With the spread of the COVID pandemic, we were introduced to a new normal of working from home/ remote working.
Considering this new normal, many companies have added a set of remote interview questions and answers in addition to the basic interview questions.
If you are someone who has a remote job interview lined up, this blog is for you!
Here is a list of remote interview questions and answers and tips to ace your next big interview.
- How do you organize your day?
- How comfortable are you in using different communication tools?
- What does remote working look like to you?
- How do you process information?
- How do you manage your calendar to get work done?
- How do organize meetings while remote working?
- During remote working how will you manage a big project with many players involved?
- How will you tackle the challenge of communication in remote working?
- How do you maintain your work-life balance?
- How would you handle a situation if your other teammates are offline and unavailable to help?
- What is your major concern during remote working?
How do you organize your day?
Organizing your day is the most critical part of remote working.
Through this question, your recruiter wants to get an idea about the time of the day when you are the most productive and if it is suitable for the team or not.
Here’s how you can answer it.
Sample Answer:
“Remote working has a few advantages and disadvantages of its own.
Nowadays, I wake up an hour earlier than the usual office days to take care of household chores so that it won’t come in my way when I sit down for work.
I schedule my days similar to my office days, I begin my day at 10 am sharp and even span out my breaks in tandem.
So, I can complete my 9 hours of work without any hiccups as I have set a ground rule of discussing any issues during either lunch or post my work hours.”
How comfortable are you in using different communication tools?
Communication receives the highest pedestal possible when you are remote working.
So, being familiar with communication tools like Zoom, Slack, Microsoft Teams, etc is a necessity.
Also, during remote working over-communication is the key to the smooth sailing of a team’s productivity.
Hence to use the right application for the right communication is a must.
This remote job interview question is asked to ensure that a candidate is tech-savvy and knows his/her way to communicate properly with the team.
This job interview question can be answered in the following manner.
Sample Answer:
“I believe that during remote working it is necessary to over-communicate as it is important to avoid miscommunication.
I use video calls on MS Teams or the official app used by the organization for meetings as it helps to communicate ideas better than over voice calls.
While to keep my teammates posted on the status of a project I use the chat option of the same app as provided by the organization.
I prefer to send over the minutes of a meeting over email marking a copy to my teammates as well so all are on the same page.”
What does remote working look like to you?
During regular times there are many employees who had been on remote working preferred working at a cafe or home.
Also, if you are working from home, what does your workspace look like?
This can help the recruiter get an idea of whether or not you will fit the team and share the same passion.
Sample Answer:
“I believe my productivity increases when I am working from home because I am working from the comfort of my home.
The one thing that I make sure is to stay away from my bed and work at a proper study desk with a chair to help me keep my posture right.
Also, it helps me to remain focused and can get my job done on time when I am working at my study table as I prefer it clean.”
How do you process information?
A lot rides on how a person handles information.
Take, for example, some require to understand a project very minutely while some might just require short-term information like the deadlines of a particular project, etc.
This remote job interview question and answer is asked for the same reason.
The recruiter needs to know the way you process information to understand how you function.
Here’s what you can say.
Sample Answer:
“To give my 100% I need to understand the project in detail.
I believe I cannot deliver a perfect piece until I understand the essence of the idea behind a project.
So, you can say I hoard on information to deliver my best work.”
Or,
“I believe in collecting only relevant information to ensure my best work.
Too much information acts as a hindrance and the deliverables will lack originality.”
How do you manage your calendar to get work done?
Managing a calendar is the most crucial aspect during remote working as it requires a lot of planning.
The recruiter will ask this job interview question and answering it properly is also crucial.
You can answer it like this.
Sample Answer:
“ I always prefer to plan my next day ahead.
My last organization used Microsoft apps for communication and emails. So, I used to arrange my day based on time slots in the Microsoft Calendar.
This helped me to focus on my duties. I prefer arranging my calendar based on priority.
The task that needs my top priority and focus, I put it as the first task of the day and even begin my day earlier as a quiet environment helps me to finish my task smoothly without distractions.”
