Complete Guide to Engineering Manager Interview
The best software engineers don’t always make the best software engineering managers (EMs). Let's talk about why that is.
Engineering management requires a unique skill set. However, unlike more technical career tracks, there's no formula or curriculum you can study to become an engineering manager. This special blend of technical and interpersonal abilities can really only be learned through experience.
In fact, most companies won’t hire new EMs who don’t have at least 2 years of experience. You may notice a bit of a paradox — how am I supposed to get hired as a new EM if I’ve never been an EM?
This means that making the leap from individual contributor (IC) to manager can be a confusing, nebulous process, with no clear stepping stones. It’s a journey that isn’t for everyone. However, there are still concrete steps that any developer can take to set themselves up for a successful transition into engineering leadership.
So how can engineers who are curious about a career in management start to develop the required skills and track record? And how can new EMs confidently prepare for an entirely new experience than what they were used to as ICs?
Let’s start by diving into the qualities and qualifications needed for a successful career as an engineering leader, and how to build them. Then, we'll explore more about engineering manager interview prep.
Key Roles & Responsibilities for EMs
Engineering Managers orchestrate, supervise, and streamline engineering projects, teams, and operations. Proficient EMs possess an intricate grasp of the software engineering lifecycle, coupled with a holistic understanding of business dynamics.
Core responsibilities of Engineering Managers include:
Project Management: Supervising project ideation, development, and implementation within predefined constraints of time, budget, and specifications.
Team Management: Overseeing day-to-day team operations, including recruitment, training, and mentorship, fostering high productivity and team engagement.
Technical Expertise: Proficiency in various technologies, tools, and methodologies germane to the field.
Cross-functional Collaboration: Collaborating with stakeholders across departments to align engineering endeavors with organizational objectives.
Risk Management: Identifying and mitigating risks associated with engineering projects, including cost and safety considerations.
Continuous Learning: Keeping abreast of emerging technologies and trends to optimize engineering processes.
Strategic Planning: Establishing clear goals, allocating resources, and managing deadlines, informed by data-driven insights.
There are a handful of traits that will distinguish the good EMs from the bad ones. Thriving in this position goes beyond just technical knowledge. It entails a balance between leadership, communication, strategic thinking, and adaptability. Let’s go over some key traits here that will illuminate your path towards being a successful EM.
The Traits of Exceptional EMs:
Delegation Skills: Effective EMs adeptly delegate without micromanaging, entrusting their team to execute tasks autonomously.
Flexibility and Negotiation: Openness to compromise and navigate trade-offs, is crucial for progress in challenging situations.
Trust in Team: Supporting and empowering teams, fostering an environment conducive to growth and success.
Constructive Feedback: Providing transparent and constructive feedback for team members' professional development.
It’s not just about having one or two of these traits. A successful EM should know how to blend them all together. Beyond assessing team and project success, introspection is pivotal for EMs. Understanding personal success metrics becomes imperative, especially when juggling different stakeholder expectations.
How to Break into Engineering Management
Where’s the best place to start if you don’t have previous leadership experience?
Due to the high stakes nature of the role, most companies will only hire new EMs who have a demonstrated track record of leadership experience. But how do you become an EM without any leadership experience? It’s a tricky paradox to navigate.
For starters, it’s always helpful to build a tangible record of instances in which you’ve displayed leadership qualities — regardless of your role. This can include coaching new team members or owning a project. When it comes to landing your first management role, it's generally easier to move internally rather than externally. While you may very well land an opportunity at a new company, a company that has already worked with you may be more likely to entrust you with a first-time management position.
Interviewers are unlikely to select EM candidates who don’t have concrete evidence of leadership experience. Because of this, dedicating a year or two to cultivate management skills within your current role before pursuing EM positions outside your company becomes crucial. Another helpful approach would be to consider trying an EM interview preparation course (more on that later).
Now, let’s break down each component of the EM interview process.
Unpacking the EM Interview Process
EM Interviews are among the least technical in software engineering — for reasons we've already discussed. However, like other engineering interviews, they consist of several rounds.
