Project Manager Interview Questions

Project Managers are agents of change. They use their skills and expertise to plan and execute projects in alignment with business goals. The ability to work under pressure, deal with change, and cultivate team skills are key traits of a project manager.

Landing a Project Manager role at a leading tech company is not easy. Tech companies receive thousands of applications for every job opening, making it difficult even to get shortlisted for interviews. Once shortlisted, cracking the interview is equally challenging with only the best landing offers.

Having trained over 9,000 software engineers, coding engineers, and software developers, we know what it takes to crack the toughest tech interviews. If you are preparing for a project manager interview, check out our technical interview checklist and interview questions page to get interview-ready!

Also, read our salary negotiation e-book for specific insights and guidance on the best ways to negotiate your compensation at any interview.

In this article, we cover the following aspects of a project manager interview:

• What Makes the Project Manager Interview Process Unique?
• Project Manager Interview Questions
• Project Manager Behavioral Interview Questions
• Project Manager Interview FAQs

What Makes the Project Manager Interview Process Unique?

Project Manager interviews follow similar processes across most FAANG companies. However, the process may differ in terms of the number of rounds of interviews conducted and the type of questions asked. Some companies, Google for one, ensure candidates have exceptional coding skills. Facebook, on the other hand, prioritizes candidates being a good cultural fit.

However, one thing common across all interview processes is that you’ll be tested on your behavioral and coding skills for the role of a Project Manager.

FAANG Project Manager Interview Process

The project manager interview processes at FAANG companies are similar to most Tier-1 tech companies. The Project Manager interview process comprises three main rounds of interviews:

1. The Technical Phone Screen Interview
2. The Onsite Interview (comprising 3-5 rounds of coding and other technical skill assessments)
3. The Behavioral Interview

Project Manager Interview Questions

Project Manager coding interview questions are based on algorithms, data structures, and large-scale distributed systems. The Project Manager behavioral interview will feature a lot of questions based on projects you have worked on.

We will cover sample questions on each of these topics in the sections below.

Project Manager Interview Questions

When it comes to data structures and algorithms, you can expect questions based on the following topics at the interview:

• Arrays
• Trees
• Stacks
• Recursion
• Binary Search
• Insertion Sort
• Bubble Sort
• Selection Sort
• Breadth-First Search
• Dynamic Programming
• Divide and Conquer
• Stacks and Queues

Project Manager Interview Questions and Answers on Data Structures and Algorithms

1. Given a variety of coin types defining a currency system, find the minimum number of coins required to express a given amount of money. Assume an infinite supply of coins of every type. (Solution)
2. Find all palindromic decompositions of a given string ‘s.’ (Solution)
3. Sort a given singly linked list in ascending order. (Solution)

Here are a few more questions for practice:

4. Given ‘n’ pairs of numbers where the first number is smaller than the second number in each pair. If c<f, a certain pair [a,b] takes numbers from two different pairs [c,d] and [e,f].
5. Given two strings, ‘S’ and ‘K,’ write a program to find the longest common substring.
6. Given a string ‘s’ containing a set of words, transform it such that the words appear in the reverse order. Words in ‘s’ are separated by one or more spaces.
7. You are given alphanumeric strings ‘s’ and ‘t.’ Find the minimum window (substring) in ‘s,’ which contains all the characters of ‘t.’
8. Write a program to find the longest subsequence in two given strings, ‘str1’ and ‘str2’.
9. Write a code to convert a given set of integers into their Roman number equivalents.
10. Write a program to find out if a given number “N” is sparse. (A number is said to be sparse if no two bits are in binary representation).
11. Write a program to find the lowest common ancestor of two nodes of a given binary tree “B” with unique values.
12. Given a binary tree “B” with unique values, write a program to find: The longest consecutive sequence and the length of the longest path comprising connected nodes with consecutive values.
13. Given K sorted arrays ‘arr’, of size ‘N’ each, merge them into a new array ‘res,’ such that ‘res’ is a sorted array.
14. Given an array of numbers nums of size ‘n,’ find an array of numbers products of size ‘n,’ such that products[i] is the product of all numbers nums[j], where j != i.
15. Given an array of integers ‘arr’ of size ‘n,’ which is analogous to a continuous stream of integers input, find ‘K’ largest elements from a given stream of numbers.
16. Given a list of meeting time intervals consisting of start and end times [[s1, e1], [s2, e2], ...] (si < ei). complete ‘canAttendAllMeetings’ function and return ‘1’ if a person can attend all given meetings, else ‘0’.
17. Given a sequence, return its next lexicographically greater permutation. If such a permutation does not exist, then return it in ascending order.
18. Try to solve the problem with a constant amount of additional memory.

