Senior Managers: The Top 4 Data & Compliance Interview Questions Answered
These four common interview questions and answers not only demonstrate the importance of acknowledging the benefit of compliance tracking as a senior manager candidate; but also the importance of drawing the link between your capacity to leverage data and the operational decisions you will be most likely to make.
However, as we explore these interview questions and answers, it also appears that the widely recognised value of a modern LMS platform among senior management candidates is still overshadowed by the consequences of choosing to remain with traditional methods.
From a hiring point-of-view, which short-term and long-term benefits would a high-quality LMS present for our organisation?
Do
- Mention the short-term reduction in time through streamlined compliance tracking
- Discuss the long-term benefits of executive retention and engagement
Don’t
- Demonstrate too much confidence in a spreadsheet-only tracking system
- Disregard the compliance of LMS platforms with upcoming GDPR regulation
As a potential senior manager for the organisation, the interviewer will most definitely be screening your current approach to the hiring of executives for an acknowledgment of the short-term as well as the long-term benefits of an advanced LMS.
In answering this question, you may look to discuss how your previous management experience has been made more effective through more streamlined compliance tracking platforms; but also, how the combined approach of your choice of modern LMS has in turn led to better engagement and retention of the executives you hire for each role.
In turn however, if asked this question, you will also be expected to mirror these benefits with the consequences — perhaps from past senior management or project management experience- of overly depending on a system of compliance tracking that is fully spreadsheet-based.
Moreover, just as this means you should avoid indicating a preference towards a spreadsheet-only tracking system, this also means that you will need to ensure awareness prior to the interview of how regulatory changes such as upcoming GDPR may lead these same consequences to carry even more weight.
With internal regulation and the outside regulatory framework becoming more intertwined year-by-year, has tracking executive compliance become easier or more complex?
Do
- Demonstrate knowledge of the implications of a GDPR-compliance for simpler compliance tracking
- Mention the complexities in compliance tracking under traditional approaches
Don’t
- Avoid topics such as upcoming GDPR regulation in favour of less significant factors
- Overly emphasise your ability to simplify compliance tracking using spreadsheet-only methods
In addition to the resource-based and strategic benefits to adopting a high-quality LMS as an intricate part of your senior management role, your interviewer will also most likely be looking to assess your awareness of the most up-to date regulation when it comes to data handling.
This not only means that you will need to make sure to avoid indicating a preference towards a spreadsheet-only system, but will also require you to be aware of current LMS providers that are compliant to upcoming GDPR legislation.
Consequently, when researching different LMS providers to raise throughout the interview, you may want to be wary of overly discussing an LMS provider that is unclear in its GDPR compliance regardless of its user features. On the other hand, to best reassure the interviewer of your awareness of GDPR and its implications, you may also want to discuss the negative experiences from earlier in your career from using traditional spreadsheet-only methods.
How do traditional alternatives compare to a modern LMS platform?
Do
- Present a balanced view of the advantages of both traditional and modern methods
- Demonstrate a knowledge of at least one leading LMS platform
- Mention the clear weaknesses of traditional tracking approaches
Don’t
- Overly emphasise non GDPR-compliant platforms
- Appear biased towards traditional spreadsheet-based approaches
- Disregard the consequences of poor compliance tracking
In answering the previous question, although clearly emphasising your preference towards a modern LMS alternative is important reassurance to the organisation seeking to ensure GDPR compliance at each level of management for once this new legislation comes into effect, it is also important to ‘step back’ and explore both sides objectively:
If asked this question, take the opportunity to discuss some of the advantages of the traditional compliance tracking strategies used earlier in your career: this is a strong indicator that you take the activity of compliance tracking seriously irrespective of the tools and platforms available. Conversely, taking this more balanced stance will ensure that you do not appear falsely biased towards a modern GDPR-compliant LMS.
Take this question as an opportunity to discuss the weaknesses of traditional compliance tracking methods to imply your preference for a modern LMS as a by-product.
What role would data produced by your employees and across our organisation play as we move into 2018?
Do
- Demonstrate an awareness of data analysis produced through modern LMS platforms
- Mention previous successes directly linked to your access to a data-centric platform
- Discuss the value of time saved through replacing traditional methods with a unified LMS platform
Don’t
- Argue that the same insights are achievable from a spreadsheet-only system
- Disregard the cost in time and risk for the organisation from traditional methods
As well as the importance of demonstrating a rich awareness of both traditional and modern strategies for executive compliance tracking, your interviewer may also introduce this question to further test for how specifically a modern multi-platform LMS could be used beyond its default function of tracking and compliance.
In preparing for this question, be sure to compare the functionality of each modern LMS system beyond its compliance to GDPR and consider the possible applications of the data generated through employee engagement over a long-term period.
Remember, in addition to ensuring that you intend to carry a modern and GDPR-compliant approach into your senior manager role- the organisation will also be screening for candidates who intend to apply the insights from the data generated through these platforms at a later date to innovate the organisation even further.
References
Almond, P. (2017). Technology’s role in data protection: The missing link in GDPR transformation. PWC.
Gain advantage through analytics. (2015). A.T. Kearney, Inc.
Higson, C. (2009). Valuing Information as an Asset. London Business School.
Mazzei, C. (2015). Becoming an analytics-driven organisation to create value.
