What is the STARR Method?

Congratulations! You’ve earned yourself an interview – a key step to landing a new role. You’re keen to impress and you’ve just been told you need to follow the STARR methodology throughout the conversation.

Great – but what is it exactly?

The STARR interview technique was developed in the 1970’s as a way to understand how an interviewee’s past experiences are likely to inform their future performance. In short, it’s a way of answering questions asked in an interview to demonstrate competency.

You’ve heard it before, the interviewer starts with; “Describe a time when…” or “Share an example of a situation where…”. It’s in the response that the interviewee uses the STARR method to demonstrate how they’ve handled past situations to see if they’re a good fit for the role they’re considering now.

What does STARR stand for?

Originally a four letter acronym, recently the methodology has been updated to include the second R and stands for:

Situation – Describe a problem or challenge and the situation you found yourself in, being as specific as you can

Task – Describe how you found a solution and what you were trying to achieve, highlighting the skills you applied

Action – Describe what you did, the actions you took, why you took them, the alternatives you considered and how you implemented the solution

Result – Share the outcome, the benefits or the result and how you met the objective

Reflection – Following the result, share your reflections on what you learned – focusing on insights you gained, what you learned and what impact that has had on your approach to similar situations since

What’s the best ways to answer interview questions using the STARR method?

Prepare some expected examples prior to your interview

Finding an appropriate scenario from your professional history that you can then expand on is key here. But since there’s no way of knowing exactly what the interviewer will ask you, it’s worth preparing a few stories and examples so you can adapt to their questioning if necessary.

Think back to a few examples of success in your previous job and run through how you’d demonstrate that success using the STARR framework. If you’re struggling to think of an answer during the interview, don’t be afraid to ask to take a minute to collect your thoughts, rather than rushing in with a half-formed response.

Describe the situation

When you describe the scenario at the interview, it can be easy to let nerves turn your succinct, concise answer into a bit of a ramble. Don’t go overboard with details, focus on hitting the key points.

As an example, if you’re asked to describe a time where you didn’t meet a client’s expectations, don’t go in to how the client came on board, how many team members they have or the variety of projects you’ve worked on with them. Focus on the relevant scenario, be as clear as possible and highlight the pain points. This will help when talking about the results later and allows you to emphasise how effective your actions were.

Highlight the task

Here, you should be making it clear to the interviewer exactly where it is you fit into the scenario. Rather than confusing this with the action part of the STARR framework, detail the specifics of your responsibilities in the scenario as well as any objectives set for you, actions come next.

Detail how you took action

Now you’re ready to explain exactly what you did, covering all relevant steps you took to reach the goal or solve the problem. Put some shine on your work, be specific and show the interviewer what you can do. When considering your answer think about:

• The team you worked with
• The specialist software you used
• The detailed plan of action you developed

Explain the results

It’s now time to drive the point home. Be clear how your efforts made a difference and share the final results. Even if you’re talking about a time you failed or made a mistake, end on a positive note and explain what you learned or any steps you took to improve so the interviewer can see how the experience helped you to grow. Being open here will position you well against other candidates.

It’s key you don’t downplay this part of the response – make sure you set out the impact of your actions. The interviewer will want to know why this story or scenario mattered, so make sure to emphasise the outcomes and back them up with figures if you have them.

Demonstrate your insights following reflection

Show how you were able to reflect on what you did well and the areas you identified for improvement next time. Both are important reflections to demonstrate to a potential employer. It shows your ability to be objective and how you handle constructive feedback.

So what does the STARR method look like in action?

The introductions are over and it’s time to get into the specifics, the interviewer asks “Tell me about a time when you had to deal with conflict.”. You employ the STARR method and your answer sounds like this:

Situation “I was managing a team on a group project, and two of the team members were involved in an argument and refused to work together on their allocated tasks. To make things worse, our deadline was coming up and we had key milestones that were only a week away”.

Task “My priority was to get the team members on the same page so that we didn’t miss the milestones”.

Action “So I called both team members to a meeting so they both had the opportunity to share their views and challenges in order to reach an understanding. Following the meeting between the two people at the centre of the issue, I scheduled another meeting with the whole team so that we could reallocate key tasks across the broader group”.

Result “With a better understanding of their challenges, I was able to manage the individuals and the team through their tasks. We successfully completed all of the required work in time to meet our deadline with out delay or further incidents”.

Reflection “When I think about how things could have been approached differently, it was obvious how crucial it is to maintain strong communication across the team – but particularly for me as the leader. Working through the challenge also showed me that I can be effective in stressful situations, particularly when there’s a deadline to meet”.

Final thoughts…

A good rule of thumb is to touch on each letter of the acronym using just one or two sentences. Be concise but direct, and be confident. Remember, this is a conversation built around getting to know you. Take a deep breath and relax into the discussion.