Question: What is your approach finishing a task where the person giving it to you is deliberately being vague or hiding information?

Alternative Question Phrasing:

What do you do when someone is deliberately giving you vague, dissembling, or even obstructive information, which hinders your ability to complete a task?

Follow-up questions:

Has this happened to you in the past? What did you do? What was the outcome?

Question Details:

Question Type:

Knowledge/Skill Based

Skills:

Basic – Active Listening,Basic – Critical Thinking,Social – Social Perceptiveness

Abilities:

Cognitive – Category Flexibility (Mental Flexibility),Cognitive – Problem Sensitivity (Problem Recognition)

Other Factors:

Personality-Job Fit,Personality-Organization Fit,Personality-Team Fit

Work Activity (Task):

Information Input – Gathering Information,Interacting with Others – Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates,Mental Processes – Judging the Value of Things, Services, or People,Work Output – Quality Improvement

Work Context (Person-Job/Team/Org Fit):

Interpersonal Relationships – Deal With Unpleasant or Angry People,Interpersonal Relationships – Frequency of Contact With Others

Work Style (Person-Job Fit):

Adaptability/Flexibility,Analytical Thinking,Assertiveness/Courage,Cooperation,Humility,Patience,Persistence/Perseverance,Social Orientation (Work Alone vs Group Work)

Question Frequency

Question Difficulty

What to look for in an answer:

The candidate’s ability to deal with difficult situations.
The candidate’s maturity and professionalism.

Red Flags to Watch For:

The candidate’s unprofessional ways.
The candidate’s inability to handle a difficult situation

Sample Answer:

I usually send emails and copy furnish that person’s superior and my boss when asking for information that are relevant to the completion of my tasks. That way they would know that I did my part. I would also do the same when sending follow-up emails or clarifications when the information is vague. If it still persists, I would raise the concern to my direct superior.

Question Source: https://www.jobbankusa.com/interview_questions_answers/