Notes

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the founders here at product manager hq
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i'm also the head of product and founder
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for a software company called squibbler
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and today i'm going to share with you 20
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must-know product owner interview
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questions and answers that recruiters
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ask to gauge how capable a candidate is
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for the position
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if you're watching this video and you're
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in search of a job as a product owner
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then this is perfect for you as knowing
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how to answer key product owner
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questions will help you to prepare for
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your interview and hopefully give you a
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leg up over other candidates but first
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don't forget to hit that subscribe
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0:37
whenever we post new and insightful
0:39
videos just like this one that way
0:42
you'll always be guaranteed to get your
0:43
fair share of high quality instructional
0:45
content from real product management
0:48
experts before we get into the actual
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questions and answers we need to talk
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about how product owner interviews
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should be structured
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most times when interviews are conducted
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whether it's for a product owner project
1:00
manager bank teller or really any
1:02
position in general recruiters put
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together a number of questions that they
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think are the most ideal to determine
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how good a candidate is for the
1:11
advertised job
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usually to help with question
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brainstorming recruiters reflect on the
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kinds of tasks that they expect the
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candidate to fulfill
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and then generate questions to suit that
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product owner interviews should follow a
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similar format that way you ensure that
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you have all the bases covered after all
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product owners assume multi-dimensional
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roles within the companies they work for
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the responsibilities they carry out
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force them to interact with multiple
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groups including teams departments and
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even customers themselves the only way
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to truly ensure that you touch on all
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the important questions that you need to
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ask is if you group your questions into
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segments which is precisely what we've
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done in this video
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the product owner questions and answers
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we'll be presenting are divided into six
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segments
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the product owner role
2:03
engagement with external stakeholders
2:06
interaction with internal stakeholders
2:09
product roadmap planning
2:11
user stories products backlog
2:13
and sprint planning implementation
2:15
respectively let's start off with the
2:17
questions in a segment for product owner
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role these are meant to get a grasp of
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how well the candidate understands the
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job responsibilities of a product owner
2:27
the first question in this segment is
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straightforward and simple what do you
2:31
expect from this job as a product owner
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the question is supposed to be an
2:34
opening question that lets the candidate
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provide an overview of their exposure it
2:39
would tell you how prepared the
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candidate is for the interview and how
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much of an expert they are in their
2:44
field each answer to this question will
2:47
be different depending on the industry
2:49
company and products however there are
2:51
some commonalities you should look for a
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few key words you should be looking for
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include sprint planning sprint
2:57
retrospective grooming and sprint review
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if the candidate mentions these
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activities you know that they have the
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relevant knowledge and experience after
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we've broken the ice with the first
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question from the second question onward
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we start to dive more into the knowledge
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that candidates have of the product
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owner role the second question tests
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just that ask candidates the following
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do you think it's a good idea to have
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one person performing both the scrum
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product owner roll and the scrum master
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role now generally speaking unless the
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candidate has some
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brilliant way to justify or explain
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otherwise the answer to this question is
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no scrum masters and product owners have
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different responsibilities and mixing
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them will always have a negative impact
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on the development process the scrum
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master acts as a mediator between the
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product owner and the development team
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therefore if the same person plays both
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roles a conflict of interest would arise
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we move on to the third question within
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the product owner role do you have
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experience working with a scrum
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framework this question is essential
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since every product owner needs to have
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a basic understanding of the scrum
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framework the answer to this question
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will give you an idea of how well the
4:10
candidate understands the framework
4:12
their knowledge of the framework can be
4:13
a baseline on what you can expect from
4:15
the candidate answering the question
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would be different for every product
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owner but a few elements should remain
4:21
the same ideally the candidate should
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define scrum and share as much of their
