IntermediateBEHAVIORAL
Tell me about a time you identified and corrected a recurring data entry error—what steps did you take to find the root cause and prevent it from happening again?
data entry, bookkeeping
General

Sample Answer

At my last role I noticed month-end reports showed a consistent $12k variance (~1.8% of monthly revenue) tied to customer IDs. I pulled a sample of 100 records and traced the error to a copy-paste template a junior temp was using that truncated the last digit of IDs when switching between systems. I met with the temp, documented the exact steps, and created a standardized import template with validation rules and dropdowns. I also added an automated check that flags mismatched IDs and implemented a quick training session for the team. Over the next three months the variance dropped to 0.05% and we saved about 6 hours of manual fixes each month.

Keywords

Identified pattern and quantified impact ($12k, 1.8%)Root cause analysis by sampling and tracing workflowImplemented technical fix (template + validation) and trainingMeasured outcome (variance to 0.05% and 6 hours/month saved)