LinkedIn Engineering Manager Mock Interview: Engineering Prioritization

Summary

In this mock interview, engineering manager Vidal Garper discusses prioritizing features when bandwidth is limited, using data-driven approaches and company goals to make decisions. He also addresses handling deadlines and bugs, emphasizing communication with stakeholders and maintaining team morale through transparency and learning.

Takeaways

• 😀 Vidal Garper is an engineering manager at LinkedIn and is passionate about engineering leadership and management.
• 🔍 When faced with choosing between two features to build with limited bandwidth, Vidal emphasizes the importance of aligning with company goals and using data to make decisions.
• 📈 At Walmart, Vidal's team focused on increasing the conversion rate of the mobile website, using the impact on this metric to prioritize feature requests.
• 📊 Vidal suggests using an impact-to-effort ratio to evaluate which feature would be most beneficial to build, considering both the potential impact and the effort required.
• 🗓️ In another company, Vidal mentioned using a list of prioritized programs to decide which feature to build, giving preference to higher priority programs unless there are extenuating circumstances.
• 🤝 Communication is key in the decision-making process, ensuring that product managers understand the criteria used for prioritization and are aware of the escalation process if they disagree with the decision.
• 🛠️ Vidal discusses the challenges of managing deadlines and bugs, emphasizing the need to assess the impact of delaying a release or shipping a product with known bugs.
• 🔧 When a feature like a progress bar has critical bugs, Vidal advises considering the severity of the issue, the potential customer impact, and whether the bug can be fixed within the deadline.
• 📝 Vidal recommends documenting the pros and cons of different approaches and making a clear case for the decision, especially when involving higher management in the decision-making process.
• 💬 Communication with stakeholders is crucial when a decision impacts the broader product roadmap, ensuring that all affected parties are informed and have the opportunity to provide input.
• 👥 Vidal advises maintaining team morale by focusing on fixing issues, learning from mistakes, and not blaming individuals, while also considering the broader impact of decisions on the team and product.

Q & A

What is the main challenge presented in the mock interview?

The main challenge is deciding which of two features to build when there is only bandwidth for one, as an engineering manager.

Who is the interviewee in the mock interview?

The interviewee is Vidal Garper, an engineering manager currently at LinkedIn.

What is Vidal Garper's approach to prioritizing features at a data-driven company like Walmart?

Vidal focuses on the impact on conversion rate, asking product managers for theories or data on how much the feature will improve it, and considering the effort-to-impact ratio.

How does Vidal handle feature prioritization at another company with a list of prioritized programs?

He maps the features to the programs and gives preference to the higher priority program unless there are extenuating circumstances.

What is the importance of having a clear escalation process in feature prioritization?

A clear escalation process helps ensure that product managers understand the decision-making process and provides a path to challenge decisions if they disagree.

How does Vidal describe the escalation process at LinkedIn?

At LinkedIn, the escalation process involves discussions between managers, possibly involving their managers, and ultimately a decision by a higher-level manager or VP. A document listing pros and cons is often prepared and presented.

What is the scenario presented when the team is building a progress bar with edge cases and bugs?

The team is building a progress bar that sometimes goes past 100 percent or to a negative percentage, and they are not going to meet the deadline.

How does Vidal approach the decision to extend the deadline or fix the bug?

Vidal considers the importance of meeting the deadline, the impact of the bug on the customer experience, and whether the bug could lead to data loss or other serious issues.

What is Vidal's perspective on shipping software with known bugs?

Vidal acknowledges that software often ships with known bugs and emphasizes understanding the impact of the bug on customers and deciding whether to delay the product launch or fix it later.

How does Vidal suggest communicating the impact of delaying a feature to stakeholders?

Vidal recommends discussing the issue with stakeholders, explaining the reason for the delay, and understanding their perspectives before making a decision.

What advice does Vidal give for those preparing for engineering manager interviews?

Vidal advises taking the interview seriously, preparing thoroughly, and understanding that the impact of a bad hire in an engineering manager role can be significant.