Getting hired at GEP, one of the world’s leading procurement services companies, is a highly coveted opportunity. With operations in over 30 countries and a roster of Fortune 500 clients, GEP offers exciting career prospects in a rapidly growing industry.
However with great potential comes great competition. GEP’s interview process is intensive, designed to thoroughly assess candidates’ skills and fit for the company’s high-performance culture.
I have analyzed insights from GEP interviewees and recruiting staff to compile the top 20 interview questions candidates can expect By understanding the motivation behind these questions and preparing compelling responses, you will demonstrate your strategic thinking, communication abilities, and passion for the role
Let’s dive in
1. Why do you want to work for GEP?
This common opening question gauges your interest in the company and position. Interviewers want to see that you have researched GEP and understand their mission and values.
How to prepare: Demonstrate your enthusiasm for the role and how your skills align with GEP’s objectives. Reference initiatives or values that resonate with you personally, such as their focus on diversity, equity and inclusion, sustainability and social responsibility. Highlight any connections you have with current employees. Convey your passion for the procurement industry and eagerness to grow within GEP.
2. What do you know about GEP and our mission?
Similar to the previous question, this allows interviewers to assess your level of interest and preparation. It’s about distinguishing informed candidates from those applying more generically.
How to prepare: Thoroughly research GEP, including their history, leadership, service offerings, competitive advantages, and workplace culture. Be ready to discuss details about their mission, values, recent partnerships, CSR initiatives, awards and recognitions, office locations, client roster, and growth strategies. Memorize key facts and figures to demonstrate your knowledge.
3. Why do you want to pursue a career in procurement services?
Interviewers want to understand your motivation and passion for this career path. This helps assess your potential for long-term development and leadership within the field.
How to prepare: Convey your genuine interest in the industry, backed by well-informed reasons. You may reference projects, coursework, or internships that sparked your passion. Discuss how procurement aligns with your skills and interests, like analytical thinking, relationship building, and strategic management. Highlight your understanding of how procurement creates business value and competitive advantage.
4. How would you describe your communication and stakeholder management skills?
GEP seeks candidates with strong interpersonal abilities to interface with diverse clients and team members. Interviewers want specific examples that demonstrate these competencies.
How to prepare: Reference instances where you successfully engaged stakeholders through presentations, negotiations, status updates, or reporting. Quantify the impact of your communication, like meeting targets, inspiring action, resolving conflicts, etc. Emphasize adaptability in tailoring your style to connect effectively across roles, cultures, and personality types. Discuss strategies for active listening, influence, and collaboration.
5. Tell me about a time you managed multiple priorities with tight deadlines. How did you approach this?
Procurement professionals must master schedule management, organization, and focus. This question reveals those abilities through a real example.
How to prepare: Choose an example that highlights your time management, prioritization, delegation, and stress coping skills. Discuss your system for tracking deadlines, addressing competing priorities, and staying focused under pressure. Emphasize accomplishments like high-quality work despite time constraints. Conclude by sharing techniques you learned and how you have since improved processes.
6. Describe a situation where you had to solve a difficult problem. What was your process?
Problem-solving and critical thinking are essential in procurement. Interviewers want insights into your analytical approach and decision-making skills.
How to prepare: Outline the steps you took to understand the issue, identify solutions, weigh alternatives, implement the optimal plan, and verify results. Emphasize data gathering, root cause analysis, creative thinking, and calculative abilities applied. Share any lessons that improved your problem-solving process.
7. What experience do you have using digital procurement platforms and analytics tools?
Technology expertise is a must-have. Interviewers want to gauge your proficiency with the latest procurement software, databases, and analytics.
How to prepare: Highlight specialized applications, like SAP Ariba, you have used along with your skill level. Discuss how you have leveraged digital tools to unlock insights, enhance supplier management, improve compliance, and boost productivity. Offer specific examples that quantify your impact. For limited experience, demonstrate eagerness to skill up quickly.
8. How would you go about reducing costs in the procurement process?
This reveals your strategic thinking and analytical abilities regarding cost management and process optimization – critical procurement competencies.
How to prepare: Demonstrate a systematic approach incorporating spend analysis, contract negotiations, demand management, and policy changes. Reference instances where you helped achieve cost reductions through these strategies. Discuss ideas like supplier consolidation, e-auctions, life cycle costing, and performance benchmarking. Emphasize collaboration with stakeholders to balance cost and value.
9. Tell me about a time you successfully negotiated a complex contract.
Procurement professionals must be skilled negotiators able to deliver optimal agreements. This provides insights into your abilities.
