yourself,' focus on skills, preparation, and observing others in supervisory roles.
• 💡 Tip 2: Practice your answers to increase confidence and articulate communication.
• 💼 For 'Why do you want to be a supervisor?' emphasize the attraction to responsibility and career progression, not salary.
• 📚 Read the job description to tailor your response to the specific expectations of the role.
• 🗣️ Highlight leadership, commercial awareness, conflict management, and relationship building skills when discussing supervisor qualities.
• 📈 Explain the supervisor role as managing team workflow, creating schedules, and achieving company goals.
• 🔍 Prepare a clear plan for the first 30 days as a supervisor, focusing on understanding company goals, team dynamics, and setting expectations.
• 👥 Address conflict immediately by identifying the cause and directing resolution, emphasizing the importance of not ignoring team conflicts.
• 🙋‍♂️ For 'Why should we hire you as a supervisor with no experience?' focus on potential, self-development, and eagerness to learn and contribute to the company's success.

Q & A

What is the first supervisor interview question Richard McMahon suggests preparing for?

The first supervisor interview question Richard McMahon suggests preparing for is 'Tell me about yourself.'

What are the two tips Richard McMahon gives for answering the 'Tell me about yourself' question?

The two tips are: 1) Talk about the skills you have and what you have been doing to prepare for the position of a supervisor. 2) Practice your answer several times before your interview to increase confidence levels and appear as a confident and articulate communicator.

How does Richard McMahon suggest showcasing your preparation for a supervisor role?

Richard McMahon suggests showcasing your preparation by mentioning that you have been observing other supervisors and managers, reading leadership books, and shadowing a supervisor to understand what is expected in the role.

What is the recommended approach to answering the question 'Why do you want to be a supervisor'?

The recommended approach is to focus on the level of responsibility that comes with the position and how it is a natural progression in your career development, rather than mentioning salary.

What are the key skills and qualities Richard McMahon highlights as important for a supervisor?

The key skills and qualities highlighted are leadership, decision-making, time management, commercial awareness, conflict management capabilities, and relationship building qualities.

How does Richard McMahon define the role of a supervisor?

Richard McMahon defines the role of a supervisor as managing the workflow of teams, creating work schedules, achieving deadlines, training and mentoring, and overseeing tasks and projects to ensure the organization achieves its goals.

What is the recommended action plan for the first 30 days as a new supervisor according to Richard McMahon?

The recommended action plan includes obtaining a clear brief from senior managers, getting to know the team through appraisals, and briefing the team on expectations and goals.

How should a candidate handle the question about dealing with conflict between team members?

A candidate should handle this by stating they would deal with any conflict immediately by establishing the main cause and directing the team members on how to resolve it.

What is the strategy Richard McMahon suggests for answering the question 'Why should we hire you as a supervisor when you have no experience'?

The strategy is to answer confidently, focusing on your strengths, self-development work, and the preparations made for becoming a supervisor.

Where can viewers find the 21 first-time supervisor interview questions and top scoring answers mentioned in the script?

Viewers can find the 21 first-time supervisor interview questions and top scoring answers by clicking the link in the top right hand corner of the video or visiting passmyinterview.com.

What are the three smart questions Richard McMahon suggests asking at the end of a supervisor interview?

The three smart questions suggested are not explicitly listed in the script, but viewers are directed to the website to find them.

Outlines

00:00

😀 Introduction to First-Time Supervisor Interview Tips

Richard McMahon from passmyinterview.com introduces a tutorial aimed at helping first-time supervisor applicants succeed in their interviews. The video promises to cover a list of common interview questions, tips for answering without prior supervisory experience, example answers, and a resource for downloading a PDF guide with 21 interview questions and top-scoring answers. Richard encourages viewers to subscribe for more job interview tips and to like the video for motivation to create more content.

