Interview Flashcards
Tell me about your proudest professional accomplishment.
TOPIC/PROJECT: Wrote first Domino’s press release to hit 1 billion impressions
ANSWER: I wrote the first press release in Domino’s history to hit one billion media impressions. To be able to say that I did something that was a “first” especially for a brand as widely known as Domino’s was extremely exciting. I remember hearing the news of this achievement and celebrating with my team. It was reassuring to know that they were proud of me and it truly made me feel that my contributions were significant and that I was valued. While I wrote the release, there was still a team behind me that helped to achieve this goal. From being sounding boards, to proofreading, to assisting with pitching. It’s fun to celebrate personal wins, but I recognized that
Tell me about a successful presentation you gave and why you think it was a hit.
TOPIC/PROJECT: Production 101 DomTalks in February 2023
ANSWER: Earlier this year I presented during DomTalks and gave an overview of the advertising production process. I kept the presentation high-level, but offered details in the areas that I thought the audience would be most interested about. I also included behind the scenes photos and videos to pique interest. After the presentation, I had several people come up to me saying how much they enjoyed the presentation and how they learned some new things.
Describe a time when your team or company was undergoing some change. How did that impact you, and how did you adapt?
TOPIC/PROJECT: Transitioning agencies from CPB to WIP at the end of 2020.
ANSWER: At the end of 2020, we transitioned to a new ad agency. At this time, I was in my Digital Activation role and was working with the agency on digital content for our paid and owned channels. To prepare for the transition, I worked to make sure that any open projects were completed before the end of the year and/or transferred over to our new agency. I also put together materials to bring our new agency team up to speed and to give them an overview of how we would be working together moving forward. This helped in establishing relationships with the new contacts and giving them background on my role. This eventually helped me as well in my transition to the Advertising team since I knew so many of the new agency team members already.
Tell me about a time you were dissatisfied in your work. What could have been done to make it better?
TOPIC/PROJECT: Getting R2 360 Ideas/Concepts from WIP just hours before an MLT meeting
ANSWER: When launching Domino’s Rewards, the timelines for 360 creative presentations were tight. Unfortunately, WIP had provided the R2 360 ideas/concepts just hours before the MLT meeting which wasn’t super helpful in terms of getting slides together to present to MLT. While I’m not blaming WIP for this, I felt dissatisfied in my work because the slides weren’t what I wanted them to be. At the end of the day, this taught me that I needed to have tighter communication with WIP and stress the importance of having enough time to review 360 ideas prior to taking them to leadership. This has been the case ever since.
Tell me about a time you knew you were right but still had to follow directions or guidelines.
TOPIC/PROJECT: Reviewing creative and disagreeing with people
ANSWER: A lot of the work that we do on the Ad team consists of reviewing creative. While we have guardrails and brand guidelines in place, many times, creative reviews can be subjective. I know that I’m able to provide my opinions and recommendations for creative to prioritize, but at the end of the day, we need to align as a team. So, in some cases, Elaine or Kate’s opinions might differ from mine. With that, I need to be a team player and do what’s best for the brand.
Do you listen? Give an example of when you did or when you didn’t listen.
TOPIC/PROJECT: Have to listen all the time when reviewing TV/digital ads to ensure the VO is correct and sounds okay.
ANSWER:
What do you do to learn the ropes in a new job?
TOPIC/PROJECT:
ANSWER: When I first begin a new position, I like to meet with the person that was previously in the role (if it’s an internal role and the person still works at the company) and ask them questions to understand different aspects of the role, what the expectations are, etc. If meeting isn’t an option, I ask for relevant file pathways and access to folders so I can review existing materials and get a sense of previous projects, their outcomes as well as current and future planned projects. In addition, I meet with my new manager regularly to check in and discuss my progress to ensure I’m understanding everything correctly and contributing to the team right off the bat.
Give an example of an occasion when you used logic to solve a problem.
TOPIC/PROJECT: Employ-Frees winner notifications
ANSWER: Needed to determine how to notify franchisees that they had won. Knew that it was going to be time-consuming to email one by one, but I remembered that back when I was on the PR team, pitching to news outlets was done via mail merge. So, I figured this would be a quick and easy way to send out hundreds of emails at once.
How do you go about gathering information to analyze problems? Give me an example.
