Google Engineering Program Manager (TPM) Behavioral Interview: Technical and People Challenges

Summary

In this engineering manager mock interview, Christina, an Engineering Program Manager at Google, discusses a challenging project she led while at Discovery. The project involved delivering a meal planning feature, where both technical and people-related challenges arose. Christina outlines how the team navigated technical complexities with changing API technology and business pressures around timeline adjustments. Despite setbacks like team member departures and feature revisions, Christina and her team successfully delivered the project. She reflects on lessons learned and emphasizes preparation and communication for handling behavioral interview questions effectively.

Takeaways

• 💼 Christina is an Engineering Program Manager at Google Maps, and she previously worked as a Technical Program Manager at Discovery Media.
• 🗓 The featured project involved developing a 'Meal Planning' feature, which aimed to let users preset recipes for specific times and days.
• 📅 The initial business goal was to deliver the feature by September, anticipating a return to schools and offices, and it was estimated to take 3.5 months with five different teams.
• 🔧 A major technical challenge arose when a new contract required support for two additional platforms (web and Roku), requiring a switch from REST APIs to GraphQL, adding unexpected complexity.
• 👥 The people challenge stemmed from business stakeholders resisting changes to timelines or scope, despite technical team concerns over increased workload and complexity.
• 🤝 Christina coordinated with engineering leads and business stakeholders to evaluate three options: (1) maintain the current plan with delayed rework, (2) switch to GraphQL now, or (3) cut feature scope to meet the deadline.
• 🗣 Christina advocated for long-term planning and minimizing rework, but ultimately, the decision rested with business stakeholders.
• 👩‍💻 The situation escalated when an iOS engineer gave notice, adding additional pressure and forcing stakeholders to reconsider scope cuts to accommodate the loss.
• 📉 In hindsight, Christina identified the development of a custom calendar UI as an unnecessary effort, as analytics showed it was underutilized by users, suggesting it should have been deprioritized.
• 📚 Christina emphasized the importance of preparing for behavioral interview questions, staying calm under pressure, and using structured storytelling to communicate effectively.

Q & A

Who is Christina and what is her current role?

Christina is an Engineering Program Manager currently working at Google with the Google Maps team. Previously, she worked at Discovery as a Technical Program Manager.

What was the project Christina led at Discovery, and what was its goal?

Christina led the development of a feature called 'Meal Planning,' which allowed customers to preset recipes for specific times or days. The goal was to deliver the feature by September, when it was expected that people would return to schools and offices.

What were the main teams involved in the 'Meal Planning' project?

The project involved five teams: iOS team, Android team, two different back-end teams, and an editorial team responsible for content and preset data.

What technical challenge did the project face?

The technical challenge arose when a new platform required the API layer to be written in GraphQL instead of the originally planned REST API. This introduced complexity since the client teams were not familiar with GraphQL.

How did Christina and her team address the technical challenge?

Christina and her team evaluated three options: 1) Continue with REST and spend 3-4 weeks later converting to GraphQL, 2) Change to GraphQL immediately, adding 4 weeks to the timeline, or 3) Cut the project scope to save time. After internal discussions, they chose to cut scope, reducing the additional time to two weeks.

What was the key people-related challenge Christina faced during the project?

The main people-related challenge was convincing the business stakeholders to accept the changes in timeline and scope due to the technical complexities. Additionally, an iOS engineer resigned, which further delayed the project.

What lessons did Christina learn from this project regarding feature design?

Christina learned that the custom calendar component, which took 3-4 weeks to develop, was unnecessary for the MVP version. Analytics later showed that only 0.3% of users interacted with it, indicating that simpler designs could have saved time and resources.

What would Christina do differently if given the chance to work on a similar project again?

Christina mentioned that she would push for simpler, out-of-the-box solutions for certain features like the calendar. This would allow for a faster rollout and avoid spending too much time on features that may not be used extensively.

How did Christina manage the stress of handling both technical and people challenges?

Christina handled the stress by structuring her work well and having multiple rounds of conversations with stakeholders. She also emphasized the importance of trade-offs and communicated the long-term benefits of certain decisions to the business team.

What advice does Christina give to others preparing for behavioral interviews?

Christina suggests that thorough preparation, including reviewing past experiences and practicing answering behavioral questions, helps to alleviate the stress of the interview. She encourages candidates to do extensive homework and be ready to talk about their past work in detail.