Technical Project Manager Interview Questions on System Design

Below is a list of common systems design questions asked at PM technical interviews:

1. How would you design a search engine?
2. Design a parking lot
3. Design an API rate limiter
4. Design a proximity server
5. Design a traffic control system
6. Design a URL shortening service like bit.ly
7. Design a limit order book for trading systems
8. Design a ticketing management system for a theatre
9. Design an autocomplete feature for a search engine
10. Design a client-server application that lets people play Chess on a social network

Read How to Crack a System Design Interview to understand the best way to approach system design interview questions.

Project Manager Behavioral Interview Questions

Behavioral interviews are an integral part of the hiring process for a Project Manager role. We’ve compiled the different types of behavioral questions to help you prepare for the project manager interview.

Project Manager Interview Questions on Collaboration and Teamwork

1. How do you feel about working in a team?
2. Do you prefer working in a team or working independently?
3. What role have you played in team situations?
4. Provide examples of teamwork
5. What makes your teamwork skills unique?
6. How can you become a better team member?
7. How would your previous team describe you?
8. What is your preferred style of communication with your team?
9. Have you ever had difficulty working with a manager or other team members?
10. Describe a challenging workplace situation
11. How would you handle a coworker contributing below expectations?
12. What if your coworker takes credit for your work?
13. What strategies would you use to motivate your team?
14. How would you contribute to our team culture?
15. Describe a time you went above and beyond for your team
16. How do you rate your collaboration skills?

Project Manager Interview Questions on Work-life Balance

1. How do you maintain work-life balance?
2. How often do you think employees need vacations?
3. Do vacations help a person’s work-life balance?
4. How do you handle work pressure, especially tight deadlines?
5. Describe a time you coped with stress to achieve desired results on a project
6. Do you pursue outdoor activities? Does it help improve your performance at work?
7. How important is mental health? How do you take care of your mental health?

Project Manager Interview Questions on Relationships With Superiors / Managers

1. Describe an ideal boss
2. Describe your boss in one line
3. What was the most serious piece of criticism you received from your boss?
4. How do you handle criticism?
5. How would you deal with your boss making an incorrect decision regarding a client?

Project Manager Interview Questions on Adaptability

1. How would you adapt to a different company culture?
2. How do you handle situations you have no control over?
3. How would you accommodate abrupt, last-minute changes from the client?
4. How would you strategize implementing new technology or processes in your team?
5. How would you deal with resistance to change from your team?
6. How would you handle team members who follow inefficient practices?

Project Manager Interview Questions on Past Projects?

1. What is your most successful project to date?
2. What was the last project you worked on?
3. Have you ever missed a project deadline?
4. Have you ever crossed a project’s budget?
5. What is the biggest mistake you made on a project?
6. How have your mistakes changed your approach towards projects?
7. What is the most challenging project you have worked on?
8. Have your decisions ever been challenged by your colleagues?
9. Describe how you motivated a project member to achieve a goal
10. Describe an instance when a client was not satisfied with the project’s result.

IT Project Manager Interview Questions

1. What is your go-to project management methodology?
2. Which project management software do you prefer and why?
3. What project management tools have you worked with? Which ones do you prefer?
4. How proficient are you in [software/tool]?
5. Do you have experience with process development?
6. What is the first thing you do when you’re assigned a new project?
7. What steps would you take to assess project risks?
8. Describe how you schedule projects and establish project timelines.
9. Describe your budget management skills.
10. Describe your task prioritization strategy.
11. How would you manage remote team members and outsourced resources?
12. What is the difference between Agile and Scrum?
13. How would you plan an Agile project?
14. Explain the three main Agile frameworks.

Agile Project Manager Interview Questions

1. What is the difference between Agile and Scrum?
2. How would you plan an Agile project?
3. Explain the three main Agile frameworks.
4. How do you tackle scope creep?

Check out these tips to crack interviews like a pro.

Project Manager Interview FAQs

Q. How do I prepare for my Project Manager interview?

A. Project Manager interviews vary across roles and regions. You should start by visiting the career page of the interviewing company to understand the role requirements of the job you’re interviewing for. Also, sign up for a technical interview preparation course and avail experts guidance on the technical interview process at FAANG companies.

Q. How long is a typical Project Manager interview process?

A. Project Manager interview processes can last for approximately 6-8 weeks after your application is shortlisted.

Q. What is the average salary of a Project Manager in the U.S.?

A. The average salary of a project manager in the U.S is $88,619 per year.

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