The basic requirement of this role is to manage the construction projects and monitor the activities on the site. If you like leading teams by the construction safety and health codes, then it is a good opportunity to join this role. In this article, we will be sharing some of the questions with answers that you might be asked in your interview as a construction supervisor.
1. Why Are You Interested In This Role?
I have years of experience in this field and I love working on residential projects for which your company is hiring. I am sure that with my skills and experience of years, I will be able to bring some good things to this company if given a chance.
2. What Are The Roles Of A Construction Supervisor?
The main responsibility of this role includes:
- Keeping teams working as per the committed timeline,
- Keeping a check on all construction processes,
- Keeping a check on all health and safety codes are followed in the process,
- Inspecting material and equipment that is used on the construction site,
- Informing stakeholders about budget and plans,
- Staying in sync with architects for the construction site,
- Having updated information regarding safety code and advancements in the construction and
- Hiring new staff as per the requirement of the job.
3. What Are The Qualities That A Construction Supervisor Needs To Be Successful?
To excel in this role, leadership qualities are essential because the whole team is dependent on you. One should have great communication skills verbal and written to ensure your instructions are being followed thoroughly. As a supervisor on a construction site, one must have patience and the ability to perform under stressful situations as well.
4. What Major Challenges Did You Face During Your Last Role? How Did You Manage Them?
At the start of my career, I was part of a supervision team that was leading a huge construction project. I was facing a lot of issues in managing a large team for this project. I discussed the issue with my line manager and we came up with a solution where we gave one team member to report to us regarding construction and team members. It worked well for us.
5. Describe Your Daily Routine As A Construction Supervisor?
My daily routine starts with visiting the construction site and overseeing all assignments and checking with the workforce involved. Once done, I check inventory and order supplies and equipment as per the requirement and document the process to ensure everything is in written format. This helps me in generating a report once I come to the office after a site visit.
6. Describe Briefly About Your Experience?
I started my first job at XYZ Company in 2019 where my main responsibilities included project monitoring to ensure safety and quality in the construction. I also took part in cost control procedures and monitored the budget as well. I was also involved in reading blueprints to the workers to help them understand the scope of the project. Later, I was hired for another project by a different company where I made daily decisions related to construction activities and managed the inventory of all construction materials, and ordered when required.
7. What Kind Of Strategies And Mindset Are Required For This Role?
For any Supervisor, it is important to remain available throughout the project. One should be constantly keeping an eye on all activities being performed on the site and preparing progress reports for stakeholders to view. To achieve good results in any project, I make sure that I am focusing on the safety of the workers as per law.
8. What Is The Biggest Challenge You Foresee In This Job?
The only challenge I foresee is the vendor! A wrong choice of the vendor can disturb the complete cycle of the project. So far, as per my understanding of your company, you have great work culture and I have seen great projects under your umbrella. I am sure if I have any challenge to fight against, I will be able to do that easily.
9. How Do You Stay Motivated At Work?
I like my work and my passion is always overseeing new projects that can create a difference in a human’s life. I have been very lucky to have worked with great teams that have always encouraged performing better in every project. To stay motivated in this role, I make sure that I am spending some time on myself too. This helps me stay focused on work.
10. Describe A Time You Failed In This Role And The Lesson You Learned?
I cannot remember a time right now but I am sure that I have failed several times to reach this position. During all hard times, I have learned that my projects are only completed when supervised from the start and all teams are well synced with each other because it just smoothens the process and makes it easier for everyone to work with each other. To learn more about this industry, I took some certification in project management and the construction industry that has helped me perform better in this role. Due to the pandemic, most of the construction work was stopped and I had a lot of free time to invest so I thought it might be a good time to work on my skills and perform better.
11. Why Do You Feel You Are Qualified For This Role?
I am the skills and qualifications to meet the standard of the role. I am not only OSHA qualified but also have great soft skills like project management, human resource management, and keen observer that helps me in site inspections throughout. I can train and assign tasks to team members while monitoring the site.
12. Share With Us Your Greatest Achievement
My achievement in this field has been when I supervised 25 unit high-rise renovation within a $50 million budget and was involved in the renovation program of the heritage site of the city as per the culture. It was one of the most exciting projects I worked on to date.
13. How Do You Define Construction Project Management?
It is complete management of all elements involved in the construction process of any type like a residential building or even a bridge. To meet the standard within the budget, it carries coordination between all workforces working at a site and material used from the beginning of the construction project till its completion.
14. What Are The Key Elements Of Project Supervision?
The construction supervision involves the following:
- Integration of all aspects of the construction to make sure the project is completed successfully,
- Ensuring the scope of the construction project is met and no important task is left behind,
- Ensuring the timeline will be met as per the commitment and the quality of the project will not be compromised at all,
- Ensuring Quality as per the international standard for any construction site that also ensures team safety and citizens who will be using the end product of construction,
- Knowledge of risk and management assessment where all unforeseen incidents can be dealt with.
15. What Sort Of Construction Projects Have You Worked On?
I have worked on various types of projects since I have been in the field for more than 5 years now. I have supervised residential projects like houses and apartments along with a few commercial projects like Malls and Community Centers. Last year, I also got a chance to work for an education institute in another city. Two years ago, I got a chance to work for a dam well as well.
