Tell us about a time the candidate was proactively open to a situation, person, or new experience: a time when they sought to engage with difference, put themselves in a situation outside of their comfort zone, or actively sought to gain a new perspective from others. (300 words)

The candidate regularly made themselves available to all teams within the organization, presenting many opportunities to gain new experiences. As many teams within the organization are project focused, this flexible availability is extremely valuable. Specifically, the candidate volunteered to help the front office team with a large, time-sensitive project. The candidate had never worked with this team and was not familiar with the team members or internal operations. Despite this, the candidate was deeply engaged in the project and sought to gain new insights from the team. Because the candidate was open to joining a new team, the candidate was assigned specific duties on the project and learned new skills and formed new relationships. The candidate ultimately stayed on the project for several weeks and was a great help in meeting necessary timelines. On another occasion, the candidate proactively sought out mentorship from a senior member of the team. The candidate hoped to form a relationship with this senior member and learn from their experience. As the candidate is quite junior, this request was far outside the candidate’s comfort zone. Despite challenges in scheduling, the candidate persisted and was able to connect with the mentor and gain valuable advice and insight. As the candidate and the mentor are separated by many years of experience, this advice was extremely valuable to the candidate. Finally, the candidate had the opportunity to help manage a small number of interns over the course of a few months. As the candidate had minimal managerial experience, this opportunity required the candidate to be open to the situation and be flexible. The candidate showed an incredible amount of initiative in effectively managing the interns. The candidate assigned tasks, made an effort to bond with the inters and make them a part of the larger team. Both the interns and senior members of the team were impressed with the candidate’s willingness and initiative.

The ceremonial column.