Question: What are\were the communication challenges on your current\last

project?
A.Without a mandate (mission and objectives), Unclear expectations, poor
communications between IT and the business
Question: What is your communication style with your team?
o

Assertive

Aggressive

Passive-aggressive

Submissive

Manipulativ

Question: How do you communicate bad news?

Determine your main objective, Be swift and kind, Dont negotiate or
counsel, Handle potential outbursts quickly and efficiently. Offer assistance.
Question: How do you handle disgruntled employees?
o

Remain professional, Dont let it fester, Keep it private, Document everything, Dont empower
them

Question: How do you keep your promise even when it is difficult to keep?
The solution is to chunk your big promise in small promises that you can keep. Its more
fun this way. Whats even nicer: youll build up self-confidence by keeping more and more
promises and feeling great about each success
Question: How do you ensure you and your team deliver or exceed customer
expectations?
Managing, Researching Reviewing: Supporting:
Question: What are the best practices to develop excellent customer relationship?
Be patient in building new relationships, Get to know their industry and
company
Go the extra mile, Treat every client as your most important one, Respond
promptly, Be more than an email address. Always summarize next steps
Whether you are getting prepared to be interviewed for a project managers position, or if you are the person who will be
conducting interviews for open project manager positions, this list of questions should help you prepare.

If you are looking for questions specific to Microsoft Project, try this link.

1. How do you handle non-productive team members?

The Best way to handle a non-productive team member is to envision how they canbe productive. Usually there
is a reasonfor their non-productivity and often they will reveal it to you personally orsometimes you may have to
probe for the reason simply by asking them a questionWhat do you like most or least about working here?
Once you have isolated the negative problemsuggest solutions that are the easiest to obtain in the shortest period
oftime. Research suggests positivereinforcement is the best way to motivate a person. Share a story about
seeing the light at theend of the tunnel that you experienced personally. This will help develop more rapport
andenable trust from the non-productive team member. Positive reinforcement includes primaryreinforcers
such as smiles, touch (hand shakes), verbal thanks and exchangeablereinforcement such as talk about payday,
bonuses or potential promotions forachieving or exceeding goals. Share thepositive vision.
2. How do you motivate team members who are burnedout, or bored?
A bored team member issimply not challenged enough. They arebeing satiated (doing a task for too long of a
period of time). In this case, switch tasks for a short periodof time or pair them up with another team
member to shorten the boringtask. See if its possible to give themmore challenging work if they complete
the boring task first.
2.

3. How do you handle team members who come to youwith their personal problems? Contraryto public
opinion, a person that comes to you with a personal problem trustsyou to help them. Trust allows you toget
people to do things you want them to do. Share a simple and quick answer (similar situation that you may
havepersonally experienced) then suggest doing a productive task at work that willdistract them and provide
personal achievement that they are not getting intheir home life.
4. What are your career goals? How do you see thisjob affecting your goals? My goal is toacquire an IT
position that utilizes my talents more effectively whileincreasing my flexibility in scheduling tasks. IT
positions are moving towards home office utilization to save companycosts and travel time. This IT
positionwill allow me to save on transportation time (to and from work, lunch and dresspreparation)
therefore I can work on new programs and creative ideas withoutthe typical corporate distractions.
5. Explain how you operate inter departmentally. Two words that best describe me are
Chameleonliaison. I am able to change and adapt to my environment in seconds, since Ihave worked in
various departments over the years. My understanding of each departments needsallows me to precisely
convey information. The shorten communications via phone, email and in person minimizesfrustrations and
allows me more time flexibility to delegate or to take on morecomplex tasks.
6. Tell me how you would react to a situation wherethere was more than one way to accomplish the same
task, and there were verystrong feelings by others on each position. First of all, I acknowledge the
positionsregarding the task. I break down thetasks in a Ben Franklin fashion with Pros on one side and Cons
on theother. After reviewing both sides, Irecommend taking a consensus vote to confirm the pros
outweighing the cons.
7. Consider that you are in a diverse environment,out of your comfort zone. How would you rate your
situational leadership style?My leadership style is democratic or consultative. I believe in gathering differing
views togain a consensus. In particular Idiscuss group think principles where groups tend to take the view of
the personof authority even to the detriment of the group. By letting the group know that their opinionshave
no sanctions and that every opinion benefits the group through discussion.
8. Give me an example of your leadership involvementwhere teamwork played an important
role. Interestingly a leader isnt always leading when it comes toteamwork. When I worked in a salescapacity
trying to close a sale, I allowed other members to discuss variousother topics unrelated to the sale at
hand. The customer wasnt ready to close the sale because trust wasntestablished yet. Members of my team
werebetter suited to discuss personal topics allowing me to do calculations andrevisions to the quote.
9. Tell me about a situation where your loyalty waschallenged. What did you do? Why? Loyalty is achieved
through trust. A lack of loyalty means that you trustedsomeone with too much information or a task to
achieve. When its not obvious to the other person, Imention the hardship that it caused and remove a
positive reinforcer such asmoney or status with the option for the person to regain the loss after provingtheir
worth. The reason for removing areward is not to accidently continue rewarding the wrong behavior.
10. In what types of situations is it best toabandon loyalty to your manager? As Jamess Group think theory
suggests a groupmay go along with a managers decision even though they all know its to thedetriment of
the group. Another reasonto abandon loyalty is if your manager is engaged in illegal or misconduct thatyou
may eventually become a party to the action.
11. In todays business environment, when is loyaltyto your manager particularly important? All the time
except in cases ofmisconduct. Loyalty is of particular importance to gainingposition or to make future
changes to your business climate. If you dont show your trust in someone else,why should they trust you?

