How do handle job interview questions about coworkers

I'm interviewing for various full-time librarian positions and I occasionally get asked questions about relating to my coworkers. These questions always seem to stump me so I'm asking for your advice on how to respond.

The first question is "Describe a time you dealt with a difficult coworker. How did you handle the situation?"
The problem is that I don't really have any particularly difficult coworkers. Occasionally there might be slight things they do to annoy me like wanting to micromanage everything or trying to jump in the middle of a question I'm helping a customer with. But I don't have any serious long-term conflicts with anyone. How do I answer this question without sounding like I'm complaining too much and sound like I know how do deal effectively with difficult people.

Second question is "How would you establish rapport with a new coworker?"
Since I work as a part-time substitute librarian, I float around between various library branches. I don't get to establish many close relationships with coworkers. I don't always know who is a new coworker or not because they all seem new to me. Typically I'm the one that's new to that particular library I'm substituting at. So about the best I can do here is rephrase the question in terms of "due to the nature of my job, I'm usually the new coworker. What works well for me is when people make me feel welcome, get to know me personally and clearly communicate to me what is going on at that library, what things I should know about substituting here and what the expectations are for a good performance."

To the first question. I'd say that especially the jumping in to help on a question is important. Problems with co-workers doesn't have to be something like sexual harrasment or something that serious. So, answer honestly. I get on well with most people, but... and then go into the jumping into questions things and how you've resolved it.

As to the second question, I've never gotten asked that, but, my guess is that they're asking it based on your resume. And, while you may be new to the branch, that also makes them new to you. Do you try to joke a bit to make people at ease. It's great if those at the branch make you feel welcome, but, do you try to find your place, or how do you adjust. Do you make sure to ask questions, do you strike up conversations in any down time you get, etc. :) I think they want to know if you're a substitue by necessity (i.e. no one can stand you) or what they're hoping for, that it's just what you've been able to get and you don't eat babies, fart, and burp during lunches.... ;)

It sounds like you have two solid examples, what did you do in those situations? I'd like to know how to deal with micro-mangers and people who interrupt you when you're working with a customer. There's lots of books out there about dealing with difficult people, so I'd have a read and see if there's some key concepts that you could use. Some are particular to librarians, but mostly seem to be dealing with difficult patrons.
I did find this one which looks interesting: Job stress and the librarian

I would think you'd have excellent experience dealing with new co-workers, having to jump into any new library at a moment's notice. Your answer could highlight that you're extremely adaptable and get on with your new coworkers in all the branches you have to work at. I think your job is a strength for this question, compared to someone who's worked in the same branch library and hasn't had a new co-worker in years. Guessing their purpose it sounds like they want to know how easy it is to get on with you, how quickly you're going to be up and running in a new situation. So I'd focus less on what other's can do for you, as to what you do yourself to make it easier for other staff, and management at the libraries you work at. It sounds like you do this all the time in your current job.

They probably ask the same questions to all the applicants. They don't tailor them for individual circumstances. It sounds like you are very thoughtful and I think you will answer these and any other questions very well. Good luck!

I'm a public library hiring manager, and I have been for 15 years now (good grief).

First suggestion: go to askamanager.org and read the archives and check out her book(s) for really specific and excellent advice, often with scripts, which often focus on the reasons for wanting your answers to be a certain way.

So, for your actual questions. First off, I think you DO have solid examples, you just need to present them in a more targeted way.

For the first one, acknowledge that you've been lucky so far, and then say the magic words that all bureaucrats and managers NEED to hear from you: (important parts are in bold) "I WOULD TELL MY SUPERVISOR there was an issue and WORK WITH MY SUPERVISOR to solve the problem IN ACCORDANCE WITH LIBRARY POLICY" You would think that is obvious, and I would think that is obvious, but there are a LOT of people who do not think that is obvious and then they cause all sorts of problems after they're hired, so you really have to spell it out.

After that's out of the way, then you want to show that you have initiative and know how use problem-solving skills and people skills to help smooth things over without making your manager do all the work. In your case, you want to show that you've learned things from your small issues that you can apply to larger or more serious situations. You can either use a minor workplace example (with a laugh and an acknowledgement that it IS very minor and only for illustrative purposes) OR if you have an example from a volunteer position or school work (if it wasn't more than 2 or so years in the past) you can use that as well. Please don't use family or friends as examples.

So something like:

"I've been really lucky with my workplaces so far - I've never had a SERIOUS conflict with a coworker. I know that's not always the case, however, and I have had some minor disagreements with people; here is what I did when one of my past coworkers (insert example here) and I really developed some working-relationship concepts from that situation; (describe specific working with people concepts). So I think that those ideas would apply to more serious disagreements as well."

Second question: establishing rapport.

I can see how this might seem like a difficult question. I do think you've got the makings of a very good answer there, but a bit of re-framing can make it more targeted and seem more thoughtful.

So the angle I'd take is;

"What I have appreciated most as a new/floating employee has been (list a few specific PROFESSIONAL things, ie don't talk about the coffee maker :) or individual personalities), and so when I am in a situation where I can mentor/orient/onboard a new employee, here are three things I'd absolutely do for that new person because (insert reasons here), and a couple things I would NOT do because (insert reasons here).

Make sense?

Thanks for all that replied with your helpful tips. It's good to know that I'm on the right track here.

