Nextdoor PM (Product Manager) Interview
Learn how to prepare for the Nextdoor Product Manager interview and get a job at Nextdoor with this in-depth guide.Interested in becoming a product manager at Nextdoor? Be sure to check out Exponent's complete product manager interview course with sample questions and mock interviews.
Sneak Peek: These are the most frequently asked interview questions in Nextdoor product management interviews:
- What's your favorite product and why? Watch Google PM answer.
- Tell me about a time you had to make a decision to make short-term sacrifices for long-term gains. Watch Amazon PM answer.
- Tell me about a time you handled a difficult stakeholder. View community answers.
Nextdoor is a hyper-local social network for neighborhoods.
PMs at Nextdoor enjoy a wide scope of work and find a unique purpose at this growing company.
Nextdoor allows users to:
- connect with their neighbors,
- get recommendations from their community,
- and share local news, events, and services.
The app and site also provide safety features like crime and safety alerts. This helps people feel more informed about what's happening around their neighborhood.
Nextdoor's product managers are exceptionally purpose-driven and the company culture is very product-focused.
If you’re interested in driving the next generation of features and user experiences for the Nextdoor community, you may be a great fit for some of their open roles in product management.
Nextdoor is currently hiring Growth Product Managers and Ads Product Managers.
In this article, we take a deep dive into what it’s like working at the company and summarize the interview process to help you prepare successfully to land your dream job at Nextdoor.
Day to Day: Working as a Product Manager at Nextdoor
Many employees, both inside and outside product teams, are at Nextdoor because they genuinely believe in the company's mission.
Nextdoor's mission is to provide a trusted platform where neighbors can come together to build safer communities.
However, the mission isn’t the only thing that makes working at Nextdoor attractive for product managers.
Nextdoor is unique given its current position as a company— Nextdoor is still growing.
Tech companies like Google, Microsoft, Meta, and others have already achieved massive scale and hyper-growth since their founding.
What does this mean for product managers working at Nextdoor?
There are still dozens of unique opportunities to help scale the platform as a product manager.
After landing a PM position at the company, you’d shape the direction of new experiences on Nextdoor and help scale the platform.
It should come as no surprise that the product managers at the company have a wide scope, especially compared to other tech companies.
Core Values for Nextdoor Product Managers
Nextdoor's core values are:
- Earn trust every day.
- Invest in your community.
- Be obsessed with the customer.
- Think BIG in all decisions.
- Learn quickly.
- Act like an owner.
Acting like an Owner Working as a PM at Nextdoor, you’ll be expected to take ownership of the decisions being made.
"We're proud of our work. We keep promises. We act like owners, strive for excellence, and go the extra mile. Seeing is doing. Every day, we act responsibly and quickly. We're resourceful."
Earn trust every day. Creating safe communities starts with trust.
We're proud of our work. We keep promises. We act like owners, strive for excellence, and go the extra mile. Seeing is doing. Every day, we act responsibly and quickly. We're resourceful.
KIND-ness The stock ticker for Nextdoor is KIND. That’s no happy accident, as Bob Ross would say.
Kindness and fostering a kind culture are very important for Nextdoor.
This means the company seeks candidates who can help their co-workers be successful in growing the company and advancing its purpose.
Again, Nextdoor’s underlying philosophy is:
“By bringing neighbors and organizations together, we can cultivate a kinder world where everyone has a neighborhood they can rely on.”
Kindness, as a value, is deeply ingrained in the company culture at Nextdoor, both for product managers and other employees.
Interview Process
Again, Nextdoor prioritizes hiring PMs that are passionate about the company’s purpose.
Nextdoor does not differ significantly from other companies in the core product management skills they’re looking for in their candidates.
That means having solid, exceptional product sense, analytical skills, communication, and other fundamental PM skills.
However, depending on what product management roles you’re applying to, you may need other skills too, more specific to the role.
For instance, the company is currently hiring product managers for its Growth Org and its Ad Experience Org, among others.
As a result, our advice is to understand which Orgs at Nextdoor you’re applying to, understand what specific skill sets are necessary for those positions, and prepare accordingly.
The interview processes for each may differ subtly based on these differing skills.
Initial Phone Screen
Typically, the Nextdoor PM interview process will begin with an initial phone screen by a recruiter.
During the recruiter phone screen, the recruiter will primarily focus on determining if you’re qualified and have the skills for the position. This call will be relatively straightforward.
Be prepared to speak about your previous experience working as a product manager.
The recruiter may also ask you why you want to work at Nextdoor. Keep in mind that passion for the company’s mission is an important part of Nextdoor’s culture, so be prepared to discuss this. The recruiter will likely use this information to assess your fit for the company before passing you on to the hiring manager.
Hiring Manager Screen
If all goes well, the recruiter will send your resume to the hiring manager, who will give you another phone call.
This hiring manager screen will be like that of the recruiter’s phone call and last 30 - 45 minutes.
You can expect some Nextdoor interview questions about your professional background, your interest in Nextdoor’s mission, and your product management skill set.
If you pass this round and the hiring manager thinks you could be a good fit for the open role, a panel interview round will be scheduled.
Onsite/Panel Interview Round
The onsite/panel interview round at Nextdoor consists of several meetings with various employees at the company.
