6 Questions You Need to Ask in Your Next Product Manager Interview
Tags: Product Management, Interview Preparation, Product Manager, Software Development, Interview Questions

You landed the interview. You demonstrated that you are a qualified candidate and answered every question to the tee.

You have finally made it to the last ten minutes of the conversation.

The hiring manager asks if you have any questions you’d like to ask.

You can finally sit back. Breathe out a little, and recollect.

This is your time.

“Knowledge is having the right answer. Intelligence is asking the right question”. — Unknown

Use these last few minutes to your benefit. Ask questions that demonstrate your ability to think critically while also evaluating whether this is a company you want to grow with, and a role you would be happy in.

Product management differs at every company. It is important for you to know what your responsibilities are going to be and the expectations around your output.

Use these questions to define yourself as a thoughtful candidate while enabling you to make the most informed decision for your career

1. Which stakeholders are involved in defining product strategy?

Product Managers act as partners with company leadership and collaborate in order to align on a shared vision.

The PM should act as the voice of the customer. However, the autonomy of the PM varies from company to company.

The answer to this question will illustrate who drives product strategy and whether those decisions are made using qualitative or quantitate data.

Use this question as an opportunity to better understand the product culture

2. Is this a newly created position or are you trying to fill a role for someone who was recently promoted or left?

Are you stepping into someone else’s shoes? This often provides certain guidelines and parameters for you to follow. This might be a more comfortable fit for you.

However, your performance may be compared to your predecessors which presents its own opportunities or challenges.

If this is a newly created position, you will spend lots of energy defining role responsibilities and impacting product culture.

Both situations offer pros and cons.

You need to navigate what type of role you will be successful in, where your skill sets lie and what excites you.

3. Are there any immediate challenges or ‘emergencies’ that I will be facing when I first join the company?

No team is perfect. The best teams are aware of weak spots and work toward continuous improvement.

Try to get a sense for the teams’ recent challenges so that you can come prepared — thoughtfully — to handle the residual impact and future challenges.

However, it is possible that there is a red flag that you should be aware of and prepared to handle.

Do different interviewers have drastically different answers?

As a product manager, you will need to practice empathy, prioritize needs and lead with motivation.

Not only does this show the interviewer that you are already thinking about risk mitigation and driving solutions forward -

it will give you a sense of whether the team has a cohesive sense of what might be holding them back.

4. How will the PM partner with Business Intelligence, Marketing & Sales departments?

What are the dynamics of the internal departments? What role will you play in determining pricing or go-to market strategies?

The responsibilities of a product manager range widely based on the age and size of a company.

Now is your time to uncover what resources you will have and who you will be partnering with most closely.

5. What was the last product or feature your team shipped? What were you most proud of and what were some challenges the team faced in launching this product?

What is the team’s track record? Have they been able to deliver any products or features successfully?

Product development is difficult. Roadblocks and bumps along the way are inevitable and often times changing priorities might prevent consistent delivery.

This question can provide more insight into the development infrastructure and deployment practices the team employs. If the team hasn’t delivered, what has prevented them from doing so?

A more senior team might employ agile methodology or engineering practices like continuous iteration and continuous release to allow them to deliver efficiently and with fewer bugs.

Try to get a sense for how the team has handled past issues and what development guidelines they have in place.

6. In 3 months from now, what will tell you that you hired the right person for the role? How do you measure the success of a PM’s performance and is there an opportunity to share this feedback?

What will you be measured against? A goal oriented product manager will want specific, transparent KPIs to work toward.

This is a hard question to answer — it is important for them to clearly define what success looks like so that you know how to deliver