Airbnb Product Manager Interview Questions

Sreenisha S. - "Let me tell you about a time where a website I managed suddenly showed slow performance and the mistake on our side was it was unnoticed until a user reported the issue to management. As a PM for that project, I took full responsibility of the situation and worked with the engineering team to quickly resolve it. This mistake taught me the importance of focusing and monitoring non functional requirements as well in addition to new feature development /adoption where I was mostly spending my time"See full answer

Bipin R. - "As you know, this is the most important question for any interview. Here is a structure I like to follow, Start with 'I'm currently a SDE/PM/TPM etc with XYZ company.... ' Mention how you got into PM/TPM/SDE field (explaining your journey) Mention 1 or 2 accomplishments Mention what you do outside work (blogging, volunteer etc) Share why are you looking for a new role Ask the interviewer if they have any questions or will like to dive deep into any of your experience"See full answer

Michelle D. - "I'd tell the interviewer that I'd start off with clarifying the question to make sure I understand it correctly (see 1 below). Then, I'd tell the interviewer my approach to make sure they know what to expect as I talk through. Approach would start with discussing the mission and connecting a north star metric (NSM) to the mission, then discuss key product metrics that are inputs towards NSM. If there's time at the end and if the interviewer wants to go down this path, we should also talk about t"See full answer

Mrigang S. - "1. Problem Statement & Clarifications To achieve a 3x growth in new users, I am defining the scope as follows: Platform Scope: I am looking at the entire Airbnb ecosystem (Homes + Experiences). Since Airbnb operates on a two-sided marketplace model, growth in the user base requires a balanced distribution between demand and supply. Defining "New Users": Our goal is to increase the number of users who not only sign up but complete their first booking. This conversion from "reg"See full answer

Ross B. - "I most want to communicate a few principals of conflict resolution that I believe were integral in this situation, which are mutual respect, a results orientation, an unwavering focus on the user. To that end, here’s how I’d like to structure this answer: First, I’ll tell you about the project we were working on, to provide some background for you. Second, I’ll describe the disagreement. Third, I’ll describe how we arrived at a solution, and finally, I’ll discuss how those 3 conflict resolution"See full answer

Dhruv M. - "During my internship at Quantiva Solutions, I was leading a small team of fellow interns on a data visualization project. I was very focused on meeting the deadline and often pushed the team to keep moving quickly through tasks. About midway through the project, one of my teammates pulled me aside and said that while they appreciated my organization, they felt I wasn’t giving enough space for others to contribute ideas and that it made the collaboration feel more task-driven than team-oriented."See full answer

Anna H. - "Great. I'm going to get started by asking clarification questions for (1) understanding of the gap by assessing current product features for bookings via platform?, (2) brainstorming possible solutions, (3) how to implement solutions, and (4) suggesting metrics to validate solutions towards an increase of bookings Clarification questions & Assumptions: What is customer segment (family/ group/ individual)? In which market? (individual & US market) Should I specifically focus on one of use ca"See full answer

Catherine I. - "I always ask to clarify if this is a brand new team. If so, then I focus on bringing in people with strong technical aptitudes(since I'm hiring for software engineering), but also team members that have experience mentoring and good communication is a must. I look for people who have leadership qualities. I emphasize that building a brand new team isn't something I can do on my own, so the initial hires of that team are very important to help me expand it."See full answer

Amparo L. - "I'm currently a School Bus Monitor at First Student, I make sure that the students on the bus are seated down, making sure they are safe during the bus ride. Sometimes depending on the day they may need me to help do a wheelchair so I sometimes help the driver out with making sure the wheelchair is safely secure, hooking up the 4 hooks on the wheelchair, putting the lap belt on the student and also making sure the student feels comfortable during the bus ride. After we finished dropping off our"See full answer

Aaron W. - "Clarification questions What is the purpose of connecting the DB? Do we expect high-volumes of traffic to hit the DB Do we have scalability or reliability concerns? Format Code -> DB Code -> Cache -> DB API -> Cache -> DB - APIs are built for a purpose and have a specified protocol (GET, POST, DELETE) to speak to the DB. APIs can also use a contract to retrieve information from a DB much faster than code. Load balanced APIs -> Cache -> DB **Aut"See full answer

gdecuri - "I suggest a 4 step process: Ensure your recruitment process and company's branding are inclusive. This means using inclusive language in your job postings, avoiding gender stereotypes, and making sure your company's website and social media presence are welcoming to people from all backgrounds. Partner with nonprofit and cultural organizations to reach a more diverse pool of candidates. Many organizations can help you connect with candidates from underrepresented groups. These org"See full answer

Exponent - "You should be able to identify this as a Strategy Question, which asks you to justify high-level business decisions and strategy. Here are some ideas for risks to Airbnb: Regulation > I believe the biggest risk to Airbnb is regulation, both from local and foreign governments. Already, Airbnb is subject to onerous laws in foreign countries. For example, homes in London can only be booked for a total of 90 days in London, and in Japan hosts must apply and register their listing with the gov"See full answer

Anonymous Dove - "Improving someone’s dining experience can depend on various factors, such as their preferences, expectations, and mood. However, some general tips that can help enhance the dining experience are: Create a comfortable and pleasant environment: The physical setting of the dining place can affect how the person feels and enjoys their meal. You can create a comfortable and pleasant environment by choosing a suitable location, lighting, music, and decor. You can also make sure that the place is"See full answer

Exponent - "This is a Measure Success question with a slight twist. The twist here is we need to consider a hypothetical product rather that one already built. This changes our formula slightly - specifically we may not be able to apply a UX flow to drive analysis since we're unsure of the implementation. Instead, we'll look at core behaviors that are indicative of success. Here's the modified formula: Ask clarifying questions State the goal of the feature **Apply a UX flow to drive a"See full answer

Exponent - "This is posed as a tricky question at first, but we can actually approach this very similarly to a Favorite Product question. It's always good to start with identifying what type of problem you're tackling. The problem we need to tackle is essentially a variation on a Favorite Product Question: Choose a product and briefly explain what it is Who are the users? What are their pain points? How did competitors solve it in the past? **How does this product addr"See full answer

Exponent - "You should be able to easily identify this as a Measure Success question. These kinds of questions are used to test your analytical skills, as well as your ability to track project progress post-launch. Recall the strategy for tackling them methodically and thoroughly: Ask clarifying questions State the goal of the feature / product Behavior Mapping / UX Flow Mapping Provide criteria to prioritize metrics Prioritize metrics Summarize Let's begin! "See full answer

Exponent - "This is a classic Strategy Question, which asks you to justify high-level business decisions and strategy. With many acquisition strategy questions, we can first look at core competencies and synergies before offering more complex reasoning. > WeWork had one of the most disastrous IPOs in recent history in 2019. Some reasons why it failed were:A flawed business model > Poor leadership > Poor space optimization > I'll go into detail about each. Feel free to let me know if you want me to dive"See full answer