TOPIC/PROJECT: Recruitment Brand Actions brief
ANSWER: The labor crunch continues to be an issue for QSRs. I recently worked on a phase 2 brief for recruitment efforts at Domino’s. Without having any new qualitative research available, I set out to find research on my own in order to craft a story and inspire our ad agency. I scoured through articles and studies, eventually finding one that outlined the four major factors contributing to the labor shortage. I was able to use these factors within my brief and tell a story with data and these additional insights. This helped to set the scene for the agency and put things into perspective so they could wrap their heads around the ask. The deliverables are still forthcoming.
Tell us about a time in which you had to use your written communication skills in order to get across an important point.
TOPIC/PROJECT: Prioritizing 360 ideas by using color coding
ANSWER: With the 360 process, there are many ideas that are presented that the team needs to prioritize. It’s helpful for WIP to understand why we approve certain ideas and why we deprioritize others. To make things extra clear, I adopted a color-coding practice. Green = pursue/approved, yellow = requires more information or exploration, red = deprioritize. This makes it easy to quickly see at a glance which ideas the team is gravitating toward and helps to break up the ideas in a way that is easier to digest when reviewing feedback.
Talk about a time when you’ve had to manage up.
TOPIC/PROJECT: Working with franchisees/FBC’s when determining stores to shoot at for TV productions. Or Yum Yum production.
ANSWER: A big part of my job involves coordinating with franchisees and FBC/FMC’s to secure stores for us to shoot at or use to make product.
When you’ve worked on multiple projects, how have you prioritized?
TOPIC/PROJECT: Ivy Lee Method
ANSWER: In many of my roles at Domino’s, I have handle multiple projects at any given time. I prioritize based on deadlines and business needs. I like to use tools like Microsoft To Do and Microsoft Project. I also use OneNote to capture detailed notes from meetings. First, I assess everything that’s on my plate and organize based on what needs to get done first and what can wait. Then, I approach each day by working on the most important tasks first. Sometimes I block off time on my calendar so I can dedicate myself to the most important tasks and get them completed. Then, I work down my list and move on to other items throughout the day. Being organized in this way helps me to stay on top of projects so nothing ever slips through the cracks. I have been commended on how well I’m able to juggle different tasks and make sure everything stays on track.
How have you handled meeting a tight deadline?
TOPIC/PROJECT: Recruitment TV ad - had to get the Lolly spot and on-air in less than two weeks.
ANSWER: Spoke with Logan live and planned out the week. I proposed that we set up two daily touch bases.
Give an example of how you’ve worked on a team.
TOPIC/PROJECT: Mind Ordering
ANSWER: Had to work with many cross-functional team members on the various Mind Ordering extensions.
Tell me about a time you needed to get information from someone who wasn’t very responsive. What did you do?
TOPIC/PROJECT: Recruitment TikTok Shoot
ANSWER: I led a recruitment-focused TikTok shoot in the Houston area. Being based in Michigan, I needed to work with the local Director of Operations for that market. This individual is very busy on a daily basis and I noticed that he wasn’t being responsive to my emails and messages. I decided to set up meetings and calls with him in order to communicate. This ended up working well since he was able to take the phone calls from his car while driving from store to store. As a result, I was able to get his assistance in planning the TikTok shoot and everything went according to plan.
Tell me about how you worked effectively under pressure.
TOPIC/PROJECT: Recruitment TV ad, Stranger Things apparel
ANSWER:
What’s your greatest strength?
ANSWER: I feel that I have strengths in many areas thanks to my diverse background. One of the biggest strengths I’d like to highlight is my ability to build relationships. In my current role and in all my previous positions at Domino’s, I’ve worked very closely with our ad agency and cross-functional internal team members, day in and day out. I’m extremely comfortable working with internal counterparts, agency teams, brand partners, third-party vendors and influencers. I know this role requires someone who is able to work closely with multiple teams and individuals. I’ve been told by supervisors in the past that I’m extremely reliable and always prepared. In addition, I’ve been told that I’m very level-headed and seen as a leader on the teams that I work on.
What’s your greatest weakness?
ANSWER: My greatest weakness is that sometimes I can be apprehensive to ask for help. With my working style and personality, I like to figure things out on my own and during the course of my career I’ve had several leaders that have been more hands-off, which left me with a great sense of autonomy. I’ve learned, however, that putting my pride aside and soliciting guidance from others is beneficial in the long run in order to reach solutions in a quicker manner. Marketing is very fast-paced and in many cases you have to pivot quickly, so the more that I engage with others when I need help or have a question on something, the better off I will be as I’m then able to gain their perspective which in turn allows me to walk away with a better understanding than I previously had.
Where do you see yourself in five years?
