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Behavioralstandard
Tell me about a time you disagreed with an engineer about how to build something.
How to approach it
Pick a story where the disagreement was about a real trade-off, such as speed versus quality, and where you listened before you argued.
How a strong answer opens
“The short version: our lead engineer wanted to delay a launch to rebuild a data model, I wanted to ship, and we shipped a smaller version on time with the rebuild scheduled. Here's how we got there.”
Outline of a strong answer
Try answering out loud for a few minutes before you open this.
- Set the scene: project, stakes, what each of you wanted
- Show you understood the engineer's concern first
- Explain how you found common ground with data or user evidence
- Describe the decision and who made it
- Share the result and what you would repeat
- Note how the working relationship ended up
Where this question usually goes wrong
Telling a story where the engineer was simply wrong and you won, which suggests you don't listen to technical concerns.
Learn the method
Conflict and disagreement in Module 4, Behavioral and leadership.
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More behavioral questions
- Tell me about a time you disagreed with your manager and turned out to be wrong.
- Describe a conflict between two teammates that you helped resolve.
- Tell me about a time you said no to a stakeholder.
- Tell me about a time you had to work with a difficult stakeholder.
- Tell me about a time you had to deliver bad news to a customer or partner.