Problem solving: concrete examples for evaluating candidates and employees
When you ask a candidate if they know how to solve problems, the answer is almost always "yes." The real challenge for those involved in recruitment and development is understanding how that person approaches a problem when information is incomplete, time is short, and decisions have real consequences.
This is not just a perceived issue: research has long confirmed it. One of the most cited meta-analyses in HR, conducted by Frank Schmidt and John Hunter, showed that cognitive skills related to problem solving are among the best predictors of job performance, more reliable than CVs, years of experience, or unstructured interviews.
However, we know that problem solving cannot be assessed with a definition or a theoretical answer. On the contrary, it manifests itself through observable behaviors: how a person analyzes a situation, makes decisions, manages constraints, and learns from mistakes. Without concrete examples, there is a risk of confusing communicative confidence with real competence.
In this guide, you will find practical examples of problem solving that are useful for evaluating candidates and employees more reliably.
What is problem solving?
In a professional context, problem solving is the way in which a person deals with non-standard situations, makes decisions under conditions of uncertainty, and takes responsibility for the consequences.
We are talking about an operational skill that emerges when instructions are unclear, resources are limited, or objectives conflict.
This is why problem solving is closely linked to decision making, autonomy, and responsibility. A person who knows how to solve problems analyzes the context, evaluates alternatives, chooses a direction, and acts, even when there is no predefined "right" answer. In everyday work, this skill affects the speed of execution, the quality of decisions, and the ability to adapt to change.
From a scientific point of view, the concept originated in psychology as the study of mental and behavioral processes used to overcome an obstacle or achieve a goal (when discussing problem solving and examples in psychology, these show how different people adopt different strategies when faced with the same problem).
The relevance for HR is clear: problem solving is measured by observing how a person reasons and acts when faced with concrete cases, what information they seek, what decisions they make, and how they react to the outcomes of their choices.
Why problem solving is difficult to assess in HR processes
Problem solving is one of the most frequently cited skills in CVs and, at the same time, one of the most difficult to assess reliably. The first limitation stems from traditional selection tools: CVs and structured interviews tell us what a person says they can do, not how they act when faced with a real problem. In CVs, problem solving is often just a label, rarely supported by verifiable evidence.
Even traditional interviews tend to produce theoretical or retrospective answers, constructed after the fact and influenced by context. When you ask, "How do you solve a problem?", many candidates describe the ideal process, not what they actually do under pressure, with time constraints, incomplete information, or conflicting interests.
Another common risk, especially in HR processes, is confusing problem solving with seniority, communication skills, or storytelling abilities. Those with more experience or who speak with greater confidence may automatically appear to be good problem solvers, even when their decisions are rigid or inflexible. Conversely, more junior or less assertive candidates may have excellent analytical and problem-solving skills but struggle to express them in a traditional assessment context.
For this reason, problem solving must be observed through concrete situations, decisions made, and behaviors implemented.
Problem solving at work: practical examples
If we want to chart a course between problem solving and practical examples at work that are most useful for HR, we can say that these are the ones that show how a person acts when faced with concrete constraints: limited time, incomplete information, conflicting priorities, impact on other teams.
A first aspect to consider is the difference between operational problems and decision-making problems. The former concern day-to-day operations (an error, a blockage, an unexpected technical issue), while the latter involve more complex choices, often without a single "right" solution (prioritizing, allocating resources, managing trade-offs). In both cases, what matters is not only the end result, but also the process: how the problem is analyzed, what alternatives are considered, and how the consequences are evaluated.
The context is also crucial. A good problem solver does not act in the same way in an individual situation as in a team situation. In the former, autonomy and initiative are key; in the latter, listening, coordination, and managing the impact on others become central.
Example 1: Handling an operational contingency
Let's imagine we are faced with the following situation: during a particularly strategic phase of a delivery, a technical problem blocks part of the process and jeopardizes a deadline agreed with the customer. The information available is incomplete and the time to intervene is limited.
Actions taken
The person quickly analyzes the impact of the problem, identifies the activities that are blocked and those that can continue in parallel. They involve the necessary figures to resolve the unexpected event, clearly communicate the status of the situation, and propose a temporary solution to reduce immediate damage, while keeping open the possibility of subsequent structural intervention.
decision criteria
Choices are guided by clear priorities: reducing the impact on the customer, ensuring continuity of the team's work, and preventing the problem from recurring. The aim is not to find the "perfect" solution, but the most effective one in the given context, balancing speed, quality, and responsibility.
Example 2: Conflict of priorities and limited resources
To give another example of problem solving, let's imagine we find ourselves in a situation where two strategic projects require attention at the same time, but the team has limited resources and tight deadlines. Both projects have internal sponsors and significant impacts on the business.
