Method · Coaching and interviews

STAR method: how to run it

A way to ask and answer interview questions about past behaviour: the Situation, the Task, the Action the person took, and the Result — so answers are specific, not general claims.

20 minutes5 stepsCoaching and interviews
Other methods

When it helps

Use it to plan behavioural interview questions and to score answers consistently across candidates; candidates can use it to prepare.

When to use something else

Skip it as the only thing you assess — it shows what someone did before, not what they can learn or how they solve something new; pair it with a work sample.

How to run it, step by step

  1. Situation3 min
    • Ask for a specific time: when, where, what was going on?
  2. Task3 min
    • What were you responsible for?
  3. Action8 min
    • What did you do — you, not the team? Why that?
  4. Result4 min
    • What happened, and what did you learn?
  5. Score it2 min
    • Against the skill you planned to test, on the agreed scale.

What comes out — an example

Made up, to show the shape.

Question. Tell me about a time a project was going to miss its deadline.

Situation and task. Leading a website relaunch; the agency was three weeks late.

Action. Cut two pages from launch, moved them to phase two, and told the client the same day.

Result. Launched on time; phase two two weeks later. Score: planning 4/5.

Questions

What is the STAR method?

A structure for describing past experiences in interviews: Situation, Task, Action and Result.

How do interviewers use the STAR method?

They ask for specific examples and probe each part — especially the person’s own actions and the result — then score against planned criteria.

How long should a STAR answer be?

Usually one to two minutes, with most of the time on the action and result.

Other methods

GROW coaching modelA four-step coaching conversation — Goal, Reality, Options, Way forward — that helps someone find their own answer instead of being told one.Lean CoffeeA meeting with no agenda until it starts: everybody writes topics, the group votes, and you talk about the most popular ones in short, timed rounds.Fishbowl discussionA few people talk in an inner circle while everyone else listens from around them; listeners can step in by taking an empty chair, so a large group can hold one real conversation.1-2-4-AllEveryone thinks alone, then in pairs, then in fours, then the whole group shares — so every person contributes and the best ideas rise in about twelve minutes.Six Thinking HatsThe group looks at one question from six angles in turn — facts, feelings, risks, benefits, new ideas and process — so everyone thinks the same way at the same time instead of arguing.Start, stop, continueA quick retrospective in three columns: what we should start doing, stop doing, and keep doing — ending with two or three changes to try.

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