05:00

😌 Navigating the 'Tell Me About Yourself' Question

The video delves into the first interview question, 'Tell me about yourself,' advising candidates to discuss their skills and preparation for the supervisor role. Richard suggests practicing the answer to boost confidence and to mention observing other supervisors. He provides a model response highlighting the candidate's confidence, commercial focus, positive attitude, and readiness to take on supervisory responsibilities, despite lacking direct experience.

10:04

🤔 Addressing Motivations and Skills for the Supervisor Role

Richard continues with advice on answering questions about motivations for becoming a supervisor and the essential skills and qualities required. He advises focusing on the desire for responsibility and career progression rather than salary. For skills, he emphasizes leadership, commercial awareness, conflict management, and relationship building. Model answers are provided to demonstrate how to effectively communicate these points to interviewers.

👷‍♂️ The Supervisor's Role and Initial Actions

Exploring the role of a supervisor, the video explains the importance of managing team workflow, creating schedules, and achieving company goals. A concise answer is provided to illustrate understanding of the supervisor's duties. Additionally, Richard discusses the critical 'first 30 days' question, offering a strategy for a new supervisor to understand company goals, get to know the team, and set performance expectations.

🤝 Handling Conflict and Demonstrating Supervisory Potential

The video addresses how to handle conflict between team members, emphasizing immediate action and understanding the impact of unresolved conflict. A top-scoring response is provided, focusing on prompt conflict resolution and team guidance. The final part of the paragraph discusses how to respond to the question of why one should be hired as a supervisor with no experience, suggesting a focus on potential, preparation, and a willingness to learn.

📚 Additional Resources and Closing Remarks

Richard offers a 30-60-90 day action plan for supervisors and encourages viewers to download it for their interviews. He also provides a link to his website for additional interview resources and suggests subscribing to the channel and connecting on LinkedIn. The video concludes with a reminder to ask smart questions at the end of the interview and a well wish for viewers' success in their supervisor interviews.

Keywords

💡Supervisor Interview

A supervisor interview is a formal meeting where potential candidates for a supervisory role are assessed for their suitability to manage and lead a team. In the video, the theme revolves around preparing for such an interview, with tips and examples provided to help candidates succeed. The script mentions, 'I will teach you how to pass a first-time supervisor interview,' indicating the core focus of the video.

💡Standout Candidate

A standout candidate is someone who distinguishes themselves from other applicants, often due to exceptional qualifications, skills, or interview performance. The video aims to help viewers become standout candidates by providing strategies and answers to common supervisor interview questions, as emphasized in the line, 'I promise to help you be the standout candidate.'

💡Interview Questions

Interview questions are the queries posed by interviewers to gauge a candidate's fit for a position. The video provides a list of typical first-time supervisor interview questions, such as 'Tell me about yourself,' and 'Why do you want to be a supervisor?' These questions are central to the video's objective of preparing viewers for their interviews.

💡Confidence

Confidence in an interview setting refers to a candidate's self-assuredness and ability to communicate effectively. The video script advises candidates to practice their answers to increase confidence, as in the tip, 'practice your answer several times before your interview, because this will help increase your confidence levels.'

💡Leadership Skills

Leadership skills are essential for a supervisory role and include the ability to guide, motivate, and direct a team. The video emphasizes the importance of highlighting these skills during an interview, as seen when the script mentions, 'The main skills and qualities required to be a competent and effective supervisor include leadership...'

💡Commercial Awareness

Commercial awareness is the understanding of how a business operates, including its market, competitors, and financial goals. The video script suggests that candidates should mention their commercial awareness during the interview, as it is a key quality for supervisors, as stated in the response, 'a supervisor must... have commercial awareness.'

💡Conflict Management

Conflict management refers to the ability to address and resolve disputes within a team. The video provides a strategy for answering questions about conflict, emphasizing immediate action and the negative impact of unresolved conflict, as illustrated in the response, 'I would deal with any form of conflict immediately by establishing the main cause...'

