PM Interview Questions

The document outlines an individual's experience and philosophy in project management, particularly in startup environments. It discusses their use of various project management tools, the importance of strategic vision, and methods for handling unproductive team members. Additionally, it emphasizes the significance of empathy as a key skill for project managers.

Uploaded by

sahil mehta

We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.

Available Formats

Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

0% found this document useful (0 votes)

0 views2 pages

PM Interview Questions

Uploaded by

sahil mehta

We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.

Available Formats

Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

You are on page 1/ 2

PM Interview Questions

What is your experience in project management, especially for startups?

In some respect, everything is a project. In startups that I have worked we have spent most of our
time on finding product/market fit and using the basic principles that Ash Maurya outlines in his
book, Running Lean. This is based on Lean Startup and Alex Osterwalder’s Business Model
Generation. These are good outlines to follow, but they are not project management tools.
Projects have a beginning and an ending point. They must be defined in scope. These tools
provide strategic vision and direction. I encourage project members to have a basic
understanding, such as the Business Model Canvas, of the overall business. This clarity along
with a clear project scope allows for good decision making throughout the organization. Lack of
clarity breeds ambiguity and prevents tasks from being performed.

What software or methodology have you used to manage projects in the past? I may show my
age a little here, but I started with Microsoft Project when it came on (2) 5¼ inch floppy disk. I
have used more software packages than most are familiar with. My favorite is Trello which is a
Kanban (Agile) style of software. Kanban is a sophisticated online card board. It has become
very popular in the software development industry. I also have used Smartsheet for people that
want to use a Gantt Chart type. Both of these are in the cloud and allow for online collaboration.
However, all software has shortcomings; one size does not fit all. Actually, in the truest sense
there no such thing as project management software, they are all project scheduling software.
Project Management in its truest form is winning the competition for someone’s time –there is
only 1440 minutes in a day.

Are you passionate about entrepreneurship and can you help define a strategic vision? I
realize the importance of having a strategy. The old saying of strategy before tactics has never
been truer. As the pace of change has accelerated the more important it is to communicate and
define the strategic vision. This is why I promote understanding the business throughout the
organization using the Business Model Canvas. People sometimes have mistaken that as being
rigid and inflexible. It is not. Transferring vision to strategies to actions is one ingredient that
will separate me from others.

What was your actual role in the last project you participated in? My latest work has centered
on working as a marketing consultant. I have led from the middle and been assigned additional
duties as the project has developed. I am working on bringing a product to market and managing
the marketing platform for a client at this time. This job is winding down after launch, and I will
stay on in an advisory capacity, I assume. In most instances, I have been the outside consultant
managing outside vendors and reporting to an owner of the company.

Would you consider yourself analytical? Give an example of how you have used this skill in
your career. I am a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt, not sure how more analytical you can get! I
spend a lot of time with clients developing metrics that matter. In fact, I have taken over several
Hubspot accounts and demonstrated how to transfer the data into useable form. It is not about
the amount of data, but the ability to use what you can gather effectively and without the extra
burden on the workflow. For example, yesterday we have a platform that the callers used to
populate a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet for their initial calls. When they are successful they enter
the client into the Hubspot workflow. We developed and auto-populated sheet to identify the
results of the process. This seems pretty basic, but I could discuss surveys, the use of Mini-Tab,
Multi-Vari Studies, Regression Models….I am a Six Sigma Black Belt.

How do you handle unproductive team members? Empathy first and reflection second: I have
found that many times it is a lack of clarity and having CLEAR Communication. If you wish to
compete on clarity, and speed up implementation, you must provide this information, or create
ways for people to figure it out themselves.

1. Connection to their workload

2. List action steps
3. Expectations for success
4. Ability to achieve success
5. Return to that person

If you have done all that and performance is still not being achieved, I reduce workload and take
away critical tasks and work with the person individually even to the point of screen sharing to
see if the person is just over their head. Once I understand, I try to form a mutual understanding
of what the next steps are needed without affecting project performance. If the person is indeed
overhead, seldom have they not readily admitted it during this process.

How do you motivate burnt out or bored team members? When people choose between being
compliant, acting with full commitment or doing nothing at all, these are the five questions they
think about, and need answered:

1. How is this relevant to what they do?

2. What, specifically, should they be doing?
3. What do success and failure look like?
4. What tools and support are needed?
5. WIIFM – What’s in it for me? Or, what’s in it for them?

Motivation is often times a matter of engagement. Having these people engaged in team
meetings is imperative. Being recognized and being accountable to members of the team versus
the “Project Manager” is imperative.

What is the most important skill a project manager should have? Empathy is the fundamental
principle of understanding. I will not tell you that I was born with this, but it is a skill that I have
had to work on and aware of it in my daily practice.