Use this bank to probe for clear, audience‑aware communication across written, verbal, and async channels. Each section includes prompts and cues for strong answers.

Active Listening & Clarification

• When you receive a vague request, what do you ask first?
  Good answers: Restate goal, constraints, audience, success criteria, and deadline; confirm in writing.
• Tell me about a time you misunderstood someone. What happened next?
  Good answers: Owns the miss, replays the message, seeks examples, agrees next steps, updates notes/SOP.
• How do you signal you’re listening in meetings?
  Good answers: Summarize back, ask clarifying questions, name trade‑offs, write action items live.
• What do you do when stakeholders talk past each other?
  Good answers: Synthesize a single problem statement, capture points of agreement, propose decision options.
• How do you capture decisions and who heard what?
  Good answers: Decision log, owners, due dates, and distribution list.

Clarity & Concision

• Explain a complex topic to a non‑expert.
  Good answers: Uses analogies, avoids jargon, defines terms, and checks understanding.
• What’s your approach to concise updates?
  Good answers: BLUF (Bottom Line Up Front), bullets, clear asks, and deadlines.
• How do you tailor communication by audience?
  Good answers: Adapts depth/tone/channels; exec summary vs. technical appendix.
• Share an example where fewer words worked better.
  Good answers: Removed fluff, added structure, improved response rate/time.
• What signals tell you your message wasn’t clear?
  Good answers: Repeated questions, off‑track work, or delays; responds with rewrite and confirmation.

Written Communication

• Show your structure for a one‑page proposal.
  Good answers: Context → problem → options → recommendation → risks → next steps.
• How do you write emails that get quick replies?
  Good answers: Clear subject, TL;DR, bolded asks, deadlines, and options.
• What’s your proofreading checklist?
  Good answers: Names, numbers, links, attachments, tone, and date/time accuracy.
• Describe a time writing unblocked a decision.
  Good answers: Decision memo with trade‑offs and owners; led to timely call.
• How do you preserve accessibility and inclusivity in writing?
  Good answers: Plain language, alt text, headers, and respectful tone.

Verbal Communication & Presentations

• Walk me through your presentation prep.
  Good answers: Audience goals, storyline, rehearsal, timing, and Q&A handling.
• Tell me about handling tough questions live.
  Good answers: Clarifies, answers succinctly, parks off‑topic items, follows up with artifacts.
• How do you make data talks engaging?
  Good answers: Narrative arc, simple visuals, context, and clear takeaways.
• What’s your approach when you don’t know?
  Good answers: Acknowledge, commit to a follow‑up, and deliver by a specific time.
• Describe a presentation that changed a decision.
  Good answers: Clear recommendation, risk/benefit, stakeholder alignment, measurable outcome.

Cross‑Functional & Stakeholder Management

• How do you align conflicting stakeholders?
  Good answers: Pre‑reads, decision criteria, options A/B/C, and facilitation to a call.
• Share a time you influenced without authority.
  Good answers: Built trust, framed incentives, piloted a low‑risk test, socialized learnings.
• What artifacts keep teams on the same page?
  Good answers: One‑pagers, PRDs, roadmaps, and status dashboards.
• How do you escalate respectfully?
  Good answers: Facts, impact, proposed options, and request for a clear decision.
• What do you do after a difficult meeting?
  Good answers: Send recap with decisions, owners, and next steps.

Remote & Async Communication

• What are your response‑time norms?
  Good answers: SLAs by channel, urgent tags, and coverage expectations.
• How do you avoid Slack/Email ping‑pong?
  Good answers: Bundle questions, include context, propose options, and set a decision deadline.
• What’s your approach to documentation?
  Good answers: Source of truth, versioning, and “last updated” fields.
• How do you keep distributed teams aligned?
  Good answers: Rituals (WBRs), async updates, and rotating demo slots across time zones.
• When do you switch from async to a call?
  Good answers: Ambiguity high, decisions blocked, or emotions rising; sends a pre‑read first.

Conflict, Feedback & Difficult Conversations

• Tell me about giving hard feedback.
  Good answers: Timely, specific, behavior‑impact framing, and follow‑up check‑ins.
• How do you disagree without drama?
  Good answers: Steelman the other view, propose tests, and commit after a decision.
• Share a time you defused a tense conversation.
  Good answers: Name emotions, slow down, focus on facts and shared goals.
• What’s your approach to receiving feedback?
  Good answers: Seek it proactively, reflect, thank, and show change.
• How do you handle cross‑cultural differences?
  Good answers: Ask preferences, avoid idioms, mind time zones and holidays, confirm understanding.

Storytelling & Influence

• How do you craft a compelling narrative?
  Good answers: Problem → stakes → solution → proof → ask; uses customer stories and data.
• Give an example where storytelling changed a decision.
  Good answers: Clear before/after, measurable impact, and artifacts shared.
• What’s your rule for visuals?
  Good answers: One idea per slide/chart, labeled axes, and minimal text.
• How do you avoid manipulation while persuading?
  Good answers: Transparent assumptions, fair representation of trade‑offs, invites dissent.
• When do you choose not to persuade?
  Good answers: Low stakes, misaligned incentives, or need for more data; proposes experiment instead.

Meeting Facilitation

• What makes a meeting effective?
  Good answers: Agenda, role clarity, timeboxing, notes, and decision/next steps.
• How do you ensure quieter voices are heard?
  Good answers: Round‑robins, chat prompts, pre‑reads, and follow‑ups.
• Describe a time you ended a meeting early for the right reason.
  Good answers: Decision reached, next steps clear, or wrong attendees; sends recap.
• How do you handle derailers?
  Good answers: Parking lot, time checks, and line to decision owner.
• What’s your approach to hybrid calls?
  Good answers: Inclusive tools, separate facilitation, and ensure remote voices first.

Case Study Exercises

• Rewrite a 200‑word rambling update into a 5‑bullet BLUF summary.
• Email a critical customer about a delay; keep trust and set expectations.
• Facilitate a 15‑minute decision meeting; produce a crisp recap with owners/dates.
• Storyboard a 5‑slide deck for a product change; define the single take‑away.
• Async plan: propose a documentation structure for a distributed team.

Tip: Look for empathy, structure, appropriate tone, and explicit next steps. Great communicators make work easier for others.