💡Action Plan

An action plan outlines specific steps or strategies to achieve a goal. The video offers an example of what a candidate might do in the first 30, 60, and 90 days as a new supervisor, which serves as an action plan to demonstrate preparedness and initiative, as mentioned in the script, 'I have created a ready-made action plan...'

💡Self-Assessment

Self-assessment in an interview context involves a candidate's ability to evaluate their own strengths and weaknesses. The video encourages candidates to focus on their strengths and preparation when asked about their lack of experience, as seen in the advice, 'focus on your strengths what you have been doing to prepare...'

💡Motivation

Motivation in a job interview context refers to a candidate's drive and reasons for seeking a particular role. The video advises candidates to express their motivation for becoming a supervisor in terms of responsibility and career progression, as demonstrated in the response, 'I want to be a supervisor because I will thrive on the responsibility that comes with the role.'

Highlights

Introduction to the tutorial on passing a first-time supervisor interview

List of first-time supervisor interview questions to prepare for

Tip on practicing answers to increase confidence and articulate communication

Example answer for 'Tell me about yourself' question

Importance of observing supervisors and managers to learn about the role

Offer to download 21 first-time supervisor interview questions and top scoring answers

Advice on answering 'Why do you want to be a supervisor?'

Emphasis on responsibility and career progression in the 'Why supervisor?' answer

Example response for 'Why do you want to be a supervisor?'

Importance of reading the job description to tailor interview answers

Key skills and qualities needed to be an effective supervisor

Example answer for 'What are the most important skills and qualities needed to be a supervisor?'

Explanation of the role of a supervisor in managing team workflow

Example answer for 'What is the role of a supervisor?'

Advice on planning actions for the first 30 days as a supervisor

Example response for actions to take in the first 30 days as a supervisor

Handling conflict between team members as a supervisor

Example answer for dealing with conflict between team members

Addressing the question of being hired as a supervisor with no experience

Example answer for why to hire someone with no supervisory experience

Encouragement to subscribe to the channel and connect on LinkedIn for more interview tips

