How to answer behavioral questions in PM Interviews

Behavioral Questions

The Behavioral Round focuses on assessing your past experiences, behavior, and decision-making in professional settings.

During the Behavioral Round, interviewers are looking to evaluate several key attributes:

1. Communication Skills
2. Problem-Solving Abilities
3. Leadership and Teamwork
4. Decision-Making
5. Adaptability and Resilience

For example, you can be asked — “Tell me about the challenge you had with your co-worker and how you handled it?” Through this question, the interviewer wants to check your communication skills, your ability to take decisions and stakeholder management.

Here are a few sample behavioral questions you might encounter:

• Describe a time when you had to navigate conflicting priorities on a project.
• Can you share an example of a successful product launch you were involved in? What was your role, and how did you contribute to its success?
• Tell me about a time when you had to influence stakeholders who were resistant to your ideas.

Why it matters

Seeing a list of skills is all well and good, but an interview also gives a company a chance to gauge how you behave in different situations. They want to know that you work well in high-pressure environments, that you’re able to influence without authority, and manage stakeholder expectations. Behavioral questions provide insights into your past behavior and experiences, offering valuable clues about your future performance as a Product Manager.

Let’s talk about the “How”

I know the question you have right now is — How can I prepare for this round then?

To excel in the Behavioral Round, follow these tips:

1. Prepare Stories: Identify key experiences from your past that demonstrate relevant skills and qualities. Structure these experiences using the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) for clarity and coherence.
2. Be Specific: Provide concrete examples and details in your responses. Use specific anecdotes, metrics, and outcomes to illustrate your points and make your stories memorable.
3. Highlight Leadership: Emphasize instances where you’ve taken initiative, led teams, or influenced outcomes. Showcase your ability to inspire others, drive results, and navigate challenges effectively.
4. Stay Positive: Even when discussing challenging situations or failures, focus on the lessons learned and your growth from the experience. Frame setbacks as opportunities for development and improvement.
5. Practice Active Listening: Pay attention to the interviewer’s questions and cues. Listen actively, ask clarifying questions if needed, and tailor your responses to address the interviewer’s concerns.

During the interview, make sure that you understand the INTENT of the question. Do not try to force-fit any of the prepared answers, but rather take 1 or 2 seconds to understand what the interviewer is trying to know.

Use your best judgment to think about what type of skill the interviewer is trying to evaluate here (leadership, problem-solving, etc.), gather your thoughts, and then speak.

Common Behavioral Questions

You must be sharing why am I not sharing the “how to solve it part” today. Because behavioral questions are stories and mostly test your communication skills. It’s hard to teach soft skills by telling you my story, it’s something you learn by practicing.

So, here are some of the most common questions:

1. Tell me about a time you pivoted strategies and stakeholders disagreed.
2. Tell me about a time you had to make a decision to make short-term sacrifices for long-term gains
3. Tell me about a time you handled a difficult stakeholder.
4. Tell me about a time you made a mistake.
5. Tell me about a time you had a conflict with someone. How did you resolve it and what did you learn?
6. What product that you led are you most proud of and why?
7. Tell me about a time you’ve solved pain points for customers.
8. What was your biggest failure as a product manager?
9. Describe a situation where you negotiated a win-win situation.
10. Tell me about a time you used a specific metric to drive change in your department.

Obviously these are just the most popular ones, and there can be multiple questions about you and your past work. But having a story bank covering all these questions should be more than enough for you to encounter any question.

Do you want to become a Product Manager?

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If that isn’t enough or doesn’t help and if you want a more personalised learning experience, consider joining our Product Management Cohort at Crework — Apply now (Click here)