GSK Interview

Prepping for your interview

At GSK, our interview format will be quite different from what you’ll be typically used to as we are
using a Strength Based Approach. Do spend some time to read up on what strength-based
interviews are so that you won’t be surprised. Note that for some questions, your interviews cannot
ask follow up questions/ probe, so do have a think about how you’d answer the questions. Do share
personal examples where possible!
 
More instructions will be given on the day of the video interview. If you’re unsure about any of the
instructions given during that day, please clarify with the hiring manager about what they meant.
 
Format of interview
The interview format will roughly be as follows:
 Brief introduction of interviewer & interviewee
 Strength based interview (~20mins)
 (where applicable) Technical questions (~10mins)
 Interviewee to ask any follow up questions about the role (~10-15mins)
 End
 
To note:
 As we are using a Strength-based methodology, your interviewers will not be given your CV,
nor will they have taken a look through your CV prior to the interview process.
o Therefore, it is essential for you to answer the interviewers’ questions with that fact
in mind
 Do share & elaborate with personal examples & experiences where possible as well.

-Detail-Oriented, Collaborative, Problem solver, Dedicated, Positive

Environmental Sustainability
Interview Question:

Tell me about yourself:

First of all, thank you for the opportunity to be interviewed for this position today.

My name is Michelle, and before applying for the job, I studied the job description and I am
confident I have what it takes to excel in the role and add value to your company.

I am a detail-oriented, collaborative, trustworthy, dedicated and positive persons who works

quickly and completes everything to a high standard. I am a high achiever. For examples, my
supervisor always praised me for the fact I would willingly carry out duties outside of my job
description.

Why do you want to work at GSK?

I want to work at GSK because I am passionate about helping people live healthier lives.
Your mission statement of improving the quality of life by enabling people to do more
resonates with me because I believe that everyone should have access to healthcare. I am
excited to join such a forward-thinking organization that invests in new technologies and
treatments.

Why you choose to apply this role?

I am interest in this role as it provides the chance to improve people’s quality of life, as well
as have a positive impact on the environment. I think it is important to remain positive about
the future and that’s what the Environmental Sustainability is trying to do. For me, I think
Environmental Sustainability is more than just a field of work, it’s also a commitment to
ensuring a harmonious relationship between human progress and the planet’s health --- which
I particularly interest in.

What is a challenge you faced and how you overcame it?

When I first began my uni, I was eager to prove myself. At the time, I took as many as possible CCA
to demonstrate my capabilities.

However, the workload became too much, and I found it challenging to excel in all of them. I realized
I couldn’t give each task the attention it deserved in my pursuit to do everything.

Feeling the pressure, I reached out to the presidents to discuss the situation, explaining the difficulties
I was facing in maintaining the quality of my contributions. They help me to re-evaluate my
commitments and suggested reallocating some tasks to other students who were equally enthusiastic,
and then I could focus on quality over quantity.

I learned that taking on more work than I could handle was not the best approach. As a result, I
became more mindful of my workload, ensuring that I could give all the tasks the dedication they
required. Also, I not only managed my stress better but also saw an improvement in the quality of my
involvement in each activity.

1. What do you do in your spare time?

I like to keep myself fit and active and spend time jogging around NTU campus, two-three
times a week. I also enjoy walking and I try to do 10,000 steps each day.

I spend time reading and I take my personal development quite seriously. Apart from reading
self-development books, I also sometimes undertake online courses via the website
Udemy.com. When I am not keeping fit or reading, I like to spend quality with my friends.

I would say outside of work I am a happy and positive person who always likes to make good
use of the time I have available.

2. What energizes you?

The thing that energizes me the most is when I am the first person to be given a new and
important task and it is my responsibility to take it to the next step before the rest of the team
take it over and use it as part of their working day.

I get a real buzz from being the person who is responsible for starting off tasks or projects, as
I feel privilege to be entrusted to do a good job for the team and my manager.