ANSWER: In five years, I see myself in a heightened leadership position at Domino’s. I have enjoyed my rotations between PR, Digital Marketing and Advertising and feel that my diverse background has provided me with various skills that I can continue to use in years to come.
I would love to keep growing on the Ad team. I love working with my internal team members but also with our agency team.
Tell me about a time when you had to say “no.”
TOPIC/PROJECT: When I’m double booked for meetings – have to choose one to attend and say “no” to the other.
ANSWER: Sometimes my plate and calendar can get really full. I think mostly everyone deals with this, but sometimes I get double booked and have to choose between meetings. For me, I assess each meeting and determine which one I need to attend based on my participation and role. If I’m an active participant in the project I will prioritize that over another meeting that I’d listen in on as I could follow up with a team member to get the scoop afterwards.
Tell me about a time you failed. How did you deal with the situation?
TOPIC/PROJECT: Yum Yum PSCB Zappi Testing - Low Scores
ANSWER: I recently led a digital production to capture content for two PSCB concepts. The spots were submitted to Zappi testing and unfortunately they didn’t yield the results that we were expecting. It’s never fun to get low scores back, but after digging into the data a bit more and level setting on the true goals of the content, I realized that the low scores weren’t a failure, but rather a learning experience.
Can you describe a time when a co-worker made a mistake and you discovered it? What did you do?
TOPIC/PROJECT: Reviewing Nick’s DDDs.
ANSWER: A recent example would be when I was reviewing a DDD that the digital team put together and there was some content around HM assets. Since the DDD was going to WIP and PB&I shot HM content and would be developing that content for us, I quickly pointed this out and explained that the material could be removed from the DDD as to not cause any confusion. This was updated and the DDD was sent on schedule.
Can you describe a project that demonstrated your analytical skills?
TOPIC/PROJECT: Recruitment Brand Actions Brief
ANSWER: I spearheaded a lot of the recruitment work that was done by the advertising team during the hiring crisis over COVID. A big project that I worked on was a recruitment brand actions brief. There were two phases to it. Within the briefs, I needed to include data and analyze the data to tell a story to the agency. I even scoured the web for additional sources to add context and color to the brief. With this, I had to analyze the information that was given to me by HR and by third party sources and find a way to communicate it in an easy to understand way.
Have you ever given a speech or presentation for your job? How did you prepare? How was the presentation received?
TOPIC/PROJECT: Production 101 DOMTalks
ANSWER:
Can you describe a time when you had to give a presentation without preparation? What did you do?
TOPIC/PROJECT: Loyalty MLT Meeting - presented R2 360 ideas just hours after receiving them
ANSWER: Ahead of launching Domino’s Rewards, we had MLT meetings to check in on the progress of campaign workstreams. WIP was briefed on 360 ideas, but unfortunately the timeline provided was super tight to get ideas back in time for our R2 MLT meeting. As a result, I received updated concepts just hours before the meeting and had to hustle to translate them into slides for MLT and present them. I tried my best to walk the team through the concepts that the digital team aligned on but it was difficult to show thought-leadership with such little time to prepare. As a result, I worked with WIP to build out our timelines more and to explain that we need buffer time to take content to MLT.
Can you talk about how you’ve used your written communication skills?
TOPIC/PROJECT: Providing feedback to the agency on digital projects.
ANSWER: I use written communication skills everyday while working. I have a journalism/PR background, so I feel that I have very strong writing skills and am able to articulate ideas easily through writing. In my day-to-day job, I interface with our ad agency and provide feedback from the team on digital projects. I rely on my written communication skills to clearly explain the feedback and paint the picture for the agency on things that we’d like to see in the next round of creative. I try to be as clear as possible to avoid confusion. I’ve been told by my agency counterparts that they appreciate my detailed writeups and that they’re organized in an easy to follow way.
Tell us about a time when your active listening skills really paid off.
TOPIC/PROJECT: Leftovers Reheating Methods :15 - Agency not calling out “delivery” with the $6.99 price point.
ANSWER:
Tell us about a time when you had to present complex information. How did you ensure that the other person understood?
TOPIC/PROJECT: Recruitment flyers
ANSWER: HR asked for help in getting recruitment flyers developed to highlight store driver total rewards. There are a lot of nuances with what we can and cannot say depending on whether the flyers are in a TUSA store or a franchisee-owned store. This caused confusion between our team internally and also the agency team.
Describe a time when you were the resident technical expert. What did you do to make sure everyone was able to understand you?
