Give me an example of an idea that you advocated for and why. What happened?

This question is a way for the interviewer to understand your ability to advocate for your ideas, your capacity to drive change, your leadership style, and your approach to overcoming resistance. You are expected to respond with a concrete example from your experience.

Key points to consider in your response are: a detailed description of the idea you advocated for, why you advocated for the idea, and how you went about it. You should also explain the result or impact of implementing the idea, what you learnt from the experience.

In my previous role as a project manager, I noticed that our team was spending a significant amount of time on administrative tasks that could be automated. I advocated for the implementation of project management software to streamline these processes and increase team efficiency. I did thorough research on the potential software options and made a compelling case to the upper management including a cost-benefit analysis. My proposal initially faced resistance due to the projected implementation cost, but I managed to gain support by highlighting how the automation could free up team members' time for more strategic work and improve our project delivery timelines.

We eventually implemented the software, and after a few months of adjustment, we observed a 30% decrease in time spent on administrative tasks and our project delivery time reduced by a week. This experience taught me the importance of research and persistence in advocating for an idea.

In my last role as a Sales Lead, I suggested upgrading our CRM software, after I noticed it wasn't fulfilling our needs as the company grew. It lacked certain features we desperately needed, like advanced reporting tools and better integration with our other systems. However, the company had been using this CRM for years, and there was a lot of resistance to change.

I advocated for the new CRM by conducting a detailed analysis of the new and old systems, highlighting the enhanced features and efficiency of the new CRM. I also invited a vendor to do a demonstration for our team to help everyone understand the benefits.

After plenty of discussions and presentations, the management agreed to the upgrade. We witnessed a significant increase in productivity and sales after we started using the new CRM because we could track our performance more efficiently. This experience reinforced to me that change can be daunting but pushing for improved tools and resources can make a real difference.