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knowledge about the framework as
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possible
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for example their answer should include
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a statement along the lines of scrum is
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an incremental way of providing value to
4:33
the end user in a timely manner
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then they can get into the origin of the
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framework and discuss the three
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fundamental roles that come along with
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it namely the product owner
4:44
the scrum team and the scrum master the
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fourth and final question within the
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product owner role segment is another
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open-ended question what other product
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discovery frameworks have you worked
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with yes it's true that scrum is the
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most widely used agile software
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development framework however that
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doesn't mean it's always the best model
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for every situation once again the
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answers provided will vary there's
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nothing wrong with a candidate who's
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familiar with the agile framework
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however more often than not more
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experienced candidates will have
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experience with kanban or waterfall
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while knowing multiple frameworks may
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not be a specific requirement for your
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project the added knowledge will help
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your candidate make a judgment of the
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best approach to take throughout the
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various stages of product development
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now that we've completed the questions
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for the product owner roles segment let
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us now move on to the second segment
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engagement with external stakeholders
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the questions here help to hire managers
5:39
and understand the level of experience
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that candidates have in conducting
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customer interviews and getting feedback
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from users
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the first question in this segment and
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fifth overall is who do you consider to
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be the most important psh this question
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is really important one of the most
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important things to establish in an
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interview is whether the product owner
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understands whom they're targeting
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because their job requires them to
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understand the external stakeholders and
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develop the product accordingly
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in responding one of the first things
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that a candidate should do is to list
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out all the stakeholders in the product
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development process while these will
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vary from project to project generally
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speaking the most common ones are
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customers regulators professionals
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sponsors and key decision makers once
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they've done so the answer to the
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question should be that all stakeholders
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hold equal importance the potential
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product owner must understand that each
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stakeholder plays a key role in the
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process and why each of those
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stakeholders is important to interact
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with furthermore it's a plus point if
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they can explain how each stakeholder
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contributes to the process the second
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and final question within the engagement
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with external stakeholders segment is a
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very direct one how much time do you
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give to understanding customer needs and
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user research during product discovery
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this question will force candidates to
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dive into their own approach to product
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ownership and management their way of
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doing things in the rationalization
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tells you how well they understand the
7:09
entire process the answer to the
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question tends to be different depending
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on the company or product typically if
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someone says they dedicate 50 of their
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time to user research that's a positive
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sign however they say that they spend 20
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or less time they're not doing enough
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they might be ignoring customer feedback
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and market conditions and are probably
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not the best product owner for the job
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we now move on to the third segment
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interaction with external stakeholders
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as you know working with different
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internal stakeholders is also a big
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piece of the product owner role the
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following questions give recruiters an
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idea of the level of familiarity that
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candidates have in this area the first
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question within this segment and seventh
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overall
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really helps you to dig deep and see how
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a candidate maneuvers through delicate
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matters within product management the
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question here is how do you deal with
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uncooperative stakeholders this question
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will put candidates on the spot no doubt
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however understanding the product
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owner's process includes determining how
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they deal with issues and roadblocks
