How to Demonstrate Your Problem-Solving Skills to Employers

By Beth Braccio Hering, Writer

Solving problems is a transferable skill—an ability you can use in almost any job. In the ever-evolving workplace, problem-solving is a valuable commodity, and presenting yourself as someone with this skill can give you an edge that attracts the attention of recruiters and hiring managers. When you are job searching, though, how do you show you can solve problems for employers?

Why Problem-Solving Matters

Most jobs don’t involve completing the exact same set of tasks day after day. But, even when it does, sometimes things go awry, and you’ll need to bust out your problem-solving skills.

Whether it’s a missed deadline, an incorrectly worded contract, or a lost shipment, employers want to know how you deal with these kinds of situations. You can’t always run to the boss for help, so how do you solve the problem you’re facing on your own?

How to Showcase Your Problem-Solving Skills

Independent problem-solving shows that you’re a creative thinker who’s confident in yourself and your abilities—something that employers respect and appreciate. But how do you demonstrate that you have this coveted soft skill?

— Use Your Resume

Start by highlighting this transferable skill on your resume. As you read over the job description, look for clues in the posting that might tell you what challenges the company is facing. Then, find something in your work history that is similar and explain how you solved the problem for that employer.

Maybe they are yearning to build a bigger online audience, and you’re a whiz at social media, or perhaps they are trying to become more efficient, and you eliminated some redundancies in project management.

Demonstrating that you’re a great fit for the company today and for its future development will give the employer one less problem—figuring out who is the right person to hire!

— Be a STAR

During the interview, use the STAR method to give specific and concrete examples of your problem-solving skills.

STAR stands for situation, task, action, result. When you answer an employer’s questions about how you solve problems, you state a situation you faced, the task you were responsible for, the action you took to solve the problem, and the end result of your actions.

By talking about the problem you faced and how you solved it, you’re not only wowing the employer with your abilities, you’re making it easier for the employer to picture you in the role (solving their problems!).

Finding Solutions

Solving the problems your employer might face is a valuable skill in today’s workplace. By demonstrating that you face a challenge head-on and work hard to find a solution, you’ll gain an edge over other applicants in a competitive job market.

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