Leadership and teamwork: Staff Specialist Interview Questions Australia

Multidisciplinary teamwork and leadership is a criterion in every position description, so a teamwork example, a leadership example and a conflict example are near certainties. Panels want your contribution clear and respect for nursing and allied health colleagues evident.

Updated 26 October 2026

How to answer

One real example per question with your actions and the outcome clear. For the colleague who is not pulling their weight, find out why first, protect patients meanwhile, then involve the head of department if it continues. Know your mandatory notification obligations for an impaired colleague.

Frameworks: STAR; seek information, patient safety, escalate, support for the difficult colleague

STAR Situation in a sentence, Task: what you had to do, Action: what you did in the first person, Result: the outcome with a number where there is one. Add Reflection for STARR. Full guide →

Asked in most interviewsUsually asked by the nurse unit manager or director of nursingSTARR
Give us an example of a time you worked effectively as part of a multidisciplinary team. What was your contribution?
STAR with your contribution clear. Name the other professions involved, what the team needed from you, what you did and the outcome for the patient. Reflection on what the nurses or allied health staff taught you lands well.
Asked in most interviewsUsually asked by the head of departmentSTARR
Tell us about a time you showed leadership in a clinical setting.
One example where you were the senior decision maker: a deteriorating patient, a crisis in theatre, a service problem. Say what you decided, how you communicated it, and what the outcome was. Reflect on what you would do differently.
Asked in most interviewsUsually asked by the people and cultureSTARR
Describe a time you had a conflict with a colleague and how you resolved it.
One real conflict, addressed early and in private, focused on the issue rather than the person, with the outcome and the relationship afterwards. Avoid conflicts where you were obviously right.
Often askedUsually asked by the head of departmentSTARR
A colleague is not pulling their weight on the roster and others are complaining to you. What do you do?
Seek information first: talk to the colleague privately and find out why. Protect the roster and patients meanwhile. If it continues, involve the head of department. Keep the colleague supported and the complainers informed that it is being dealt with.
Often askedUsually asked by the director of medical servicesSTARR
How would you handle a senior colleague whose performance or behaviour concerned you?
Patient safety first, then a private conversation, then escalation to the head of department or director of medical services if needed. Know your mandatory notification obligations to AHPRA and when they apply. Support the colleague throughout.
Often askedUsually asked by the service or operations managerSTARR
Tell us about a time you led a change in a department. How did you bring people with you?
STAR with the resistance named: who objected, why, what you changed because of them and what the measured outcome was. Mention how you kept nursing and allied health involved.
Often askedUsually asked by the nurse unit manager or director of nursingSTARR
How do you work with nursing and allied health colleagues when there is disagreement about a patient's care?
Hear the disagreement out, look at the patient together, decide on clinical grounds and explain your reasoning. If you were wrong, say so. Describe one real example and how the relationship was afterwards.
Often askedUsually asked by the people and cultureSTARR
What is your leadership style, and how would your team describe it?
Name a style, prove it with one example, and say how your team would describe it, including the criticism they might make. A style with no example is an assertion.