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many times product owners have to face
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uncooperative stakeholders and that puts
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hurdles in the discovery phase while
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each person has a different way of
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dealing with these hurdles product
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owners always have to be respectful in
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the end therefore the answer should
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involve a diplomatic solution where the
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product owner continually engages with
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the stakeholders to win their confidence
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the product owner should demonstrate the
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value of agile product development and
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continue discussions if all else fails
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they should seek help from the sponsors
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however what's most important is that
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product owners maintain their composure
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and behave diplomatically at all times
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still in the third section with
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interaction with external stakeholders
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our eighth interview question is the
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following do you have experience working
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in a scrum team unlike the third
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question on scrum framework where we
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were gauging how well a candidate is
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familiar with scrum from a theoretical
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point of view this question is more
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focused on diving into the lived
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experience of a candidate in the scrum
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environment after all a product owner
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should be able to distinguish different
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roles and teams involved in product
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development needless to say the
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responses you'll get will be buried most
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product owners have experience working
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in a scrum product team but not all of
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them
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however what recruiters are looking for
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in a candidate's response when answering
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is that the prospective product owner
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has an understanding of how team members
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work together in a scrum environment for
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the betterment of the product project
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where the product owner scrum master and
9:43
developers work together on sprint
9:45
measures project requirements and user
9:48
stories the ninth question in the
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product owner interview breakdown is
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another one that might catch candidates
9:53
off guard how do you explain your
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marketplace knowledge to the scrum team
9:58
while the product owner has the
10:00
marketplace knowledge needed to develop
10:01
a product vision the rest of the team
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doesn't
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it's the product owner's job to
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communicate the appropriate marketplace
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knowledge to the scrum team consequently
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the question is important because how
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candidates respond determines their
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ability to translate
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that knowledge in an understandable
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format that the rest of team can later
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assimilate
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traditionally marketplace knowledge is
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communicated through informal
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interactions
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however planning meetings and having a
10:30
formal discussion such as stand-ups is
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also a great way of explaining current
10:33
market trends to the scrum team
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our tenth question is the final one in
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the interaction with external
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stakeholders segment how do you go about
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updating the team on the product and
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market situation where do you source
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information once again we recommend
10:48
using another open-ended question since
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it'll give you greater insight into the
10:52
thought process and management approach
10:54
that different candidates use on the job
10:57
now one of a product owner's most
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important responsibilities to make the
11:02
team aware of any changing market
11:04
demands and priorities since a product
11:06
owner develops a vision it's their job
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to make sure everyone else understands
11:10
it too the answer should be more team
11:12
oriented and should exemplify the team's
11:14
importance
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as far as they possibly can product
11:19
owners should opt for team sprints and
11:21
group meetings as opposed to one-on-one
11:23
encounters with individual members
11:26
furthermore the answer should include
11:28
what information you should relay to the
11:30
teams that can consist of changing
11:32
market situations backlog changes
11:34
changing priorities and new product
11:36
requirements
11:37
we now move on to the fourth segment
11:39
product roadmap planning the questions
11:41
in this section will give candidates an
11:43
opportunity to go more in depth on their
11:45
skills as product owners the first
11:48
question this segment is yet another one
11:50
that'll put candidates on the spot
11:52
how would you redesign our product now
11:55
there's no doubt that different
11:56
candidates will give different responses
11:58
however candidates should answer this
11:59
question by first stating that they
12:01
would have to build a strategic roadmap
12:04
then they would give a brief outline of
12:06
the steps they would take in order to do
12:08
so they would first have to start by
12:09
understanding what exactly needs to be
12:11
improved about the product that happens
12:13
through internal and external
12:15
communication with customers engineers
12:19
customer support team and other
12:21
stakeholders then once the entire team
12:23
is on the same page technical product
12:25
owners would work with the engineering
12:27
team to develop unique features that add
12:29
value to users
12:30
that usually happens through processes
12:33
guided by a product owner or project
12:36
manager
12:37
of course not all companies have both a
12:40
product owner and a technical product
12:42
owner working side by side so the answer
12:45
provided would be tailored to suit your
12:47
company don't be surprised if candidates
12:49
ask you for more information about the
12:51
structure of your company as knowing it
12:53
would give them a greater insight on how
12:55
to go about
12:56
redesigning your product the next
12:59
question this segment is extremely
13:01
important since it'll give you direct
13:02
insight into how product owners develop
13:04
product roadmaps the question is
13:07
straightforward can you tell me about
13:09
the last time you developed a product
13:11
roadmap needless to say the answer to
13:13
this question will vary based on the
13:15
candidate's exposure and expertise for
