Interviewing for a project manager role, a project coordinator role, a project engineer role, or a project analyst role? Look no further!
Pocket Board mentor Erika G. is a seasoned project manager and program manager who has hired dozens of people into project management roles in her companies, including Google.
This video will teach you the top 5 most common role-related skills that companies will assess in project management interviews, key points to cover when you respond to interview questions for each of these skill areas, and some icing-on-the-cake intangible qualities that you can demonstrate to stand out from other candidates.
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### Skill 1: Leadership, Communication & Influence ###
What Interviewers are Assessing: Can you communicate in a structured way and use data to anchor your arguments whenever possible?
Key Points (to discuss): (1) you use data to anchor arguments, (2) you communicate different ways to different audiences, (3) you communicate at the right level + frequency to maintain alignment, (4) you proactively identify ways to improve communication and alignment
Intangibles (to demonstrate): (1) leadership skills, (2) influencing without authority
Common Question: Tell me about a time where you worked to gain buy in for an idea.
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### Skill 2: Execution ###
What Interviewers are Assessing: Can you systematically explain how you plan and manage projects, and how you measure success.
Key Points (to discuss): (1) you set project-level goals, (2) you ensure proper resourcing, (3) you regularly track & communicate progress toward major milestones & goals, (3) you identify when goals are at risk, (4) you mitigate or problem solve to create solutions, (5) you deliver projects on time, within budget, and meeting requirements
Intangibles (to demonstrate): (1) leadership, (2) data orientation, (3) proactivity, (4) resilience & ability to turn failure into a success
Common Question: Tell me about a time when a team you were leading failed to meet a key goal.
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### Skill 3: Risk Management ###
What Interviewers are Assessing: Can you systematically identify and mitigate risks, and if they turn into issues, are you able to broker timely, resource-efficient solutions that keep the project on track for its goals?
Key Points (to discuss): (1) you track risks proactively, (2) you create risk mitigation plans, 4) you mitigate risks when possible, (5) you effectively escalate when an issue occurs, (6) you mitigate or problem solve to resolve issues
Intangibles (to demonstrate): (1) good judgement, (2) domain expertise (certain risks happen more in certain fields), (3) leadership, (4) communication
Common Question: Tell me about the most difficult unforeseen issue that popped up on a complex project you were managing.
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### Skill 4: Stakeholder Management ###
What Interviewers are Assessing: Are you proactive about managing stakeholders by constantly making sure everyone is aligned and aware of the current state of the project?
Key Points (to discuss): (1) you identify all stakeholders and know what they want/need from the project, (2) you communicate effectively (forums, frequency, content) with each stakeholder, (3) you understand key stakeholders and always ensure their needs are met (this is often the client, customer, or user).
Intangibles (to demonstrate): (1) influencing without authority, (2) ability to manage up, (3) leadership & communication skills, (4) work values & professionalism
Common Question: Tell me about a time when there was misalignment at the leadership level that negatively impacted your project.
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### Skill 5: Passion ###
What Interviewers are Assessing: Are you passionable about aligning and leading teams toward a common goal, and driving projects forward to fulfill those goals?
Key Points (to discuss): What drives you to be a project manager (this can be many things)/
Common Question: What do you love most about project management?
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Link to Part 2 of this video series: https://youtu.be/oxsMD4HtEWI
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Make sure to subscribe to get the latest mentoring tips & career advice from Pocket Board mentors!
https://www.youtube.com/c/PocketBoardMentorship
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#interviewtips #projectmanagerinterviewtips #projectmanagementinterviews
Pocket Board mentor Erika G. is a seasoned project manager and program manager who has hired dozens of people into project management roles in her companies, including Google.
This video will teach you the top 5 most common role-related skills that companies will assess in project management interviews, key points to cover when you respond to interview questions for each of these skill areas, and some icing-on-the-cake intangible qualities that you can demonstrate to stand out from other candidates.
------
### Skill 1: Leadership, Communication & Influence ###
What Interviewers are Assessing: Can you communicate in a structured way and use data to anchor your arguments whenever possible?
Key Points (to discuss): (1) you use data to anchor arguments, (2) you communicate different ways to different audiences, (3) you communicate at the right level + frequency to maintain alignment, (4) you proactively identify ways to improve communication and alignment
Intangibles (to demonstrate): (1) leadership skills, (2) influencing without authority
Common Question: Tell me about a time where you worked to gain buy in for an idea.
------
### Skill 2: Execution ###
What Interviewers are Assessing: Can you systematically explain how you plan and manage projects, and how you measure success.
Key Points (to discuss): (1) you set project-level goals, (2) you ensure proper resourcing, (3) you regularly track & communicate progress toward major milestones & goals, (3) you identify when goals are at risk, (4) you mitigate or problem solve to create solutions, (5) you deliver projects on time, within budget, and meeting requirements
Intangibles (to demonstrate): (1) leadership, (2) data orientation, (3) proactivity, (4) resilience & ability to turn failure into a success
Common Question: Tell me about a time when a team you were leading failed to meet a key goal.
------
### Skill 3: Risk Management ###
What Interviewers are Assessing: Can you systematically identify and mitigate risks, and if they turn into issues, are you able to broker timely, resource-efficient solutions that keep the project on track for its goals?
Key Points (to discuss): (1) you track risks proactively, (2) you create risk mitigation plans, 4) you mitigate risks when possible, (5) you effectively escalate when an issue occurs, (6) you mitigate or problem solve to resolve issues
Intangibles (to demonstrate): (1) good judgement, (2) domain expertise (certain risks happen more in certain fields), (3) leadership, (4) communication
Common Question: Tell me about the most difficult unforeseen issue that popped up on a complex project you were managing.
------
### Skill 4: Stakeholder Management ###
What Interviewers are Assessing: Are you proactive about managing stakeholders by constantly making sure everyone is aligned and aware of the current state of the project?
Key Points (to discuss): (1) you identify all stakeholders and know what they want/need from the project, (2) you communicate effectively (forums, frequency, content) with each stakeholder, (3) you understand key stakeholders and always ensure their needs are met (this is often the client, customer, or user).
Intangibles (to demonstrate): (1) influencing without authority, (2) ability to manage up, (3) leadership & communication skills, (4) work values & professionalism
Common Question: Tell me about a time when there was misalignment at the leadership level that negatively impacted your project.
------
### Skill 5: Passion ###
What Interviewers are Assessing: Are you passionable about aligning and leading teams toward a common goal, and driving projects forward to fulfill those goals?
Key Points (to discuss): What drives you to be a project manager (this can be many things)/
Common Question: What do you love most about project management?
-------
Link to Part 2 of this video series: https://youtu.be/oxsMD4HtEWI
-------
Make sure to subscribe to get the latest mentoring tips & career advice from Pocket Board mentors!
https://www.youtube.com/c/PocketBoardMentorship
-----
#interviewtips #projectmanagerinterviewtips #projectmanagementinterviews
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- Management

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