How do you handle it when a senior person pressures you for information your executive asked you to keep private?

What the interviewer is looking for

• This question tests discretion & judgement. Protects confidential information without exception and makes sensible calls about what to escalate or handle alone.
• What to bring out: Declines respectfully and firmly, redirects them to the executive and tells the executive about the request.
• Expect a follow-up like: What if they hint it could affect your career?

Another way it may be asked: A powerful colleague insists you tell them what your boss is planning. How do you respond?

A structure to follow: STAR, with the weight on Action and Result

1. Step 1

   Situation

   One or two sentences: where, when and what was at stake. Pick a real example you were close to.

2. Step 2

   Task

   What you personally were responsible for. Say "I", not only "we", so the discretion & judgement you showed is visible.

3. Step 3

   Action

   The two or three things you did and why you chose them over the alternatives. This should be about half your answer.

4. Step 4

   Result

   What changed, in your own measure of it, and what you would do differently. Only use numbers you can stand behind.

This is guidance on shape, not a script. Use your own real experience and facts; never invent details to fill a gap. See the STAR guide and answer frameworks.

Common slips

• Describing what the team did without saying what you did.
• Choosing an example with no clear outcome, or one you cannot answer detailed questions about.
• Ending on the action and skipping the result and what you learned.

How to practise it

Write two bullet points for each STAR letter, then say the answer aloud in about two minutes.

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