3. Give me an example of a successful day at work?

A successful day to me is when I get to complete all tasks that I have set myself at the start of
the day. I get great job satisfaction when I complete tasks properly, and I feel I am
contributing to the objectives of the team I am a part of. Another example of a successful day
at work is when we all achieve one of the company’s pre-determined objectives.

This might be an important sale, or even managing to win a large contract- when we
successfully meet one of our objectives there is a great buzz and atmosphere in the office due
to the objective success we have just managed to achieve.

4. Do you find there are enough hours in the day to get your work done?

Yes, I always find there are enough hours in the day to get things done. If I am working on a
task, and I need to work harder to achieve the end goal, I will either get other people within
the team or the organization to help me out, or I will get in early or stay at work late to make
sure things are completed on time.

I believe that there are always enough hours in the day to get things done if you are creative
with your-problem solving abilities.

5. What’s your greatest strength?

My greatest strength is the fact that I am a ‘complete-finisher’. I am someone who, if you

give me an important task or job, I will complete it quickly and to a high standard.

I would like to think that my strength is that you can rely on me to carry out important, time-
sensitive tasks when needed.

6. "We should always prioritise patient needs." Do you agree with this statement.
Absolutely. I always agree that prioritizing the patient needs is really important. In the
context of GSK where patient are rightfully regarded as valued customers, this approach align
with the company’s objective also which we need to always be ambitious for patient in the
aim to get ahead disease together. Also, I believe that by putting patient at the forefront, GSK
cultivates a foundation of trust and confidence, nurturing enduring relationships. This not
only ensures immediate benefits by addressing patients’ concerns but also foster long-tern
gains through sustained patient loyalty.

7. Do you prefer to brainstorm ideas with others or independently?

I find it helpful to brainstorm ideas both independently and in groups. I prefer to start by
thinking about solutions on my own so I have time to consider all aspects of the problem,
Then, when I meet with others, I can share my thoughts and hear what they think. This help
me see different perspectives and make sure we’re considering every option. In my previous
working experience, I was tasked to give a correct ratio to passage the cell when doing my
bioassays experiment, I starts by searching similar experiment I done before to get a more
precise and accurate ratio and then met with my team to discuss it.

8. How would you describe yourself as a leader?

I believe that a leader should be someone who can motivate others to achieve their goals. I
am always looking for ways to help my team members feel supported and valued. In my last
group project. I noticed one of my group member was struggling with her work. I asked her if
she would like to meet with me so we could discuss how I could support her in the group
project. She appreciated the offer and told me it made her feel more confident at work.

And also a good team leader should understand every team member’s strength and weakness,
so we can allocating tasks and responsibilities which align with every individual’s abilities
and eventually bring the team to the victory.

9. Describe a time you had shown leadership:

10. Tell me about a difficult situation you’ve face and how you handled it:

When I first began my uni, I was eager to prove myself. At the time, I took as many as possible CCA
to demonstrate my capabilities.

However, the workload became too much, and I found it challenging to excel in all of them. I realized
I wasn’t able to give each task the attention it deserved in my pursuit to do everything.

Feeling the pressure, I reached out to the presidents to discuss the situation, explaining the difficulties
I was facing in maintaining the quality of my contributions. They help me to re-evaluate my
commitments and suggested reallocating some tasks to other students who were equally enthusiastic,
and then I could focus on quality over quantity.

I learned that taking on more work than I could handle was not the best approach. As a result, I
became more mindful of my workload, ensuring that I could give all the tasks the dedication they
required. Also, I not only managed my stress better but also saw an improvement in the quality of my
involvement in each activity.
 11. What type of work environment do you prefer?

I prefer working in a collaborative environment where I have the opportunity to learn form
my colleagues. In my previous working experience, I’ve found that I am most productive
when I feel comfortable asking questions and getting feedback on my work. I also like to
work in office setting rather than remotely.

12. Imagine that some of your team members not agree with you and how you
influence them positively to go in your direction?