Here is another stumper of a question I got asked a few days ago in an interview. "Describe your experience working on a team and how you were successful in spite people who were being uncooperative." Once again as a substitute librarian, I don't have any long-term teams I'm on. I don't serve on committees or project initiatives or the like. About the best I can say is that I work cooperatively with my colleagues to ensure that library patrons receive the best possible service and then give specific examples to support that. I've tried straining my brain to no end to come up with examples for when colleagues or teammates were being uncooperative and I literally cannot come up with anything! If I stretch it, maybe colleagues that complained about some minor aspect of the process but I would hardly consider this uncooperative. What do with a question like this? About all I can do here is how I would handle a hypothetical situation where this happened.

>6 readthisnext: I'd say that if you don't think that you've ever had to work with uncooperative people then say that, followed promptly with what you would do in a hypothetical situation.

Generally (as far as I can tell, I've only been on the hiring side of the couch once, and it wasn't for a professional position, I've always been the one being interviewed). Anyway, from what I can tell, honestly, those who are hiring, yes, they want to know about your previous concrete experiences in libraries, but, they also want to know your philosophies. So, if you answer that in a hypothetical you would berate people if they were being uncooperative that would give them a different view of you than if you set out what you would do in a situation where people were being uncooperative.

Yes, hiring managers hire based on if you can fix a printer, or do a proper ref interview, but, also, to me it has always seemed like it's also based on how they feel you would do when the situation comes up that they haven't asked the question about. There's no way that they can ask every question about every situation that may come up in a library, they just have to ask enough so that they get a feel for who you are. Are you excitable or calm. Do you see people as mostly good or mostly bad. Why are you a librarian (actually, that's a question that they usually ask I'd guess).

I've been a substitute too (not in a branched library, just in a couple of different town libraries, and thankfully I'm now a full time one at one library and Sunday one at another). And it is stressful in a way that if a librarian has only ever been benefited part time, or full time, they may not get it. You're there, but you're not. The public sees you as a part of the staff, interchangeable, but, you don't get to know them as well as if you work every day. Perhaps you have mini-things that you're assigned, or, perhaps you have to look as though your busy even though you're not given anything concrete to do. You're a part of the library, but, you may not have a role that's just yours.

You probably know all this all ready, so I do apologize if I came off sounding patronizing, or if I'm off base, it was not my intention. As I said, I was a part-part-time substitute for a whole lotta years before I got my current full time job, and I feel for all those who are in the shoes I was in.

Also, love your username!

>6 readthisnext: I'd say that if you don't think that you've ever had to work with uncooperative people then say that, followed promptly with what you would do in a hypothetical situation.

Generally (as far as I can tell, I've only been on the hiring side of the couch once, and it wasn't for a professional position, I've always been the one being interviewed). Anyway, from what I can tell, honestly, those who are hiring, yes, they want to know about your previous concrete experiences in libraries, but, they also want to know your philosophies. So, if you answer that in a hypothetical you would berate people if they were being uncooperative that would give them a different view of you than if you set out what you would do in a situation where people were being uncooperative.

Yes, hiring managers hire based on if you can fix a printer, or do a proper ref interview, but, also, to me it has always seemed like it's also based on how they feel you would do when the situation comes up that they haven't asked the question about. There's no way that they can ask every question about every situation that may come up in a library, they just have to ask enough so that they get a feel for who you are. Are you excitable or calm. Do you see people as mostly good or mostly bad. Why are you a librarian (actually, that's a question that they usually ask I'd guess).

I've been a substitute too (not in a branched library, just in a couple of different town libraries, and thankfully I'm now a full time one at one library and Sunday one at another). And it is stressful in a way that if a librarian has only ever been benefited part time, or full time, they may not get it. You're there, but you're not. The public sees you as a part of the staff, interchangeable, but, you don't get to know them as well as if you work every day. Perhaps you have mini-things that you're assigned, or, perhaps you have to look as though your busy even though you're not given anything concrete to do. You're a part of the library, but, you may not have a role that's just yours.

You probably know all this all ready, so I do apologize if I came off sounding patronizing, or if I'm off base, it was not my intention. As I said, I was a part-part-time substitute for a whole lotta years before I got my current full time job, and I feel for all those who are in the shoes I was in.

Also, love your username!

>6 readthisnext: Think outside the library box for these questions. It's not just about your experience in a library situation. I've been involved in interviews hiring for 4 positions in the last 2 years. I'm looking for how you handle people and how you may fit in with my current team. Did you ever have to work on a group project for a class and have one or more students who just didn't pull their weight? If so, how did you handle that? It tells me a lot about how you'll react in a sticky situation to know what your approach is.

As someone who also started out as a very part-time substitute and has since moved up to full-time employment, I understand where you're coming from. I usually had to reply to these sorts of questions based on my experiences outside of libraries. And that's fine, because these are questions that are trying to find out more about you as a person rather than how you react in a specifically library situation.

On a side note, are you involved in your state library association? That was something I did early on that added significantly to my professional experience. It also helped me meet and share ideas with other library staff members across the state. Can you join a committee? Often there's a group for new members. Or a forum or round table for your library specialty: youth services, public libraries, technical services, etc.

i work in a school that is pushing hard on the collaboration method of learning. A very common problem is that one or two students on a team have to carry the load of the whole team. This method enable slackers who get a grade based on others' work. When my daughter went to a school with this system, they would have to fill out a form to report on the work of others on the team. I don't know how honestly these questions are answered since students can be bullied, etc. or if they even use them any more.

I would guess that this issue has leached upwards into the work environment, hence the question dealing with an uncooperative teammate. I would imagine that it would be just too easy for a superior to make the worker deal with the problem rather than address it enabling the slacker to continue with his/her bad work ethics.

If there is a solution to this problem I wish teachers/managers would just share it with the students/workers so that the work could be done without the additional burden of fear, resentment, disappointment, etc. It does not make for a comfortable work environment to have to deal with these people.