Transcripts

hello there my name is Richard McMahon

from the interview training website

passmyinterview.com and in this tutorial

I will teach you how to pass a first

time supervisor interview so if you are

applying for your first ever supervisor

position and you want to pass your

interview at the first attempt make sure

you stay tuned because I promise to help

you be the standout candidate and to

achieve that goal this is what I will

cover in this training video number one

I will give you a list of first time

supervisor interview questions I

recommend you prepare for number two I

will give you two very important tips

for answering each interview question

correctly if you have no previous

experience as a supervisor number three

I will then give you an example answer

to each supervisor interview question

that is perfect for first time super

advisors and then finally number four I

will tell you where you can instantly

download my 21 first time supervisor

interview questions and top scoring

answers in a PDF guide and just very

quickly if you are new to this Channel

please make sure you hit that subscribe

button it's important literally

thousands of you are passing your job

interviews at the first attempt I can

only help you if you are subscribed and

please give the video a like give it a

thumbs up that tells me you find these

tutorials useful and it also motivates

me to create more content for you thank

you very much indeed okay let's get

straight into the tutorial and the first

interview question I recommend you

prepare for is tell me about yourself

here's the first tip so this will be the

first supervisor interview question you

will have to answer talk about the

skills you have and what you have been

doing to prepare for the position of a

supervisor tip number two

now I recommend you practice your answer

several times before your interview

because this will help increase your

confidence levels and it will put you

across as a confident and articulate

Communicator also mention the fact you

have been observing other supervisors

and managers to learn more about the

role and what is required so here's my

top scoring answer to help you pass your

supervisor interview

tell me about yourself here we go

thank you for the opportunity to be

interviewed for this supervisor position

with your organization I would describe

myself as a confident commercially

focused and positive person with the

skills qualities and traits to become a

competent and effective supervisor in

recent years I have observed many

supervisors and managers and read

numerous leadership books to prepare for

this important position in my last job I

shadowed my supervisor to understand

what was expected in the role and I also

LED successfully on numerous projects

my natural organizational planning and

Leadership skills make me a strong

candidate although this will be my first

ever supervisor position I am confident

I can help you achieve your commercial

and operational goals I assure you

everything I do as your supervisor will

be focused on the company's core

objectives and getting the most from my

team that is a brilliant answer to that

first supervisor interview question Tell

me about yourself if you have no

previous experience of working as a

supervisor now you can either pause this

video if you want to and take a note of

the questions and answers as we work

through them together or if you wait I

will soon tell you where you can

instantly download my full set of 21

first time supervisor interview

questions and top scoring answers here's

the second question

why do you want to be a supervisor tip

number one this next question will come

up during your supervisor interview it

is assessing your motivations for

wanting the position

tip number two do not mention the salary

in your answer instead focus on how you

are attracted to the level of

responsibility that comes with the

position and how the role is a natural

progression in your own Career

Development here's my top scoring

response to help you

why do you want to be a supervisor

I want to be a supervisor because I will

thrive on the responsibility that comes

with the role I also want to be a

supervisor because for several years now

I have been preparing for the position

in my last job I took responsibility for

training and coaching new team members

and I realized then I have the qualities

needed to be a supervisor becoming a

supervisor is a natural progression

based on my experience knowledge and

ambitious nature another perfect answer

that will help you pass your first time

supervisor interview now don't go

anywhere because I still have many more

questions and answers to give you but

when you're ready you can click that

link in the top right hand corner of the

video head straight through to my

website passmyinterview.com and you can

instantly download these slides plus my

full set of 21 first time supervisor

interview questions and top scoring

answers in a PDF guide here's the next

question and what are the most important

skills and qualities needed to be a

supervisor now before your supervisor

interview make sure you take the time to

read the job description this is

important by reading the job description

it will give you an indication as to

what they want to hear in your answer

tip number two make sure you mention

leadership skills commercial awareness

Conflict Management capabilities and

relationship building qualities in your

response here's my top scoring answer to

assist you

what are the most important skills and

qualities needed to be a supervisor here

we go

the main skills and qualities required

to be a competent and effective

supervisor include leadership decision

making and time management capabilities

a supervisor must lead motivate and

direct teams of people make important

decisions that are in the best interest

of the business and keep a close eye on

time to ensure deadlines are met

supervisors also require commercial

awareness which is an understanding of

how a business is run they must be

strong communicators negotiators and

influencers and solve challenging

problems whenever they occur finally a

supervisor needs Conflict Management

capabilities strategic thinking skills

and relationship building qualities that

is a top scoring answer that's going to

help you beat the competition at your

first time supervisor interview

here is the next question what is the

role of a supervisor wow this is a tough

one so this question is tougher than it

looks to answer ask most people this

question and they will really struggle

to answer it correctly now the main role

of a supervisor is to manage the

workflow of a team in your response make

sure you mention creating work schedules

and directing the team towards achieving