TOPIC/PROJECT: Ariba
ANSWER: I’m a contract creator in Ariba for the digital marketing team, so I’ve been in conversations and onboarding meetings since last summer for the tool. To prep the digital team for Ariba’s launch, I set up time with the team to share my screen and walk them through the tool. I explained how to submit a supplier request and how to create a contract request. To ensure the team understood, I went slowly and encouraged them to ask questions along the way. I also sent along reference materials and told the team that they could come to me with any questions. Upon entering into contract season late last year, I was the go-to for the team for Ariba help and once again walked them through how to process their contracts within the tool. I would have the team member share their screen and would then walk through all of the step with them so they could learn first-hand how to use the tool.
Tell us about a time when you were able to use persuasion to successfully convince someone to see things your way.
TOPIC/PROJECT: Mark’s competency rating for “ensures accountability”
ANSWER: Competencies were introduced last year and after completing my self-assessment, I met with Mark so we could chat about how I ranked myself and how he ranked me. There is a category titled “ensures accountability”. I ranked myself as “highly skilled” while Mark ranked me as “skilled”. I explained why I ranked myself as “highly skilled,” going into detail about how I work cross-functionally with several other teams and lead several projects. I explained that I need to hold other accountable by setting deadlines for feedback rounds when reviewing digital creative from the agency or by making sure that they’re doing their part so a campaign launches properly. By going into these background details and showing Mark my perspective, he quickly agreed that he hadn’t thought of things that way and mentioned that he agreed that I was “highly skilled” for that competency.
Give me an example of a time when you had to explain something fairly complex to a frustrated coworker. How did you handle this delicate situation?
TOPIC/PROJECT: Ariba training – contract season 2020.
ANSWER: We were instructed to use Ariba to route all of our digital contracts. The team hadn’t used the tool at all and were very confused on what they needed to do. As an Ariba contract creator, I was able to assist. I had person share their screen, walked through the steps together and explained what we were doing along the way. Made sure that I wasn’t overbearing so they could learn, but also let them know that they could ask questions
Give us an example where you mediated a conflict.
TOPIC/PROJECT: Agency test – CPB was upset and said that if they knew about the project they would have provided different creative.
ANSWER: Last year one of my objectives was to partner with different agencies to get assets developed for a creative test. The intent was to see what other agencies could bring to the table as far as creative goes and to also see if their content performed better than what we were receiving from CPB. The three agencies we worked with were CPB, PB&I and Hook. We had all of them create bumper ads for Carside Delivery. CPB had been briefed on the project the same way as all of the other agencies were and handed off content. There was nothing specific said to CPB up front about the creative test, but through a conversation I had with one of my account contacts, I did let them know that we would be testing several pieces of DCD creative including some created by other agencies. This angered my account contact and he explained that if they would have known about us working with other agencies up front, they would have provided different creative. I found that to be quite odd since the agency should be handing off the best product to us every time no matter what. To compromise, I explained more about the paid media test to CPB and told them that they could review what they previously handed off and let us know if they wanted to take another stab at the deliverables. After they learned more about the test and reviewed the brief that we provided to start with, they actually came back and said that they were happy with what they handed off and didn’t feel the need to create/hand off. additional content.
Tell us about a time when you had to be assertive.
TOPIC/PROJECT: Working with Moonshot on the Yum Yum PSCB production.
ANSWER: Recently worked with Moonshot to capture content for PSCB (Yum Yum/Doorbell Dance). It was our first time working with them from a production standpoint and they weren’t as organized as WIP is. I had to be assertive with our non-negotiables (e.g., needing a topsheet to compare costs) and ensure that Moonshot was following our guidelines/procedures so we were clear on what we were paying for and what we were getting.
Can you tell me about a time you made a change at work?
TOPIC/PROJECT: TV shoot process improvement to have someone from agency/DPZ team sign off when production leaves a store to ensure it’s in proper condition.
ANSWER:
Can you talk about a project that you started? What did you do? What were the results?
TOPIC/PROJECT: Adding production steps to Ad Team University
ANSWER:
Can you tell me about a project that was implemented because of the work you did?
TOPIC/PROJECT: PSCB
ANSWER: PSCB was originally shot as a pizza experiment meaning that it was a lower budget production to shoot and test in Zappi to see how scores would come back. After receiving great scores, there was a strong case to make PSCB a national window and launch the product system-wide. There was a lot of work I did going into the production from ordering food from the SCC, to lining up product makers and reviewing/approving scripts.