13:17
example in smaller organizations a
13:19
product owner is likely to be directly
13:21
involved in the development of the
13:23
product roadmap in larger organizations
13:26
product owners would only provide their
13:27
input in any case the answer provided by
13:30
candidates should make mention of how
13:31
essential it is to follow the cone of
13:34
uncertainty about scope
13:36
following each iteration that is what
13:38
will demonstrate their understanding of
13:40
the product owner position and what is
13:42
required during the development life
13:44
cycle we move on to the next question
13:46
this segment how do you use the product
13:48
vision when building a product roadmap
13:50
this question helps recruiter to
13:52
understand if the candidate has a great
13:55
understanding of the product development
13:57
cycle from the product division right
13:59
down to the product launch and answering
14:01
this question the candidate should
14:02
explain the relationship between the
14:04
product vision and the product roadmap
14:06
usually they would begin by stating that
14:08
the product vision includes the purpose
14:10
image and value a product has and that
14:13
it explains why the product exists and
14:15
what purpose it will serve for the
14:17
customer
14:18
then they would relate it to the product
14:20
roadmap by saying that it should be
14:21
based on product vision since it is a
14:24
blueprint of how the vision will be
14:26
achieved it includes growth tactics
14:28
stakeholder alignment tactics budget
14:31
development a timeline goals milestones
14:34
and deliverables in development the
14:37
final question in this segment and 14th
14:38
overall is yet another one of those
14:40
questions that forced candidates to dive
14:42
into their past experience in product
14:44
management namely as it relates to
14:47
handling stakeholder desires after all
14:50
various stakeholders tend to suggest or
14:52
desire some changes for the product the
14:54
product owner has to satisfy every
14:56
product stakeholder to ensure product
14:59
success the question is as follows in
15:01
your last project how did stakeholder
15:03
feedback affect your product roadmap the
15:06
right answer would be that it encouraged
15:08
greater coordination and collaboration
15:10
with the stakeholders while planning the
15:12
product roadmap
15:13
in doing so the product owner would seek
15:16
the stakeholders input and feedback
15:18
while defining backlog items after all
15:20
this is a key to ensuring that
15:22
stakeholder wishes are taken care of we
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now move on to the fifth segment in this
15:27
six part interview segment this one is
15:29
titled user stories and product backlog
15:32
both them are crucial parts of product
15:34
and software development the following
15:36
questions are meant to give candidates
15:38
the chance to demonstrate their
15:39
experience with these aspects of product
15:42
development the first question this
15:44
segment is as follows
15:46
what should a good user story look like
15:49
this question is meant to check the
15:51
candidate's knowledge of a user story
15:53
structure as can be expected the
15:55
responses you get will be varied however
15:57
the common thread throughout all of them
15:59
should be that the user story should be
16:02
a true reflection of exactly how
16:04
customers will interact with the product
16:06
as you know the product owner is the
16:08
base of the customer they're the ones
16:11
who understand the customer or client
16:12
best
16:13
and as a result understand how a user
16:16
story will capture just that the next
16:19
question in this segment is the
16:20
following how do you go about backlog
16:22
prioritization it's no secret that
16:25
backlog prioritization is essential to
16:27
make sure the right features make it
16:29
into the final product and of course to
16:32
avoid technical debt
16:33
this question will show whether the
16:35
candidate is capable of effectively
16:37
prioritizing changes to existing product
16:40
features new features launches and bug
16:44
fixes ideally the best outcome would be
16:46
as a candidate mentions the moscow
16:48
method however if someone mentions and
16:50
explains stack ranking that would be a
16:53
good indicator of success too by now
16:55
candidates will be no stranger to
16:57
questions that put them on the spot
16:58
therefore the last question in this
17:00
segment shouldn't surprise them too much
17:02
what would you do if you're unable to
17:04
control the product backlog this
17:06
question is important as a product owner
17:08
has to be
17:09
in absolute control over the products
17:10
backlog items it's their job to make
17:12
sure that the backlog is healthy and
17:14
updated of course because of the nature
17:16
of the question their answers given will
17:19
be varied however the important thing is
17:22
that the candidate seems confident when
17:24
it comes to how they would handle
17:25
adversities setbacks or challenges in
17:27
their product backlog as we come to the
17:29
end of the interview it's important to
17:31
get a sense of how well candidates can
17:34
operate in an agile environment that's
17:36
why this segment is called sprint
17:38
planning and implementation in an agile
17:40
team a sprint is a set period of time
17:42
during which specific work has to be
17:45
completed and made ready for review if
17:48
candidates know how to effectively plan
17:50
organize and implement a sprint then the
17:52
chances are that they will be successful
17:54
in the job the first question in this
17:57
segment and 18th overall is the
17:59
following should you release every
18:01
sprint asking this question what tell
18:03
hiring managers whether potential
18:04
product owner understands the difference
18:06
between sprint planning and release
18:08
planning the answer is simple no
18:10
prospect product owners should know that
18:13
you don't have to release every sprint
18:15
while product deployment is a planning
18:17
activity and can be based on every
18:19
sprint
18:20
product release is purely business
18:22
and strategic activity development teams
18:24
will create the products
18:26
but any future decisions
18:28
are business decisions those decisions
18:30
are made along with the product manager
18:33
and the last question in this segment in
18:35
product interview process is quite an
18:36
interesting one to post to candidates
18:38
how would you explain what is a sprint
18:40
to someone who doesn't have experience
18:42
in product development this interview
18:44
question allows recruiters to evaluate
18:46
the candidate's ability to communicate
18:48
with different audiences you see
18:51
explaining what a sprint is to someone
18:52
who doesn't have familiarity with agile
18:55
development is not an easy task
18:57
candidates who don't have much
18:59
experience leading sprints will likely
19:01
use a few industry jargon
19:03
on the other hand candidates with strong
19:05
familiarity with product development
19:07
will be able to explain a sprint using
19:09
simple words ideally the answer would
19:12
highlight key characteristics about
19:13
sprints such as the fact that they are
19:16
short and protected from external
19:18
changes we've now come to the final
19:20
question our list of product owner
19:22
interview questions and answers
19:24
this last question is fundamental in
19:27
your hiring process
19:29
and the process of getting a job and it
19:31
will tell you how dedicated the product
19:33
owner will be to each brand or how
19:35
dedicated you are to each sprint the
19:36
question is as follows what do you think
19:38
can justify cancelling a sprint the
19:41
right answer would be that a
19:42
cancellation only occurs when there's a
19:44
drastic change in priorities for example
19:47
if some critical requirements with high
19:49
priority are suddenly marked as a low
19:52
priority there would be no point in
19:54
continuing further most importantly the
19:57
product owner can only make a call to
19:58
cancel a sprint they do not have
20:00
absolute power to do so a product
20:02
owner's job is complicated requires a
20:04
lot of knowledge and expertise as a
20:06
consequence finding the right candidate
20:08
to perform the job is not easy to say
20:10
the least hiring a great product owner
20:13
is essential as they are masterminds of
20:15
successful products for product owners
20:17
it's important to have the right
20:18
expertise and knowledge when you're
20:20
applying for the job the product owner
20:22
interview questions listed above are
20:24
common questions asked by recruiters if
20:27
you need to put together effective
20:28
interview questions feel free to use
20:30
these questions as inspiration if you're
20:32
on the other side of the table looking
20:34
to land a product owner job then make
20:37
sure you are able to answer these
20:38
questions with confidence and there we
20:41
have it if you enjoyed this video make
20:42
sure to like the video and subscribe to
20:44
our channel for more high quality
20:46
content about product management and
20:48
product ownership and i'll see you on
20:50
some of our following videos and again
20:51
my name is josh and i'm one of the
20:53
co-founders here at product manager hq
20:56
and i'm excited for you to take this
20:59
information and get the product owner
21:00
job that you want cheers