Time management skills are a necessity in just about every career and industry, so it’s no surprise that recruiters want to hire candidates who know how to prioritize tasks, manage their stress and meet deadlines.
Time Management Interview Questions
- How do you manage deadlines?
- How do you prioritize tasks?
- What tools or strategies do you use to manage your time effectively?
- Describe a situation where you had to manage competing deadlines.
- Have you ever missed a deadline? How did you handle it?
Every applicant interviewing for a job will say that they have time management skills — and they usually mean it. But recruiters typically want more than just a statement, so they’ll pose specific behavioral or situational interview questions to truly gauge those abilities.
As a job applicant, you need to be prepared for these questions before you go into the interview. Below, we’ll go over some of the most common time management interview questions and how to answer them.
9 Time Management Interview Questions
1. How Do You Manage Deadlines?
Interviewers ask this question because they want to know if you proactively organize your work to meet deadlines. You can convince the interviewer of your ability to meet deadlines by giving a specific example using the STAR method — where you set the scene, describe the task, explain the steps you took to complete the task and discuss the results of your actions.
Sample Answer: In my last position as a marketing coordinator, I regularly met deadlines by prioritizing tasks based on their urgency and importance. We tracked the progress of each task in a project management software, and I set reminders of upcoming deadlines.
I also blocked off time to focus on heads-down work. If the task was too large, I broke it down into smaller tasks. I also use the Pomodoro Technique to remain focused and productive.
If I anticipated an obstacle with a project, I would proactively communicate with my manager to develop a solution and discuss a potential adjustment to the timeline.
2. How Do You Prioritize Tasks?
Prioritization is a key time management skill. Interviewers want to see that you have the ability to direct your energy toward the most important tasks instead of being told what to do and in what order.
Sample Answer: As the Head of Growth, I oversee a constantly growing list of projects and initiatives. It would be nearly impossible to keep track of these projects by myself, so I use a task management software to monitor the progress of each. I prioritize my own workflow using the Eisenhower Matrix, which helps me identify what tasks are urgent and important enough to deserve my immediate attention, what tasks could be scheduled for later and what tasks could be delegated to my team.
3. What Tools or Strategies Do You Use to Manage Your Time Effectively?
Time management is not a skill we’re born with; It’s a skill that we develop intentionally through various strategies and tools. In asking this question, the interviewer wants to see that you have systems in place to manage your time effectively.
Sample Answer: I prioritize urgent and important tasks using the Eisenhower Matrix, and I use a project management software to track the status of projects. Once I know what I need to get done in a day, I create a to-do list in a task management app to visualize my day. If I’m working on a more involved project, I like to block out time to give myself time to focus. For bigger projects like this, I like to break it into smaller, more manageable tasks and use the Pomodoro Technique to stay focused through each of those tasks.
4. Describe a Situation Where You Had to Manage Competing Deadlines.
It’s common for employees in fast-paced environments to have to weigh conflicting priorities, particularly when they have multiple requests from different teams. This question assesses how a job candidate handles such situations, which is just as much about communication as it is about time management.
Sample Answer: When I was the director of a small marketing team, the corporate team asked us to write website copy for a site we were launching, but the work would have had to occur during a period when we were developing materials for an upcoming sales presentation. I wanted to meet both requests, but after gathering more details about each project, I realized that there was no way our small team could meet both deadlines — and I communicated that to both teams.
The corporate team told us that the website launch could be postponed a couple weeks, which gave my team enough time to develop materials for the sales presentation. At the same time, we held working lunches where we would brainstorm conceptual ideas for the new website. This extra effort allowed us to give corporate an idea of where we were headed and it allowed us to submit our website copy well before the site launched. Both projects were a success because I set realistic expectations and maintained regular communication with both teams.
5. Have You Ever Missed a Deadline? How Did You Handle It?
Nobody wants to miss a deadline, but even the best laid plans can go awry. In asking this question, the interviewer wants to see that you took ownership of the missed deadline, that you communicated with the appropriate parties and that you learned from your mistake.
Sample Answer: Early in my career as a project manager, I led a project that missed its deadline. The engineering team encountered a technical problem that I underestimated, hoping they would resolve it in time to meet our deadline. Once I realized the complexity of the problem, I had to inform company leaders with a couple day’s notice that we would miss the deadline.