You will only meet one person at a time. This panel is not a group panel. Mostly, as a PM candidate, you’ll meet with other product managers that will evaluate and assess your PM skills, such as product strategy, analytical skills, leadership, communication, and others.
However, PM candidates at Nextdoor will also need to meet with key partners during their panel interview round. The key partners for product management are data science, engineering, and design.
During your panel interview, you’ll typically need to meet with two of these three key partners for collaboration interviews.
If all goes well during these meetings and the hiring manager is thinking of offering you the job, you’ll likely meet with the Chief Product Officer (CPO) of Nextdoor.
As we mentioned, the company provides its PMs with the opportunity to own a wide scope, much wider than other tech companies of its size.
Hiring managers at Nextdoor like to get the CPO’s last nod of approval during product manager interviews.
Sample Interview Questions
Product Design / Product Strategy
Needless to say, you’ll be asked a variety of product questions during your Nextdoor PM interview.
You’ll need to field many of them during the panel interview round, in which you’ll meet with several other Nextdoor PMs to evaluate your skills.
It is common for product interview questions to be vague. The interviewer is trying to assess your ability to design a new product, diagnose a problem, or think through broader product strategies. Many questions you are asked are open-ended.
For Nextdoor PM interviews, your answers to these questions must show your product management skills and your thought process.
To answer these questions, focus on the user and their needs. This will allow you to narrow down your ideas and organize your thoughts more effectively. If you are struggling, try using The Triangle Method to organize your answer into three parts. This technique will help you clarify your thinking and present your solutions memorably to your interviewer. Be sure to practice product design and product strategy interview questions in our interview question database.
Analytical
As a product manager at Nextdoor, you will make significant decisions that will affect the business. As we mentioned before, the company gives its PMs a much greater amount of responsibility compared to other tech companies of its size.
During the PM interview, they will ask you analytical questions to test your ability to understand Nextdoor’s product strategy and data.
To excel in these questions, demonstrate that you are competent in defining metrics and making data-driven decisions. Show that you are methodical and take a logical approach to decision-making.
Here is a list of analytical questions recently asked at Big Tech companies.
To succeed in a Nextdoor PM interview, it is important to begin by discussing the overall goals of the product. Next, focus on the specific actions and metrics that will achieve those goals.
This approach demonstrates an understanding of the big picture and strategic thinking about the product.
We recommend using the GAME framework to answer these questions effectively, as demonstrated in this PM lesson.
Behavioral
With behavioral questions, it is important to show that you will work well with everyone: product managers, engineers, designers, sales, and legal. Focus on communicating well: enunciate, speak slowly, and speak with meaning.
Prepare a good talk through of your resume. Have a “60 seconds to wow” pitch and be prepared to provide clear and in-depth explanations of each of your experiences that you’d want to highlight. These experiences can include previous work experience, side projects, classes, or even hobbies. Think about not only what you’ve achieved, but also what you learned, the challenges you faced, and the strategies you used to succeed.
Prepare real anecdotes so you can use specific examples. Your interviewer already has your resume so those anecdotes will add a more human touch to your application, making you more memorable. Think about anecdotes that show off how you were customer-obsessed, dealt with ambiguity, and had a growth mindset in approaching the task at hand.
Why do you want to work here? Why this role and team? Think carefully about why you are applying for this role, and why this team specifically. It helps to know as much about the role and team that you’re applying for. Try to watch tech talks or conference keynote speeches from the team online. It will also leave a good impression if you have previously used a feature of the team and can speak to it. At that point, the interviewer will likely probe you for feedback on the product. Use this opportunity to show how you would converse and work with your interviewer as if you are already a member of the team.
Tips & Strategies
Research the Company
One of the best ways to prepare for any product manager interview, whether it be at Nextdoor or otherwise, is to research the company deeply.
Become familiar with the company’s values, mission, history, key figures, etc. Watch videos of CEO Sarah Friar speaking about what she thinks is important for Nextdoor, for example.
Another powerful research method is looking through the financial reports published by the company. Considering Nextdoor is a public company, you can find many of these reports right in the Investor Relations section of the company’s website.
These financial reports provide a solid understanding of the company’s direction, business nature, and key metrics important for hiring managers. Another essential form of research involves using the product itself.
Create an account on Nextdoor and deeply explore the platform, interact with other users, and experiment with the various features.
Specifically, become as familiar as possible with the particular features the PM role you’re applying to is centered on. (If you’re applying for a Messaging role, learn as much as possible about the messaging features.)
Don’t Underestimate Positive Energy
You should always try to go into your Nextdoor interviews with tons of positive energy and attitude.
People feed off of other people’s energy, so if you enter the interview with high energy and excitement, your hiring manager, other PMs, and key partners will feel it too.
While this may seem minor, it’s a great way to improve your chances of doing your best during the Nextdoor PM interview.
Prepare a Super Tight Elevator Pitch
Of course, you should prepare for the Nextdoor product manager interview by studying and practicing essential PM skills.
However, you should also be sure that you’re not walking into the interview without a super tight elevator pitch about how your personal history and your career arc make you excited about Nextdoor’s mission. Tie your story to the company’s story.
Interested in applying to one of Nextdoor’s product manager positions? They’re hiring Growth Product Managers and Ads Product Managers.
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