STAR

How to implement

Situation
Describe the specific context or situation you were in. Provide enough detail for the listener to understand the background.

Task
Explain the specific task, problem, or challenge you were facing within that situation. What was your responsibility?

Action
Describe the specific actions you took to address the task or challenge. Focus on your individual contribution and use “I” statements.

Result
Explain the outcome of your actions. What were the results? What did you achieve or learn? Quantify your results whenever possible.

Example

Here’s a STAR framework example in a project management context:

During our recent website redesign project [Situation], we encountered a significant challenge when the initial user testing revealed that navigation on mobile devices was confusing and difficult to use.

Our task [Task] was to quickly identify the core navigation issues and implement changes to improve the mobile user experience before the final launch.

[Action] I immediately organized a focused workshop with the UI/UX designers and two key developers. We reviewed the user testing feedback, analyzed the existing mobile navigation structure, and brainstormed several alternative approaches. We then rapidly prototyped the top two solutions and conducted another round of quick user testing with a smaller group.

Based on that feedback, we finalized a revised ‘hamburger menu’ structure with clearer labeling and implemented it across the mobile site.

The subsequent user testing showed a significant improvement in mobile navigation usability, with task completion rates increasing by 40% and a substantial decrease in user frustration reported in the feedback.

This allowed us to launch the redesigned website on schedule with a much better mobile experience. [Result]