Preparing for your project management job interview is important, here are some tips to help you feel confident and ready.
Tip 1: Review the profiles of the interviewers on LinkedIn and any info you can find about them online. Keep the info to yourself but it might help you feel more comfortable before the interview if you know a little about them.
Tip 2: Remember the STAR method. Remember to use the STAR method if/ when the interviewer asks a behavioral or situational question (such as “Give us an example of when you had to meet timeline, but your timeline was delayed”).
(S) Situation - What’s the context? Give some background info to set the stage.
(T) Task - Talk about the the task or goal that you were working on and what the issue was here
(A) Action - How did you fix the situation? Describe your process and the steps you took.
(R) Results - Describe the results of your actions. Did you increase revenue? Did you resolve a serious conflict among the project team? Brag about your accomplishment in the specific situation here!
Tip 3: Think about three projects that you worked on and have an example of a WIN situation and an example of a LOSE situation for each of those projects. Also think about the WHY (Why was it a win? Why was it a lose, or in other words what would you have done better to improve it?) Come prepared with these examples. Do not talk about the “LOSE” situations unless you are specifically asked for a weakness or to explain a time that a project failed.
Questions that you can ask the interview(s) at the end of the session:
1. What would you say are the biggest challenges of this position?
2. (If not already discussed or not in the job description) What PM tools do you prefer to use internally?
3. What are you looking for in a candidate?
4. About how many projects would someone in this role be handling at once?
5. Think about something that is important to you and jot those questions down.
AFTER THE INTERVIEW
1. Send thank you notes to each of the interviewers (separately)
2. Write down what you LOVED.
3. Write down what you didn’t love.
4. Write down RED FLAGS.