How to prepare: Set the context by describing the scenario, stakeholders, and challenges involved. Discuss negotiation preparation activities like needs analysis and market benchmarking. Share techniques you applied at the table, like building rapport, active listening, and strategic questioning. Highlight how you secured a fair, mutually beneficial deal addressing both parties’ interests. Share key lessons that strengthened your negotiation skills.
10. How would you handle a dispute with a supplier or internal stakeholder?
Disputes are inevitable, but how you manage them reveals a lot about your conflict resolution ability, empathy, and ethics.
How to prepare: Demonstrate a collaborative mindset focused on understanding different perspectives and finding common ground. Discuss proactive communication and expectation setting to prevent conflicts from escalating. Share how you would leverage facts, remain constructive, involve stakeholders, and identify solutions that satisfy everyone. Conclude by emphasizing the importance of preserving relationships despite disagreements.
11. Tell me about a time you successfully led a cross-functional team. How did you foster collaboration?
Leading teams is core to procurement roles. This looks into your leadership, influence, and team-building skills.
How to prepare: Set the context by describing the team, project, and challenges faced. Share tactics you used to define vision, assign roles, establish processes, and empower team members. Give examples of 1:1 mentoring or coaching provided. Discuss communication strategies that drove alignment, engagement, and shared ownership. Quantify results achieved through collaboration like goals met or processes improved.
12. How do you stay updated on developments and best practices in procurement?
Procurement is a dynamic field requiring continuous learning. Interviewers want to see that drive and ability to evolve in you.
How to prepare: Demonstrate passion for lifelong learning. Highlight sources you rely on to stay informed like training programs, industry events, publications, peers, and mentors. Discuss how you have applied emerging best practices, tools, and technologies to achieve procurement excellence. Share examples of how you actively research to expand your knowledge and skills.
13. Tell me about a time you had to rapidly learn and apply new skills on the job. How did you approach this?
Agility and learning ability are essential as procurement professionals must constantly upskill to apply new methodologies. This question tests that aptitude.
How to prepare: Choose an example that showcases self-directed learning, intellectual curiosity, and adaptability. Discuss how you sought inputs from experts and users. Share techniques like pattern recognition, experimentation, and skills reinforcement that enabled quick application of new competencies. Highlight the positive impact this had on performance.
14. How would you evaluate and mitigate risks in the procurement process?
Procurement carries strategic, operational, and financial risks. Employers want to know you can safeguard company interests.
How to prepare: Demonstrate understanding of procurement risk analysis methods like SWOT assessments or scenario planning. Discuss evaluating risks based on likelihood and impact across areas like costs, quality, delays, compliance, etc. Share mitigation strategies you would propose, like multi-sourcing, transparency, controls, and continuity planning. Convey a proactive mindset focused on early risk identification.
15. Tell me about a time you developed an idea that delivered significant business impact.
Innovative thinking leads to breakthroughs that improve procurement performance. Interviewers look for candidates who can enhance their strategies.
How to prepare: Share an example where you created value through insights. Explain how you identified improvement areas through research and observation. Discuss developing the idea through data analysis, benchmarks, and end-user feedback. Quantify the benefits realized from its successful implementation. Demonstrate creative and strategic thinking that solved problems.
16. How would you navigate a situation where sales targets conflict with maintaining supplier relationships?
This complex scenario tests your ethics, stakeholder management, and decision-making abilities under pressure.
How to prepare: Acknowledge the need to meet targets but
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FAQ
How many rounds of interview are there in a GEP?
Why do you want to join GEP?
What questions are asked at the GT interview?
What is the interview process like at GEP?
The interview process at GEP can vary depending on the position you are applying for. However, most positions will require at least two rounds of interviews, one of which is usually a case interview. The case interview may be conducted in person or over video call, and is typically focused on procurement.
What is the interview process like at GEP (Navi Mumbai)?
I interviewed at GEP (Navi Mumbai) There are three rounds of interviews. First round is usually a telephonic round involving puzzles and easy level of guesstimate. Second round is a proper guesstimate with high level questions which candidate should be prepared for. Third round is usually an industry level case study.
What is the GEP hiring process?
The GEP hiring process typically consists of multiple interview rounds, including HR screening, technical interviews, case study interviews, and behavioral or cultural fit interviews. Candidates can expect to be asked questions related to their profiles, guesstimates, problem-solving abilities, and technical skills.
How do you answer a GEP interview question?
Efficiency is a key skill for GEPs, so interviewers may ask this question to see if you have the ability to be efficient. When answering this question, it can be helpful to mention how you were able to complete your work in a timely manner and what steps you took to ensure that you were being as efficient as possible.
