How to Answer: Describe the roles you typically interact with the most as a program manager.
Advice and answer examples written specifically for a Microsoft job interview.
12. Describe the roles you typically interact with the most as a program manager.
Why the Interviewer Asks This Question
The program manager title can represent a wide scale of experience and responsibility within the IT industry. Some program manager positions at Microsoft are more technical than others. Some are responsible for larger budgets than others. Some manage mission-critical solutions, while others support entertainment. Interviewers ask this question to gain insight into the scale of a candidate's interaction with senior leadership, peers, and team members.
Written by Karrie Day on May 9th, 2022
Remember To
Remember to provide a brief description of the responsibility of the roles you mention. This will ensure the interviewer has an accurate understanding of your background in partnering with the various product development roles.
Written by Karrie Day on May 9th, 2022
Answer Example
"As a program manager, I interact frequently with several roles. First, I interact regularly with my stakeholders. My closest stakeholder contacts are usually directors or senior managers that represent the business units I am partnering with to deliver a program of work. In my current role, these managers represent operations, finance, and legal business units. We work together on program strategy and ensure that the resource and budgetary needs are met throughout the various projects we partner on.
Second, I interact regularly with the project managers that manage the projects within our program. I monitor project progress and help them resolve conflicts or problems that arise. I also ensure they are following our PMO established best practices.
Third, I meet regularly with the product owners, architects, tech leads, and scrum masters for our teams. We work together to translate the OKRs for the initiatives we are working on into development and release plans. We review interdependencies and determine how we can best align each workstream. We also partner with our support and infrastructure teams to ensure the needs of the program are met from that perspective as well.
Finally, I work frequently with my management within our PMO. I report to a program director who is responsible for all of the programs related to our operations groups."
Written by Karrie Day on May 9th, 2022