Looking back, I realize that I should have dug deeper with the engineering team to realize the scope of the problem, and I should have looked into alternate solutions, like setting a later launch date or contracting additional engineers to solve the problem. These days, I am much more proactive in communicating with stakeholders and developing contingency plans for worst-case scenarios. I have not missed a deadline since.
6. How Do You Handle Multitasking?
Multitasking involves handling multiple tasks simultaneously or within a short time period. While jumping between tasks can hinder focus, some roles require it. In other roles, multitasking means juggling several projects at once. Read the job description and know what type of multitasking is most important for this role. The company hiring is probably less interested in your ability to literally do two jobs at once and more interested in your ability to juggle multiple responsibilities or projects over time.
Sample Answer: As a journalist, I published articles featuring expert sources. To prevent any bottlenecks in my workflow, I had to effectively work on three stories at once. While I was writing one story, I was also conducting interviews and research for my next story and identifying sources for the story after that. By making steady progress on three stories at once, I could publish two stories per week while giving sources at least a week to participate in an interview.
7. Tell Me About a Time You Delegated Tasks to Your Team.
Delegation is an important time management skill, particularly for managers. By reallocating tasks that don’t require your expertise, you are giving yourself more time to focus on higher-level tasks, while also giving your employees a chance to take on larger projects and grow as a professional. It can be a difficult skill to master, though, as you need to prioritize tasks, know your employees’ strengths and trust them to accomplish the task.
Sample Answer: My abilities to delegate have improved over time. As a new manager, I was afraid to delegate tasks because the few tasks I delegated were not up to my standards. Over time, I realized the importance of identifying the right employee, establishing clear expectations and having regular check-ins to address any issues.
In my previous role, for example, I realized that I was spending too much time communicating with clients and not enough time growing the business. I looped Sophie, my top employee, in on client emails for a month, briefed her on my approach to resolving issues and introduced her to clients. With regular check-ins and communication, I was able to delegate all customer support issues to Sophie, and I was freed up to develop new business strategies and land more clients.
8. How Do You Manage Long-Term Projects With Shorter-Term Projects?
Many jobs will expect you to balance short-term, day-to-day work with more strategic initiatives that take place over longer periods of time. In asking this question, interviewers want to see if you’re able to make time for the longer-term project, or if you neglect non-urgent tasks. You should show them that you are able to prioritize all kinds of tasks and organize your time effectively.
Sample Answer: In my previous role as a department director, I developed a long-term strategic plan in addition to my regular duties of managing staff and overseeing projects. For the long-term strategic plan, I broke the project into multiple phases, creating time estimates and deadlines for each phase. I blocked off one hour each day to work on these projects, and I incorporated it into the project management tool I use to track the progress of each project. This ensured that I was making regular progress on the long-term strategic plan while remaining engaged in the day-to-day work of my team.
9. How Do You Manage Stress at Work?
Stress can motivate people to take action, but it can also impede productivity and cause workplace tensions. Interviewers may ask you to describe a particularly stressful situation, or ask how you handle stress in general, to see how well you regulate your emotions and resolve stressful situations with effective time management and communication skills.
Sample Answer: As a department director, I’m no stranger to stress, whether it’s from our quarterly goals or people management. I found things were particularly stressful when I was tasked with putting an end-of-year report for our department. I was overwhelmed at first, but I made the report more manageable by breaking it into smaller pieces and setting deadlines for each phase of the project. I also learned to compile my notes throughout the year, and started working on it earlier to avoid a stressful deadline crunch. I also try to maintain a healthy work-life balance, making time to exercise and spend time with my family — both of which are invaluable for stressful management.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you handle a time management interview question?
Time management interview questions typically ask you to talk about specific situations in which you demonstrated your ability to manage your time effectively. To tell your story clearly and concisely, stick to the STAR method: explain the situation, the task at hand, the action you took and the result of your actions.
What are examples of time management skills?
Goal setting, prioritization and delegation are among the most important time management skills. It’s also important to be able to set boundaries, focus and eliminate distractions.