How the problem is analyzed
The person starts with an overall assessment of the context: the objectives of the two projects, the impact on the customer or organization, and the risks associated with delays and dependencies between activities. In this case, a good problem solver does not just evaluate the workload, but also considers the skills available in the team and the possible consequences of an unbalanced choice.
How choices and compromises are made
Decisions are made by specifying priority criteria (urgency, impact, reversibility of choices) and negotiating any compromises with stakeholders. Problem solving manifests itself in the ability to make informed trade-offs, communicate decisions, and take responsibility for the consequences, without postponing or passing the problem on to others.
Example 3: Unstructured problem (ambiguity, incomplete information)
In the latter case, let's imagine a situation where signs of inefficiency or dissatisfaction emerge within a team, but there is no clear data or obvious cause. The problem is not formalized, and the available information is partial or contradictory.
Ability to ask the right questions
In this case, problem solving does not start from the solution, but from understanding the context. The person must ask specific questions to clarify the context: what is really happening, who is involved, what patterns are repeating themselves, what information is missing. They know how to distinguish between symptoms and causes, avoiding hasty intervention.
Assumption of responsibility
When faced with ambiguity, the true sign of problem solving is the willingness to take responsibility for a decision even in the absence of total certainty. The person defines a hypothesis for intervention, tests it on a small scale, and monitors the effects, demonstrating the ability to learn from experience and adapt actions over time.
How to assess problem solving in candidates
Assessing problem solving requires shifting the focus from what a person says they can do to how they actually deal with a complex situation.
More specifically, situational and behavioral questions work better in interviews than direct questions ("Are you good at solving problems?"). Asking the candidate to recount a real-life episode allows you to observe how they analyzed the context, what information they gathered, what criteria they used to make their decision, and how they handled the consequences of their choices.
Realistic cases and short simulations are even more effective because they confront the person with a problem to be solved in the moment, with constraints and limited information, similar to those they would encounter in the role. In these contexts, it is not important to arrive at the "perfect solution," but rather to observe the process: the ability to structure the problem, make assumptions, make decisions, and adapt.
The use of structured assessments can help you compare candidates on a more objective basis by following this approach.
Simple problem-solving exercises to use in selection
Simple problem-solving exercises are particularly effective because, in just a few minutes, they allow you to observe how a person reasons when faced with a concrete problem.
For example, you could use short scenarios inspired by real work situations, in which you ask the candidate to explain how they would proceed, rather than what the "right answer" would be. Let's look at some concrete examples:
- “You are working on a task with a tight deadline. Halfway through the day, you receive a new urgent request from another stakeholder. How do you decide what to do first? What criteria do you use to set priorities?”
- “You are asked to make a decision, but you realize that some important information is missing and there is no time to obtain it all. How do you proceed? What are you willing to decide anyway?”
- “You realize that a mistake has been made that will impact the team's work or a client. What is the first thing you do? How do you handle communication and the next steps?”
- “Two different people or departments ask you for immediate support on tasks that are both considered ‘priority’. How do you analyze the situation and make a decision?”
These exercises work because they reveal the most important problem-solving patterns, such as how the person analyzes the problem, what information they seek before acting and what they take for granted, how they make decisions under time or resource constraints, whether they structure their work in steps or react impulsively.
How Skillvue supports objective problem-solving assessment
Skillvue supports HR and organizations in assessing skills such as problem solving, making a skill that would otherwise often remain abstract observable and comparable.
Through skill assessments based on observable behaviors, Skillvue allows you to evaluate how a person deals with real problems, makes decisions, and manages uncertainty. Situational questions inspired by the BEI (Behavioral Event Interview) methodology reconstruct concrete work contexts and gather evidence on how the candidate analyzes the problem, defines priorities, evaluates alternatives, and takes responsibility for their choices.
Skillvue's problem-solving assessment can be used not only in the selection phase, but also for development, internal mobility and career path planning , transforming a strategic skill into a concrete, data-driven decision-making lever.
To learn more about Skillvue, start here.
Frequently asked questions
What are the four stages of problem solving?
There are four classic stages of problem solving:
- understand the problem (context, constraints, real objective);
- analyze possible solutions;
- choose and implement a decision;
- evaluate the result and correct if necessary.
What are problem-solving activities?
Problem-solving activities refer to the analysis of available information, the definition of priorities, the assessment of risks, the choice between alternatives, and the management of the consequences of the decision.
How do you solve problems?
Effective problem solving does not follow a rigid pattern, but rather a structured approach: clarify the problem before acting, gather relevant information, evaluate realistic options, and take responsibility for the choice. In work contexts, the decision-making process is more important than the perfect solution.
How can HR truly evaluate problem solving?
The most effective way is to observe problem solving in action, through situational questions, realistic cases, and short exercises. Resumes and theoretical answers are not enough: concrete contexts are needed in which the person must explain how they reason, why they make a decision, and what consequences they consider.
