One of the major challenges I faced in my project occurred within my first week of joining. I was assigned a complex task to implement validation logic for detecting duplicate forms and identifying potentially risky forms based on certain fields during the reviewer submission stage.

The challenge was that I was completely new to the project, and a single form’s data was stored across 10–15 different tables. I did not have a full understanding of the table structure yet or the existing validation mechanism yet.

How I approached and resolved it:

1. Understanding the table structure: I started by thoroughly studying the application and identifying where each field of the form was being stored. I created a list of all relevant tables and columns that were required for validation.
2. Analyzing existing validation logic:There was some basic validation already implemented through a stored procedure. I was new to stored procedures, so I carefully went through the logic, understood how errors were logged, and used that as a reference.
3. Learning and designing the new stored procedure:This was the first time I created a stored procedure from scratch. I had to use temporary tables to store the current form’s data and then join it with the main tables to detect duplicates.
4. I studied how temp tables worked, structured the joins, and wrote the validation conditions in the WHERE clause to return matching records.
5. Edge cases & collaboration:While designing the logic, I identified several edge cases. I discussed these with the BSA to confirm which scenarios should be handled within the stored procedure and which should be handled at the UI level.
6. Integrating with the UI: After finalizing the stored procedure, I integrated it into the UI to trigger the validation during form submission.

Outcome:

I was able to successfully deliver the validation solution. This task involved deep research, learning stored procedures for the first time, understanding a complex data model, and collaborating with the BSA. It gave me confidence that even challenging tasks can be handled systematically with the right approach.

Tips for answering this in interviews

1. Be honest—pick a real challenge you faced.
2. Focus on how you approached it, not just the problem.
3. Highlight learning, collaboration, and outcome.
4. Even small challenges are fine if you clearly explain your process and how you overcame them.