Interview Questions › Behavioral

Influence without authority

Tell me about a time you had to convince another team, which did not report to you, to change their roadmap for your project.

Context

What the interviewer is testing: influence through shared goals, data and relationships rather than escalation.

Clarifying questions to ask first

• What did the other team gain?
• What did you try first that did not work?
• Did you escalate? Why or why not?

How to approach it

1. Pick one real, specific story (not a hypothetical or a summary of many)
2. Set the scene in two or three sentences, including the stakes
3. Spend most of the time on what you personally did and why
4. End with a measurable result and what you learned

Framework: STAR: Situation -> Task -> Action -> Result, with a short reflection at the end

Sample answer

• Framed the ask in their goals
• Adjusted approach when blocked
• Got the outcome without burning bridges

1. Situation: specific context, their role, and why it mattered (stakes)
2. Task: what they personally owned
3. Action: concrete steps they took, decisions and trade-offs, using "I" not "we"
4. Result: measurable outcome, plus what they learned or would do differently

Understood the other team's goals, reframed the ask as a win for them, offered something in return, and reached a decision with measurable results.

What interviewers look for

• Influence
• Stakeholder management
• Strategic thinking