16. What Are The Key Steps You Take Before Commencing A Construction Project?
The first thing is to know the objective of the construction and what is the projected timeline by the client. This helps me in knowing what sort of workforce will be working and what sort of budget will be required to complete a project. I also ask the stakeholder if they have any architects on board otherwise I connect them with possible designers as per their preferences. One team is on board and the layout is finalized, I set milestones with the client so that everyone can achieve them step by step and there are no surprises in the end. Once done, I identify the suppliers who will be providing the construction material and equipment that will be needed throughout the project, and quality will be maintained too. The last part is to get the necessary license from the local authorities to approve the project so that work can begin.
17. What Are The Necessary Licenses To Acquire Before Starting Any Construction Project?
The list may vary, depending on the type of construction project on board. Following are key licenses required:
- Permission for Construction and Planning,
- Fire and Safety Licensing,
- Consent for Advertisement,
- Permission for Planning,
- Certifications of development,
- Assessment of Environmental Impact
18. How Do You Hire A Team For Any Project?
While hiring people in a construction project, I always make sure that I hire people based on skillset and experience. Once they are hired, I make sure that in my project, their skills are enhanced and the chance of completing the project as per the deliverables and cost and quality is maintained. I also boost the team’s morale which automatically improves productivity and there are fewer chances of conflicts between the teams too. On the other hand, I also improve team spirit and encourage expertise sharing and knowledge sharing that helps everyone learn effectively.
19. To Manage A Construction Project, Which Tools Are You, Familiar, With?
In my experience, I have used 3 main tools for project management. They include WorkFlowMax, Procore, and BuiltTools. When I researched about your company, I came to know that you use BuiltTools for your company. I believe my knowledge and hands-on experience with the tool improves the performance of the projects in your company.
20. While Supervising, How Do You Make Sure That The Site Is A Safe Working Environment?
As per the rules and regulations provided by the state law, I follow the following protocols:
- Mandatory dust protection essentials for all workers working on the site. It includes nose masks and goggles. I also have filtration systems in place with a containment tent and unit that helps in the process.
- Usage of machinery to handle heavy items like forklifts, electric hoists, or even hand-powered. I also ensure that heavy materials are present near the storage area when delivered.
- Construction and Installation of stairwells, corridors, or site cabins to prevent slips. Overall minimizes the chances of injury due to uneven and slippery surfaces in the area.
- Mandatory usage of noise protection gear like earplugs and muffs.
- Mandatory helmets in the uniform to protect the workers against any falling object,
- Make sure that all construction sites are protected against any weather changes,
- Ensuring a fresh supply of air in the tunnel or confined areas,
- Using exhaust ventilation to control the fumes from the diesel vehicles and
- Proper training of workers to use tools and equipment around the site.
21. How Do You Make Sure Your Project Is As Per Schedule And Budget?
Budget and schedule are two important aspects of any construction project. I make sure that I am communicating the expectations of the client with the relevant team members from time to time. I also have debriefed meetings within the teams to share updates with the ones in charge. With this, the in-charge can evaluate the status of the project which helps in timeline and budget management. With team meetings together, we can find ways to improve the efficiency of the teams and ensure the schedule and budget frame. I am also open to listening to any challenges that a team might be facing and helping them find a possible solution to ace the project. I believe that If I have an open-door policy with the team on board, they feel important and work passionately to achieve great results. It has always worked for me in all these years.
22. If You Are Facing Any Timeline Issue On A Project, How Do You Tackle It?
This is a stressful situation and I make sure to remain calm because my panic is going to affect the team directly. In such a situation, I would immediately call a quick team meeting and have a healthy discussion related to the time management issue we are facing. I will make sure that there are no blame games during the meeting on any individual or any particular team member. After knowing the causes of the delay, I will discuss it with the project in charge so that it can be communicated to the client timely. From the next project onwards, I will make sure that I am keeping a proper check and balance with the team to meet the timeline requirement with them.
23. How Do Ensure The Team’s Motivation In Any Project?
To ensure the input of all workers involved in the project, I will make sure that I involve other key members in this task too. I will listen to team challenges and if they have any ideas, they should be able to communicate with me in a friendly manner. I believe that such a team’s interaction helps in running a project smoothly.
24. What Do You Know About The SSSTS Course?
The site Supervisor Training Scheme is a training course requirement for all construction supervisors. This ensures that all supervisors on the site have the skill to monitor and communicate safe working methods that are essential for the construction requirement. One of the major topics that are covered under the SSSTS course is risk assessment. Without this, construction sites can become unsafe for all workers. If you notice, many incidents at a construction site happen due to workers falling from height. All this can be avoided if a course is taken by the supervisor onboard.
25. Are You Familiar With OSHA 30 Training?
Yes, it’s a training course that is essential for all construction workers that trains regarding safety codes and identification of safety issues and be able to report them timely and come up with action plan. It is a regulation by the government and is taught by professional trainers. The training comprises of workplace safety as well that shares information regarding using motor vehicles at the construction site and handling any fire at the location too. If there are any hazardous materials used, OSHA 30 ensures the safety and safe use of explosives at the worksite. Any person who is trained as per OSHA 30 can identify and report any hazardous situation.
Conclusion
Dress well for your interview and take your updated resume in a hard copy with you. Smile as you greet the interviewer and be confident as you answer their questions. These 25 questions are surely going to help in acing the first round of interviews as a construction supervisor. Good luck!
