SmartAsset Product Manager Interview Questions
& Process

I started with an initial meeting with the hiring manager. That was followed by a virtual onsite where I met with four people consecutively. After the onsite, I worked on a case study and then presented it to four interviewers. The final stage involved a meeting with the CPO.

My overall interview process was alright. It started with an initial HR screening call. Unfortunately, the person scheduled for my first interview never showed up. After following up with HR, they rescheduled me with someone who was a level below the previous interviewer and on the same level as the position I was applying for. I enjoyed speaking with her, and then I moved on to a case study, which along with several other interviews, took about 3 hours. During that time, I spoke with two director-level interviewers from their product team. They mentioned that the next steps would be a reference check, and then an offer if everything checked out. The following Monday, HR emailed me asking for my reference contact information, which got me excited about moving forward. After my references were contacted, I emailed HR again and was informed that the reference check was complete and someone from HR would contact me in a day or two. Then, I received an email from one of the directors I spoke with, informing me that a final interview with the Chief Product Officer had been unexpectedly added. This last round felt completely out of the blue. I was initially told it would be a casual chat about my background and interests, but I was blindsided by unexpected, out-of-left-field questions and technical jargon, making it feel like an ambush. I felt I handled it well, providing reasonable answers, and I inquired about the next steps. The CPO mentioned that due to the holidays, HR was a bit slow but I should hear back within the week. After the new year, I was informed they decided not to move forward because another candidate was a better fit. This was frustrating, especially after my references were contacted and I was told that was the step before an offer. All interviewers, including the CPO, had indicated they were looking to expand their product team significantly. The lack of transparency was disappointing, especially since they emphasized transparency during the interviews. I enjoyed meeting most of the people and believed I would have been a good fit. I don't have hard feelings about the decision itself, as I understand they need to do what's best for the company. However, the unprofessionalism of the process, including being told one thing and then having a random interview added, was disappointing. The overall lack of transparency was also a letdown. The experience of the previous poster for the Product Manager role was almost identical to mine, just with a longer response time. It wasn't just my time that was wasted; my references' time was also wasted as they had to fill out a questionnaire, and I know for a fact it wasn't their fault I didn't get the offer, as they are references I've used successfully before. I wouldn't recommend wasting time applying here, as they don't seem serious about hiring qualified candidates, especially given how we were treated.

The interview process was a bit of a mess, not really in order and with poor communication. I ended up talking to a second-tier interviewer before even knowing who they were. It was frustrating because I went through four interview rounds, including a 2.5-hour interview day and a three-hour case study, only to be rejected by the recruiter with no feedback. I put a lot of work into that case study and my presentation. I met with several team members that day and felt a good connection. I thought that was the final stage, but then they added a last interview with the C-level for the department. It was way more intense than I expected, full of high-level jargon and theories. I think that's where I lost focus, but honestly, the questions were kind of strange. It's really disappointing not to get any feedback after all that effort, and not even to hear back from the company directly. Based on my experience, I think I would have gotten the job if it weren't for that final interview, which makes me feel like they don't trust their hiring team's judgment. Overall, the team seemed strong and the people I spoke with were good, although I didn't appreciate the C-level interview 'bs.' It seems like every tech company wants to interview like Google now, but even Google gives you a response.