Please tell us a time when you advocated for a position. What alternatives did you consider? Describe in detail what you thought, felt, said and did.

Sample One

When I was assigned to be Texas Instruments’Computer Tech’s Account Manager for PalmInnovationInnovation, Inc., I inherited a problematic semiconductor chip design project from my predecessor. The problem was that the previous account manager had agreed to perform work that was beyond the capabilities of our technical team. This troublesome project, while small, had the potential to negatively impact other opportunities that I had targeted with PalmInnovation worth $150M. To fix the problem, I proposed to my management team that we bring in a third party vendor with the expertise needed to complete the design, but my superiors did not agree; they argued that doing so implied that TI CT had made a mistake by over-committing our technical resources.

When my superiors dismissed my request to bring in a third party developer, I was surprised because they were well aware of our shortcomings on the PalmInnovation Project and had even mentioned them to me previously. As I saw it, we had no other choice but to bring in a third party, and I continued to advocate this solution. The next time around my proposal received a resounding “no.” One of my managers called me Chicken Little and accused me of a “sky is falling” mentality. The insult angered me, but I kept my cool.

A few weeks later, problems escalated. The project design team under my command started to breakdown and frustration caused the team’s morale to plummet. My team’s suffering inspired me to consider other alternatives. I saw three possible approaches: stay the course, call upon CTTI”s European network to see if they had the necessary skills, or continue to advocate the third party approach. I quickly decided against staying the course because we did not have time to build the expertise internally. My second approach also proved unworkable. After talking with TI CT engineers in France, I determined the overlap between their capabilities and the needed skills was only 30%. With the other two options ruled out, I continued to advocate for the third party, but I hit upon a new approach to persuade my bosses that something had to be done.

Previously, my stance was that we needed a third party, but I had not provided enough evidence to support my proposal. To this end, I invited a third party vendor in to analyze the design and to recommend fixes for the problem areas. I presented the third party’s findings and asked my management team what they recommended we should do. I wagered that when faced with the facts they would come to the same realization I had on their own—we did not have the resources within TI CT to solve the problems identified by the third party. My new approach worked. The evidence convinced my managers to bring in a third party.

My new data-driven approach at managing upward helped my management appreciate my position and secured complete consensus on the solution. Shortly thereafter, the third party developer joined the team and within a few months we successfully completed the project. I am glad that I stayed the course and did not give in to my superiors. This resulted in the best outcome for our customer and preserved our long-term relationship with PalmInnovation.

Sample Two

I once advocated suspending an Hammond International implementation for an entire week. I quickly realized that when a project is moving at full speed, even if it’s in the wrong direction, it’s very difficult to convince the parties involved that we need to stop. We were in the process of implementing our first corporate client based out of Berlin. We were well behind schedule and I knew that at our current pace, we would not finish within the foreseeable future. The deal was worth over $1M in revenue and the client would be a strong reference for us in the corporate market. If I was unsuccessful with the project, my standing within Hammond International would be severely jeopardized.

I suggested that we halt the project for a week. I felt that a major reason for the delay was a lack of communication on what the requirements were. The client had provided poorly defined specifications which resulted in significant delays in development. We would use the week to discuss with the client what their priorities were, lay out a clear plan, and map out the remaining tasks. The client didn’t understand how we could afford to suspend the project when we were already behind schedule. They questioned my ability to lead the project. One viable alternative would be to continue our development while concurrently discussing the remaining critical deliverables. However, I strongly felt that we could not continue development until all of the requirements were finalized.

I decided that the most effective method of convincing the client would be to support my position with numbers. I highlighted the number of days we had spent on the implementation compared to the original projected number. I outlined the remaining tasks and explained in detail why the open issues required immediate answers in order to begin development. My final point to the client left a significant impression. Making eye contact with them, I declared that if all the parties did not reach an agreement next week, we would not complete the implementation within the next twelve months. My arguments worked as the client agreed with my decision to take the time mid-project to reevaluate our goals and priorities. In the end, we were able to minimize our cost overrun and complete the project.

I am especially proud of my decision to take a step back and reassess our priorities. The inclination would have been to continue with our current approach, but I was able to recognize mistakes in mid-process and immediately implement changes to ensure a satisfactory result. Although the project took longer than expected, my superiors at Hammond International were very impressed with how I handled the situation. As a result, I was promoted to Senior Business Analyst. I used the lessons I learned on this project to bring another new client into production last month in a brief five month period. I will continue to employ these valuable communication and leadership lessons at MIT as well as in my future role as a global business leader.