Product management is one of the most sought out job profiles these days. With a suitable position comes a good amount of responsibilities. You are here for a thorough insight into the prospective questions you will be asked in your interview. Questions can go from generic to specific technical questions. However, one set is most favorite for interviewers today, the behavioral questions. Behavioral questions aim at identifying your ability to handle any situation with examples from the past and future. Product management recruiting agency Palarino Partners will introduce you to some sample behavioral questions here, so keep reading!
What Are Behavioral Questions?
A product manager works at the interface of a diverse team and leads the team to complete a product development process. As the job demands, the product manager needs a multi-skill set in his hands to handle a tricky question. The main goal of asking behavioral questions is to test a candidate’s potency for the company. Because a company may go from ups and downs, a candidate must know how to cope with most situations. These questions are structured to judge your interpersonal skills, critical ability, analytical thinking, to name a few. There is no clear standard to test these skills. However, a product manager should have the right attitude and behavior.
Sample Behavioural Questions Asked In A Product Management Interview.
As a beginner, a candidate is often under the loop of skepticism about devoting time and energy to this particular set of questions. It’s good to think because time is precious for a product manager. You are already on the right path. Now, shift some thinking about the role you will be playing, which involves decision-making at every step. These decisions are related to your colleagues, teams, stakeholders, designs, projects, users, and the list. Hence, it’s best to introduce these behavioral questions briefly. Following are a few sample questions to help you raise the bar for every candidate after you.
1.Tell Us About When You Had A Conflict With Your Fellow Team Member. How Did You Handle It?
This is a must-question and a prevailing situation for a product manager. Because product managers are often involved with cross-functional teams, this question aims to assess your conflict-management ability and your relationship and attitude towards your fellow workers. You can describe your prior experience working in groups, or you can take your time and relate this situation to any person or school scenario. There is no perfect answer, but there’s always a unique answer, so try it
2. How Did You Handle Negative Feedback From A User About Your Product? Were You Able To Resolve The User’s Issues?
To answer this question, you need to understand that user experience is essential for any product. If the user has genuine issues and your product cannot resolve his problems as promised, you need to sit with your team and iterate again. This question is about your critical thinking, user importance, and prioritization. For this question, follow a simple approach to showcase your integrity to admit and correct your mistakes and keep the users your priority.
3. Tell Us A Time When Your Team Handled An Important Project At The Last Minute.
It aims to test your time-management skills. A product team has a lot on their desks, and they need good prioritization for every project. In this answer, highlight how you strategize things and tools which you will use to stay up to date on your projects. This question is also about motivating your team in tight schedules so as not to let time affect the quality of the product.
4. How Did You Handle It When Your Product Could Not Convince The Stakeholders?
Behavioral questions are about behavior and attitude. This question is widespread as it assesses your integrity. Here, you have to be as polite and humble as possible to admit your weaknesses and potential. Remember, it is about your team spirit also. So, approach this question with an open mind to let the interviewer know every human is a pack of imperfect bricks yet has enough potential to stand firm in those harsh winds. Do not end your answer with just weaknesses because in topgrading interviewing, you must focus on shifting the tide towards your hidden capabilities.
5. Your Team Suffered A Failed Situation. How Will You Motivate Them To Focus On Other Projects?
Project management is the position for leaders. You are tasked with leading the product team to develop a product successfully. And, a team is not about commands; but about taking everyone higher with the right motivation. In a product development process, teams fail many times because a product has to suit the dynamic demands of the users. So focus on how you can maintain your team’s productivity in challenging situations and deliver a quality product.
Bottomline!
Product management needs people to understand current and future trends that will shape the market. You must interact with your team as a leader and as a co-worker; because the product team will bring the innovation that users want. Hence, looking at every question from diverse perspectives will give you an edge to crack any interview. These few sample questions will help you understand the physics of behavioral interviews. For more information on Product management interviews, visit Palarino’s website.
