Tell Me About a Time You Gave Critical Feedback to Someone

Tell me about a time when you gave critical feedback to another person. In the reported round this was the only behavioral question, asked after a deep dive into a past project, so expect the interviewer to probe it with the same depth: what exactly you said, how the other person took it, and what changed. ```hint Pick feedback that mattered Choose a case where the feedback was uncomfortable to give and affected a real outcome, such as quality, a deadline or the person's growth, rather than a routine review comment. ``` ```hint Tell the whole loop Plan to cover how you prepared, the words you actually used, how the person reacted, what you did afterwards and what changed as a result. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - Should the person be a peer, someone I lead, or can it be someone more senior than me? - Is a story about written feedback, such as a design or code review, acceptable, or should it be a conversation? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - A specific situation with real stakes and a clear relationship to the person - Preparation: evidence, timing, a private setting, and separating the behavior from the person - Delivery: specific, actionable feedback, and how you handled the reaction or disagreement - Follow-through and an observable outcome for the person and the work - Reflection on what you learned or would do differently, with the ownership expected at your level ### Follow-up Questions - What did the person push back on, and were they partly right? - What would you have done if nothing had changed after the conversation? - How would you give the same feedback to someone more senior than you? - Tell me about a time you received critical feedback and acted on it.