6 Interview Questions on Process Improvement (With Sample Answers)
Process improvement is a way for a business to keep getting better at how it works and how well it does. Businesses might want to hire people who have done process improvement work before and have the right skills. If you know what questions an interviewer might ask about how to improve a process, it will be easier to get ready for your next job interview. In this article, we talk about a few interview questions about process improvement and show you how to answer them.6 Interview Questions on Process Improvement (With Sample Answers)
6 process improvement interview questions
Here are some questions about process improvement that an interviewer might ask you:
How does one make a process better?
This is a question that an interviewer might ask to get a general idea of what you know about making things better. This question gives you a chance to show how much you know about processes and how important they are to your work and the company as a whole. In your answer, briefly explain what process improvement is and how it makes a company more valuable.
Example: “Process improvement is a key part of developing and improving business operations to increase productivity at work and make the most of the company’s human resources. From what I’ve seen, a company can get a lot out of process improvement strategies if they involve all employees and listen to their ideas about how to improve a certain work process. When a company regularly looks at its own performance, it can figure out what its strengths and weaknesses are. When you know where a business is weak, you can figure out how to make it better.”
2. How can you ensure process improvement implementation?
If you want to improve workflow with a process improvement method, you have to use it in a way that works. This question may be asked to find out if you can make changes that will help the company grow. Explain how a process improvement plan works and how to make it happen.
Example: “Process improvement plans need the help of everyone in the company to make and keep the changes that are planned. I think this contribution starts when we make a plan and ask everyone what they think and what ideas they have. Asking each person what they think needs to be fixed and how they could fix it can give them a personal reason to follow the plan for success.”
3. Have you been taught how to make things better?
Companies may train their employees in process improvement so that they can solve problems and think critically enough to find ways to fix inefficiencies at work. An interviewer might ask if you’ve had training to see how much you know about process improvement strategies or how interested you are in them. Even if you haven’t had formal training, showing that you want to learn and find ways to make company processes better will show that you are eager to learn.
Example: “I haven’t been taught how to improve things in a formal way. But I’ve been to a few workshops about the continuous improvement process outside of work. These were part of business meetings and events for professional growth. I’m always excited to take part in training sessions that will help me give my department and company more accurate and efficient results. I’d like the chance to train with your company so I can become an expert on the processes and improvements that are unique to your company.”
How do systems for information technology and methods for improving processes work together?
Information technology systems can show how a business works and where it can be improved. This is a question that interviewers might ask to see how well you can use your resources to make a process improvement project more successful. Think about how you came up with your plans to improve processes and how software and other tools helped you put them into action.
Example: “I use IT systems to improve projects and keep track of them so that the company can do things better. Using business intelligence tools lets me see how the company is doing as a whole and figure out which processes need to be improved. These tools give me information about performance that I can use to measure and set goals for an improvement plan. I also use management software to keep track of how well a project plan is working so I can make any changes that are needed or figure out if it was a success.”
5. Is there a process that your previous company improved?
The interviewer might ask you this to find out what you did to help your last job get better at what it did. When the interviewer knows how you helped your previous company, they can think about how you might do the same for them. Think of a work process that caused delays or other problems with the flow of work and describe how you fixed it or planned to fix it.
Example: “Many things at my old company were done by hand, such as filling out paper timesheets and processing paper documents. Because employees had to sign in and out for shifts and breaks and figure out their own work hours, there were often differences in payroll that had to be fixed at the end of each pay period. One of the main reasons why the numbers were wrong was that employees wrote their sign-in and sign-out times before or after their actual times. We set up rules and checks for time sheets with my regional supervisor to make this less likely to happen.”
6. How can our company make it easier for people to apply for jobs or get interviews?
Interviewers may ask you to name a process they can improve and explain how. This is a test of how well you can find ways to improve things and how critically you can think. This question makes you quickly think about how this company does things and how they could be better. Think about how long it took you to fill out the application or get an interview. This will help you think of a way to improve the process that will help the company and explain why that improvement will add value.
Example: “So far, the application and interview process for this company has been about the same as for other companies I’ve applied to. But I think you can improve this process and reach a larger pool of job candidates by posting more detailed job descriptions on a variety of job search platforms.
At the time I applied, the only way to do so was through the company’s website, and the only thing the job description said was what the job entailed. You can get more people to visit your website and get a wider range of applicants if you add more information about the company and what it’s like to work there.”