Here's a snapshot of the EM interview process:
Recruiter and Leadership Screens: Evaluating technical expertise, management experience, and problem-solving skills.
Written Assignment: Assessing situational questions on people and project management.
Onsite Interviews: Assessing technical, people, project management, and behavioral competencies.
The EM onsite interview hinges on four core areas that evaluate every aspect of the EM role.
1. Technical Interview
Phase one will include Technical Interview. This portion will be used to evaluate your competency in high-level system design and product conceptualization. It’s important to note that during this section, you’ll be prioritizing problem-solving over intricate coding.
Prep tip: The questions asked in this round typically fall within two categories: Distributed Systems Design or Product Design, so be sure to add these topics in your tech interview prep.
Designing a modern system involves navigating complex requirements to create cohesive and functional designs. As a designer, you'll need to understand these requirements and guide the design process effectively, addressing both broad and specific topics in product design. In this course, you will design APIs for well-known systems such as YouTube, Stripe, and Zoom, understanding how these APIs integrate into the larger product ecosystem. You'll begin by discussing recurring concepts, using them as foundational building blocks. You'll trace the lifecycle of each API call from the client to the service to meet functional requirements. Additionally, you'll use a reference back-end implementation to demonstrate how an API call operates, with a focus on minimizing client-visible latency to create competitive APIs and products. This course prepares you for product architecture design interviews by examining systems from a client's perspective and discusses how client calls interact with the back-end system.
2. People Management
Next, we have the People Management Interview. This is crucial in determining hiring and managerial level– whether you’re set up to be an EM1 or EM2. With this section, you should be sure to emphasize how you have personally led team growth, and how this has been apparent in business results.
Prep tip: Think about instances in which you have successfully led a team or implemented strategies to improve team productivity and collaboration.
3. Project Management
After the People Management interview comes the Project Management Interview. In this phase, interviewers will be looking to evaluate planning, execution, retrospectives, and strategic insights for team missions.
Prep tip: Get ready to conduct successful project retrospectives (a review of a project’s end-to-end execution, successes, and failures to identify areas of improvement).
4. Behavioral Interview
Last (but certainly not least) comes the Behavioral Interview section. Here, you will be evaluated on your ability to display the soft skills necessary for an EM. This will include decision making, conflict resolution, and leadership attributes through experiences.
Prep tip: Start recollecting instances in which you have successfully diffused interpersonal conflict, or paved the way to success in another sort of personal disruption. To practice and ace this part, try our interactive course – Grokking the Behavioral Interview.
Mastering the EM Interview: Proven Strategies
To ace an EM interview, effectively showcasing managerial prowess is paramount. The key to success is ensuring you have the necessary preparation.
Here are two foundational strategies, applicable to both EMs and ICs, that will enhance your interview prep:
STAR Method: Structuring answers using Situation, Task, Action, and Result aids specificity and conciseness. Practice your answers out loud and be sure to make sure the information you enclose is personal, relevant, and concise.
Company Research: Thoroughly understanding a company's products, mission, and culture shapes relevant questions and answers, demonstrating alignment and interest. You can familiarize yourself with the company culture adequately by checking out the company website, social media, and other press materials. Pay attention to how the company interacts with its customers and employees.
As I mentioned before, there isn't really a "playbook" to learning engineering management. But there are courses that can help prepare you for what it takes to succeed in these roles and their interviews. We offer a course — Grokking the Engineering Management and Leadership Interviews — that offers a comprehensive breakdown of the topics we discussed today, and a lot more.
This course will give you an in-depth understanding of the interview process and people management principles. It will also prepare you with a well-curated story bank for interview anecdotes, boosting your confidence and preparation.
Sharpen your Skills with Educative
The EM interview journey, though daunting, is an opportunity for personal and professional growth.
While technical competence remains important, exhibiting leadership, problem-solving, and managerial competence is pivotal. Remember, these interviews aren't just about qualifications on paper; they're about embodying the essence of leadership and fortitude required to steer teams and organizations toward success.
Happy Learning!
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