the company's goals here's my top

scoring response to assist you

what is the role of a supervisor the

role of a supervisor is to manage the

workflow of teams they are responsible

for creating work schedules achieving

deadlines training and mentoring and

overseeing tasks and projects to ensure

the organization achieves its short

medium and long-term goals supervisors

or managers and leaders and they are

directly responsible to the senior

management team that's a short concise

but confident answer that shows you are

fully aware of your role as a supervisor

it's a harder question than it looks to

answer here's the next question I want

you to prepare for this is another

really difficult one that catches a lot

of people out and they end up failing

their interviews what would you do in

the first 30 days of starting work as a

supervisor tip number one so this is

another difficult supervisor interview

question to answer if you don't give a

confident and direct response that shows

you are fully prepared you could end up

failing your interview tip number two

make sure you have a plan of action in

place of what you will do in the role

once you start work as a first time

supervisor here's a brilliant response

to help you

what would you do in the first 30 days

of starting work as a supervisor

I would do three things within 30 days

of starting work as a new supervisor

first I will obtain a clear brief from

my senior managers and the company

directors to understand exactly how I

can help the company meet its goals and

Targets in my role as supervisor second

I would get to know my team I would

perform appraisals with each staff

member to determine how they contribute

to the team and The Wider organizational

objectives within their jobs finally I

would brief the team fully on my

expectations regarding the performance I

expect and reiterate the goals and

targets we will all be working towards

it would then be my task to supervise

lead and motivate the team moving

forward that's a really good answer now

there is another question they could ask

you at your first time supervisor

interview and that would be what would

you do in the first 30 60 and 90 days of

starting work as a supervisor now that's

always clear a much tougher one to

answer but to help you I have created a

ready-made action plan if you want to

download this action plan take it with

you to your first time supervisor

interview and hand it to them in

response to that question click that

link in the top right hand corner of the

video when you're ready and you can

download a copy of the 30 60 and 90 day

plan for supervisors and managers here's

the next question how would you deal

with conflict between two members of

your team this is another difficult one

it's called a hypothetical interview

question tip one

this question this question can really

only be answered in One Way by saying

you would take action to resolve the

conflict immediately in your answer show

an understanding of what would happen if

you failed to resolve the conflict

quickly and the impact it would have on

the rest of the team here's my top

scoring response how would you deal with

conflict between two members of your

team as a supervisor

I would deal with any form of conflict

immediately by establishing the main

cause and then directing the team

members how they should resolve it

having said that sometimes as a

supervisor just by letting the team

members know you are aware of the

conflict is enough for them to take

steps to resolve it themselves if they

were unable to resolve the conflict I

would make a decision as to how it

should be resolved if you ignore

conflict as a supervisor it gives the

impression to the other team members

that you don't have the confidence to

deal with it but I would never allow

that to happen that's a really good

answer another top scoring answer that

will help you pass your first time

supervisor interview at the first

attempt here's the next question why

should we hire you as a supervisor when

you have no experience this is a valid

question why should they take you on in

the role when you have no previous

experience here's how to answer it tip

one

this question must be answered

confidently focus on your strengths what

you have been doing to prepare and the

self-development work you have

undertaken in preparation for becoming a

supervisor they will ask all candidates

this same question so be sure to

practice your answer several times

before your interview so it comes across

confidently here's my scripted answer to

help you

why should we hire you as a supervisor

when you have no experience you should

hire me because the skills qualities and

knowledge I already possess mean I have

the potential to be a great supervisor

and leader I am a confident person who

has already shown resilience in previous

non-management positions I have spent

time observing supervisors to learn how

they lead and I've studied various

online videos and courses to learn more

about how to be a competent supervisor

for an organization I am hungry to learn

will absorb as much information and

training as possible and do all I can to

ensure your business continually

succeeds and maintains its position as a

market leader there you go brilliant

answer that will score very highly

during your first time supervisor

interview now the next thing to do is

click that link right now in the top

right hand corner of the video you

should click that link for two reasons

first of all you can download my full

set of 21 first-time supervisor

interview questions and top scoring

characters in a PDF guide it includes

the answers we have just worked through

together today plus additional ones it's

a great resource you can have it in your

inbox literally within two minutes from

now because it's a PDF guide and the

second reason why you should click that

link is because on that page I have

given you three smart questions to ask

at the end of your supervisor interview

at the end of your interview they will

say do you have any questions for us

there's three questions you should ask I

have given you those questions on that

page make sure you check it out also

make sure you subscribe to this channel

thousands of you are passing your

interviews at the first attempt I can

only help you if you are subscribed give

the video a like give it a thumbs up

that motivates me to create more free

content for you and also don't forget to

connect with me on LinkedIn I have put

my LinkedIn Link in the description

below the video it's always a pleasure

and an honor to connect with like-minded

professionals such as yourself thank you

for watching and wish you all the best

for passing your first time I'm

supervisor interview have a wonderful

day