How do organize meetings while remote working?
The best thing while working in an office is that you could immediately approach your team and discuss an idea.
Whereas during remote working you need to wait and schedule a meeting after looking at everyone’s calendar to discuss an agenda.
Here’s how this remote job interview question can be answered.
Sample Answer:
“I always schedule a meeting a day prior after making sure that everyone is free at a particular time.
I even highlight the agenda of the meeting on the Calendar while sharing it.
On the day of the meeting, I send across a reminder at least an hour before to my teammates and re-check the time with my Manager.
Finally, I make sure that the meeting begins right on time if not a little earlier.
After greeting everyone, I introduce the agenda of the meeting, and then it takes its course like any other meeting in the office and after the meeting is ended I send across the minutes over the email chain.
I always prefer to have a video call when we are discussing an agenda as it helps everyone to communicate better as compared to a voice call.”
To know more about conducting meetings during remote working, read here.
During remote working how will you manage a big project with many players involved?
It is for this very reason that over-communication is extremely important during remote working.
This is a popular job interview question and answering it requires proper thinking.
Recruiters ask this question mainly to check a candidate’s management skills which becomes the topmost priority during remote working.
This job interview question’s answer can be framed like the following.
Sample Answer:
“When there are a lot of steps and many people involved in a project, I divide into teams. Then I make sure to catch up on a weekly video call on Friday.
Also, we arrange for daily standups on our company approved application like Slack/ MS Teams.
I also make sure that I am available for my teammates if they face any hiccups and they can call up any time.
This not only helps to get the job done smoothly but also builds trust within the team that we have each other’s backs whenever in trouble.”
How will you tackle the challenge of communication in remote working?
Some things are better the traditional way, but when remote working becomes the order of the day we have to accept the new methods.
We can agree that understanding the tone of a conversation can be challenging in texts.
Hence, this job interview question demands answers that can convince the recruiter that a candidate knows how to make the best use of technology when at such a disadvantage.
Sample Answer:
“One of the biggest disadvantages of technology is that it does not recognize the tone of communication.
This many times causes problems within a team.
So, I prefer video calls over texts and voice calls as it helps a person communicate his/her idea better.
Also, it is the closest option of having a face-to-face meeting during remote working.”
How do you maintain your work-life balance?
During remote working, it is very easy to get your work-life balance disrupted. This has a repercussion on an employee’s productivity.
So, this job interview question and answer is asked to understand how a candidate keeps him/herself engaged to boost their mental and physical health.
Sample Answer:
“Given that we are all stuck inside our houses, I make sure to rewind with some physical exercises and gardening.
I find gardening therapeutic and relaxing while exercise helps me to destress and remain focused at work.
So, I always find time for my favorite activities to help me stay happy and positive when remote working.”
To know more about maintaining work-life balance, read here.
How would you handle a situation if your other teammates are offline and unavailable to help?
This job interview question and answer is asked to test a candidate’s presence of mind in tough situations.
No matter how well planned your day is there will be times when something is sure to go off the charts and will require you to take a call independently.
This job interview question can be answered like this.
Sample Answer:
“I understand everyone has a different time when they log in during remote working.
So, if ever such a situation appears where my teammates are unavailable I will make sure to address it as per my discretion at the moment.
Also, I would inform my teammates and my Manager about the situation and the updates after resolving the problem to ensure clarity.”
What is your major concern during remote working?
This remote job interview question is asked to check whether you are aware of your weaknesses and what you need to avoid falling weak.
You can answer the question in this manner.
Sample Answer:
“My only concern while remote working is staying on track. However, to avoid any wasting time I sub assign tasks based on alarms on my laptop.
Take, for example, if I have started working at 10 am then I set the task of completing 600 words of my blog by 11:30 am.
This helps me to keep on track and deliver my work on time.”
With these job interview questions and answers to practice, you are sure to ace your upcoming remote job interview.
All the best!