I know there is inevitable to have different opinions especially when we are working in team.
I think to persuading others, it is important to outline the benefits and pros of your approach
to highlight why this is the direction that we should go in on the project. And I would present
it to them and take feedback and incorporate into my approach and be open to making any
changes that I think is necessary. A lot of time this would hopefully get people on board but
if it doesn’t then I would recommend having one-to one conversation with those who aren’t
and try to empathize with them and see their point of view and see if I can come to a win-win
situation. If it still doesn’t work, I will still put in the 100% of my effort into the project
despite my ideas not going in the idea they want.

- Avoid sound authoritative

- Strat with something positive (affirm his time and effort into this project)
- Outline the evidence of benefits and pros to this approach

13. Tell me about a time when you’ve had to adapt your communication style to suit
your audience?

During my previous group project, one of our team members is reluctant to doing his part of
job. And as the group leader, I knew that I needed to reduce the emotional level of the
situation before we could discuss the problem properly. I a

14. Communication style to different audiences:

Certainly, effective communication is about understanding your audience. When I’m

speaking with technical colleagues, I use industry terminology and detail. However, if I’m
explaining a concept to a client or non-technical team member, I simplify and use analogies.
A good example during one of my interdisciplinary modules which is a business mode, we
need to present our product roadmap to the professor,

15. If you find out that your colleague has been purposely doing it wrong? Will you
tell your boss or correct him/her?

The first step is to understand what’s causing the behavior. I will conduct a personal and
private conversation with my colleague to understand their perspective and the reasons
behind their actions, this allows for an open conversation that might reveal any underlying
challenges or misunderstandings. If the issue persists and their actions are negatively
impacting the team or project, I will consider escalating the matter to a supervisor. However,
before taking this step, I will strive to offer my assistance and guidance in correcting the
situation, as my intention is to ensure the team’s success and maintain a harmonious working
environment.

16. How would you deal with a colleague who had leaked sensitive information or
performed against the company goals?

- Before taking action, ensure I have accurate and credible information about the
situation.
- I would initiate a private and respectful conversation with the colleague involves. I
would seek their perspective and reasons behind their actions.
- I will notify the authorities and seek professional help in order to comply with any
legal authorities that may be applicable if their actions pose a significant risk to the
company
- Offer help and guidance to help the colleague rectify their actions and realign with
company goals.

17. What if people talking back about you?

The best course of action is to look to yourself first and see why they did not feel comfortable
coming to you. If I don’t know, I can asking them is that I do anything that they not feel
comfortable by using a respectful tone and request them that they can come to you in the
future. But if they purposely want to talking bad about me, I would ignore them because it is
a sign that I am progressing or doing something different. And if this will bring significant
risk to me, I will suggest to my manager that they discuss the general topic and rumor in the
team meeting and that they should be clear it is not acceptable.

What is your greatest strength:

My greatest strengths are my problem-solving capabilities, results driven-focus and responsiveness.
Some people leave problems for others to deal with, but I will do all I can to overcome the problem,
learn from it and share my findings with others. My results driven attitude to work means I will
always do my best to give you a positive return on your investment. Finally, my responsiveness
means I will act quickly, take the initiative and get more work done than the average employee.

My Weakness:
I am a bit of perfectionist, so I sometimes struggle to delegate tasks to my teammates. This has led to
taking on too much. However, I'm actively addressing this by focusing on enhancing my trust in team
dynamics and acknowledging that delegation not only empowers my teammates but also contributes
to more efficient outcomes. I’ve tried to be intentional about recognizing the strengths of those on my
team and delegating tasks that match those strengths. It was hard at first, but I’ve seen that by
communicating clear expectations and trusting my teams, they rise to the occasion, and the result are
impressive and enlightening.
Questions:

• What are the day-to-day tasks involved in this role?

• How do you evaluate the progress of this role?

• What ongoing educational or training opportunities could I pursue in this role?

• How would you describe the company culture?

• What are the next steps in the interview process?