6 Product manager interview questions to prepare yourself for your next meeting

Vital to a company's success, product managers are found in nearly every industry. While each manager's product and methods might differ, the role remains the same: determine the customer's needs, and the company goals that a product will satisfy, and assist their team in manifesting that vision. But to help you get the job, we’ll prepare you for any product manager interview questions that might come your way.

In this article, we’ll discuss:

• How do you prepare for a product manager interview?

• What happens in a product manager interview?

• How to answer six common product manager interview questions

How do I prepare for a product manager interview?

Essentially, an effective product manager can create a roadmap and communicate to their team the project goals so that everyone is clear on expectations. You will also need to inform the team of changes and offer constructive criticism, direction, and support. 

When preparing for an interview for a product manager interview, keep in mind the following question: What do companies look for in a new product manager? Consider the following skills that are vital for the position: product strategy, communication, leadership, analytical skills, technical ability, and user experience best practices.

Interviews for a product manager position will require you to highlight both your soft skills, such as organization, problem-solving, and technical skills. Take inventory of your skills and brainstorm examples of situations where you successfully guided a project to completion. You'll also want to research the company you're interviewing with and work some of that information into your answers. Understand the parameters of the position and be prepared to demonstrate why you're the best candidate.

What happens in a product manager interview?

Knowing what to expect in an interview is half the battle. A product manager interview is very similar to interviews for other positions, but you need to be prepared to get into the weeds about your experience. 

Although every company is different, you can generally expect the following in a product manager interview:

• The interviewer will usually start with general questions. Interviewers may inquire why you're interviewing for this position, why you became a product manager, and your career goals.

• The interviewer will likely get more specific. You may be asked how your experience and training will benefit the new position. Basically, they’re asking, “What can you do for us?” You should be ready to talk about general product management matters such as generating ideas, developing product roadmaps, and supervising product releases.

• The interviewer may ask questions about your leadership skills. These can include how you motivate people or your leadership style. Be sure to have specific examples to demonstrate these skills.

• The interviewer will likely ask if you have questions for them. Avoid saying, "No, I don't!" This is a great opportunity to demonstrate that you've done your research and have some questions ready.

Interviews for product management positions aren’t always easy. But, if you’re prepared and have a positive attitude, you’ll be able to effectively communicate your business acumen, organizational and problem-solving skills, and technical background. 

6 Common product manager interview questions (and answers

In general, you’ll be asked two kinds of questions in your interview: situational and behavioral questions. Both are designed to gauge your experience, skills, and abilities. Situational questions demonstrate how you’d handle a hypothetical situation, and behavioral questions ask you to show how you’ve handled particular situations in the past. Remember, it’s important to show, not just tell. Come up with specific examples that you can use to formulate your answers.

Here are six common product manager interview questions and possible answers:

1. What are your strongest technical skills? 

Hiring managers ask this question because they want a personal assessment of your skills, whether it’s data collection or A/B testing. When putting together your answer, identify the project goals. Unless your interviewer has the same technical background as yourself, keep the jargon and technical explanations to a minimum. However, don’t be afraid to get specific and explain the project clearly.

"I'm an expert at SQL and can run detailed queries to extract the data I need. But I'm also very good at making sense of the large amount of raw data and visualizing it. I have regularly used Mixpanel and Tableau to turn that data into charts and graphs that I’m able to share with my team and other stakeholders, which makes technical information much easier to disseminate and understand.”

2. How would you describe our product to someone?

This is sort of a “gotcha" question if you think about it because the hiring manager wants to see whether or not you’ve researched the company. It will also show them if you understand the product enough to a potential customer. To answer this question, prepare an elevator pitch that emphasizes the distinct features of one of the company's best-known products.

“I know that the Model 1324P is one of your company’s best-selling crosscut paper shredders. If I were to describe it to a potential customer, I would tell them about its "easy switch," the auto start and stop features, reverse, and an indicator that tells the user then the bag is full. I’d also make sure to highlight the model’s safety protection system, which is an electronically-controlled safety shield to protect fingers from the internal blades, and the fact that it can also shred paper clips, credit cards, and staples, which is a real time-saver.”

3. How would you describe your communication style?

Think about it this way: the entire hiring process from start to finish is basically an appraisal of how you communicate with both team members and stakeholders, so it’s important you answer emails and phone calls promptly and ensure that they're clear and relevant. When they ask you questions about your communication style, they want to make sure you've got a handle on it. They also want to know you'd be a good fit for the company culture. 

“I ask my co-workers questions to make sure that I understand everyone’s point of view and utilize it during the project. It’s important to me that everyone involved knows exactly what our goals are and what I expect from them so I can adjust my communication style as necessary. This includes sending regular updates and giving the team the chance to access the progress notes so they always know where we are in the process. The main goal, however, is to have my team understand how what they’re doing contributes to the overall success of the project.”

4. Tell me how you’d manage a product launch

Product managers are involved with every facet of product design, from start to finish. Hiring managers ask this question to get a clear picture of how you strategize when putting a new product into the marketplace. Use the STAR method to create an answer that tells the interviewer about the product launch you managed including your thought process and the steps taken to make it happen.

“At my last company, we launched a new line of supportive shoe inserts specifically designed for people who are on their feet a lot at work, such as nurses, construction workers, and retail workers. We did a hard launch in six cities across the country in locations that these workers patronize. I worked with my team to organize pop-up presentations with trained spokespeople, and coordinated with the marketing department to provide customer incentives like BOGO coupons and discounts for multiple purchases.”

5. How do you determine if a product has a top-notch design?

This question is asked to gauge your technical and content knowledge and to determine what you understand about the design and quality assurance process. To craft your answer, give an example of a product you personally worked on and give details about your criteria for concluding the quality of a product design. 

"Two years ago, my team completed a design for a new ‘bullet blender.’ What made the product unique is that it had the same power as other blenders on the market, but it was half the size. It also performed well, as the prototype exceeded the specs in 11 out of 12 product tests. Our focus groups informed us that it’s easy to clean and doesn’t make a lot of noise, which they ranked as their most important criteria for a blender.”

6. How do you determine which product features are most important?

A product manager’s key responsibilities include making decisions and coordinating product development with the company's production goals. Answering this question will highlight how you handle customer needs, financial impacts, and technical viability. Concisely describe your methodology, whether it’s incorporating tools such as Jira, Pivotal Tracker, or Trello, as well as how you utilize customer feedback, company objectives, or market trends.

“I place a priority on product features based on three factors: technical viability, how it supports the company's financial goals, and the demands of our customers. In my previous position, I utilized the RICE scoring method to gauge the influence, scope, certainty, and energy used by each feature, while making sure our goals focused on significant but reasonable improvements that served the company’s long-term objectives.”

Need some help polishing your interviewing skills? Check out Career.io’s Interview Prep tool, which will help you get interview-ready with mock interviews, live recordings, and AI-generated insights.

Key takeaways

1. Working as a product manager requires you to be technically proficient, have the right education and training, and possess strong people skills. 

2. Interviews for a product manager position will require you to highlight your soft skills, such as organization, problem-solving, and coaching. 

3. In general, in your interview, you’ll be asked situational and behavioral questions. Use the STAR method to craft your answers.