Product Manager Interview Questions

The Agile methodology is becoming a standard project implementation practice.

It is quite common for Business Analysts to be assigned the Product Managers role but how do they ace the interview and get the job ?

Here is a list of Product Manager interview questions and answers that can help you get that converted role.

  1. Question: Tell me about yourself ?

Answer: You can start by giving a brief description of yourself such as “I have a Bachelors degree in Computer Science and Masters degree in Business Administration.

I have worked in numerous companies over the past ten years and I first started managing people fours years ago, when I was promoted from a business analyst to a manager …”

2. Question: Why do you want to work at this company?

Answer: Do your research, find a unique quality that the company has and highlight it. For example you can mention how you thrive in an environment that focuses on goals and how the company’s products are leaders in its industry due to this quality …

3. Question: What do you know about this company ?

Answer: Your response should be based on your company research. Name specific facts that you found while researching the company which would show that you understand their business.

4. Question: Tell me about the most challenging problem that you have faced as a product manager ?

Answer: Use the STAR method to answer this question.

STAR stands for Situation, Task, Action, and Result and it means:

  • Situation: Explain the event/situation in a few short sentences.
  • Task: Briefly describe the task/situation that you handled, providing any necessary details.
  • Action: Explain the specific actions that you took to complete your task or solve your issue.
  • Result: State the specific results that you achieved.

For example: In my recent job as a Team Lead, there was a customer who was constantly changing the product features and I wondered how I was going to get them to stick to a specific list of features.

So I had a discussion with them to reiterate the requirements that I had gathered in the begging of the project and listed them out. Once we prioritized them based on MoSCoW, we were able to successfully implement the product.

I learned that it is really important to listen and clearly communicate expectations with the customer.

5. Question: Tell me about a time where you had to motivate your team ?

Answer: You can answer this question by using the STAR method to describe a situation with your team and how you resolved it.

For example : When I first became an Team Lead, I found it difficult to assign work to my team mates. Soon I found myself overwhelmed and so I asked for some guidance from my Manager and he explained that I had to trust my team’s ability to be responsible and do their work.

Once I started delegating, I found that I could focus more on the strategic tasks and leave the operational tasks to my team members.

I also realized that when I appreciated the team’s effort and celebrated their successes we were more effective, productive and cohesive as a unit.

6. Question: What makes you a great product manager?

Answer: There are numerous traits that makes a great product manager and they include the following:

  • The ability to strike a balance between the tactical and the strategic tasks.
  • The ability the be both a team player and a leader.

7. Question : How would you market a product ? :

Answer: I would market a product by highlighting the features that it has that makes it different from its competitors.

I would also highlight how the product can help solve the customers needs and fulfil their business objectives.

8. Question: How would you create a press release for a product update ?

Answer: You should answer by stating how important it is to create processes that communicate the project’s progress to the customers.

These processes can include weekly project update via emails, sharing updates via social media and press releases. The process and format would depend on the organization’s preference and standard.

9. Question: Tell me about a time when you had to share some disappointing product updates with a customer ?

Answer: You can answer this question by sharing personal stories such as how you had to inform the customer of an increased budget due to unforeseen circumstances or request for more time due to identified design bugs.

10. Question: How do you assess your customers level of product satisfaction ?

Answer: You should list the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and metrics that need tracking to assess the success of a product launch. Some of these KPIs and metrics might include leads generated, page views, user retention, and customer usage.