How to answer “What can you bring to this role?”

One of the questions you should always be prepared to answer at an interview is: “What can you bring to this role?”

You should have an idea of your unique skill set and how the role would benefit  from your knowledge and expertise. 

“What can you bring to this role?” sets you up perfectly to boast your relevant skills, experience and how they will help you in the job you are interviewing for. It’s also a good opportunity to explain what you have to offer, that other applicants can’t.

This is a common interview question that you will be expected to answer well. Taking time to prepare so you are able to deliver a great answer could be your key to your dream job.

How to prepare your answer to “What can you bring to the role?”

Research is key:

Start your preparation well in advance. The best place to begin your research is to look at the job description and the company’s website. Pick out the most important skills or experience listed on the job description, then see if you can find the company’s values on their website to give yourself a better idea of the type of person they are looking for.

Once you have this information, cross-reference it with your own skills and experience on your CV, and your personal values. This will help you to form the foundations for your answer.

Give examples:

The most convincing answers will include examples. A vague sentence about how you have the required skills will get you nowhere – you must demonstrate that you are capable enough for the job by describing a time you had to put them into practice.

Back yourself up:

We recommend that you prepare at least three key attributes that will demonstrate what you can bring to the role in question. Each of these should be central to the job, and you should prepare examples to present with them. You should only need to talk about one or two of these attributes, but it’s always good to have a couple of extras up your sleeve, just in case they want more.

The following examples should help you prepare some great answers:

The ability to deal with time pressure and meeting deadlines

“Due to my previous experience in a similar role at X, I know that this role will involve meeting tight deadlines. I developed the ability to do this in my last job and am comfortable working on several projects simultaneously while still meeting deadlines.

For example, I needed to ensure that I didn’t fall behind on my administrative duties even when we had a particularly busy period meeting clients. Efficiently recording the work that had been completed was central to the organisation of the whole team. In order to make this process more efficient, I would make brief notes during the day which sped up the admin tasks considerably and made sure I met deadlines.”

Why we like this answer: This candidate has identified a key attribute from their own experience. This is likely to convince interviewers that they know what they’re talking about and are aware of the challenges they will face in the role. The extra detail as to how they were proactive in getting organised reinforces this.

Teamwork

“I can see from the job description that this role will require a lot of teamwork. I love being part of a team and I think that my communication skills add a lot of value here. During my work for X, I was working with offices in different parts of the world. This meant that communication was essential when working on projects together. I set up weekly meetings via Skype, which had a set agenda so we could make sure that everybody was on the same page in an efficient way. This extra communication added to the team dynamic, despite us working in different offices in different parts of the world.”

Why we like this example: This candidate has explained exactly what it is that makes them such an effective team player. Communication skills are required in almost any job so this is a great example to go for. The example they have chosen demonstrates that they understand the essentials of good teamwork.

These examples give you an idea of how long you might want your answer to be. They are detailed, yet concise.

When you begin practicing your answers, say them out loud a few times. Taking notes with you or even a piece of paper with notes could create a more robotic and unnatural answer. Relaying your answers back in a natural manner shows you have good communication skills too. Instead, try to memorise them before your interview – worst case scenario, take a few bullet points with you – this gives you room to manoeuvre.