12. Why are you interested in this position? I am interested in this position because myskills allow me to do
the work required with minimal or no trainingrequired. In addition, I enjoy this workbecause of the freedom
and creativity I can add to the end result.
13. Describe what you think it would be like to dothis job every day. I realize that somedays will be
challenging because of the short deadlines. However, I do my best work under pressure -always have. Based
on my experienceworking for the competition I expect my days to be very similar with theexception of my
skills being put to better use.
14. What do you believe qualifies you for thisposition? In addition to my exacting experience, I differ from
other candidatesbecause I have start up experience. Ihave the drive to start and complete an assignment
with minimal outsourcing.
15. What have you learned from your failures? In anutshell, I learned a multitude from my failures. I have
learned that you should hire outsideof your friendships and family because they both parties often
cantdistinguish business from their personal life. Ive also learned to outsource the tasks that Im not adept
at solving.More than anything, Ive learn that many successful people have failed morethan once but what
makes them a failure is quitting. Failures without quitting is just a part ofa platform of character building.
16. Of your previous jobs, which one did you enjoythe most? What did you like the most/least? Why? What
was your majoraccomplishment? What was your biggest frustration? I enjoyed my own business the most.
The main reason is that I had totalflexibility in providing the level of customer service my clientsrequested.
Most companies have severalpeople doing several tasks for clients, I was able to handle all of those taskswith
a single point of contact for the customer. What I liked least was handling the financialresponsibilities.
Simply, Im not cutout to handle mundane tasks of record keeping, as a creative specialist mytalents are best
suited dealing with creative tasks and outsourcing what Imnot good at.
17. Tell me about special projects or training youhave had that would be relevant to this job. I have worked
with hundreds of clients across the spectrum of socialeconomic status. My ability to relate tothe shipping
clerk is just as effective as discussing growth options with theCEO. Moreover, I can relate informationas a
liaison between departments.
18. What are some things that you would not likeyour job to include? I would not like my job to put me into
morallycompromising positions that not only jeopardize my Karma, but would infect theentire companys
reputation as a world leader. I also would not want to take unsubstantiated financial risks that mayhave
devastating consequences to our labor force.
19. What are your current work plans? Why are youthinking about leaving your present job? I dont ever
think of myself asleaving a position. I work with hundredsof clients; they are all my bosses from time to
time. As I assume this position, I am doing sobecause of what I can do for my client(s). I did fine work for
my past clients and Im moving onto more challengingtasks where my new clients can benefit from my
experience. My current work plan is to get up to speedwith this organizations policies and procedures of
excellence.
20. Describe an ideal job for you. An ideal job is where I can ask all thequestions needed to accurately assess
a problem, task and solution. Also, positions where I can listen and havepeople listen in the most efficient
manner possible are highly desirable.
21. What would you do if you found out that acontractor was in a conflict of interest situation? I am usually
the personthat finds out this kind of information. First you have to evaluate how much of a conflict there is.
Many times situations have mutual benefitsand you need to know exactly whats involved, but as soon as I
have enoughinformation I bring it to a supervisor or superior in confidence.
22. If I were to contact your former employee, whatwould he say about your decision-making abilities? Here
is his phone number,email, address and website. He haswritten my recommendation letter specifically
outlining my decision-makingabilities. Those include price control, purchasing,hiring, time management
and prospecting. He usually tells people that if he is not available for the job, thenIm the next person to call.
23. Give me an example of a win-win situation youhave negotiated. I took on a project where the client
wanted a repair but saidthe repair would not be adequate but would pass inspection. I suggested utilizing an
old product for anarea and then using a new product that would cost the same amount of money asthe initial
repair cost. The client gotmore than he asked for and my job was completed quicker saving me time
andmoney a win-win.
24. Tell me about your verbal and writtencommunication ability. How well do you represent yourself to
others? What makesyou think so? My oral and written communication style is to engage the clientwith
enthusiasm. I know my style iseffective simply as a result of recommendations and referrals I receive. I set
goals to receive one referral for everythree clients on average.
25. Give me an example of a stressful situation youhave been in. How well did you handle it? If you had to do
it over again, wouldyou do it differently? How do you deal with stress, pressure, and unreasonabledemands?
I was given a task to completea proposal within hours without any knowledge of the software and
particularsof the clients requests. I completed theassignment on time using a combination of three software
packages. I would have done it differently with onesoftware package, but I had to try three until I found the
proper fit. I perform well under stress so that wasnt aproblem, however I did suggest to my supervisor that
a particular softwarepackage worked better than the others and that it should be used as ourstandard. I also

asked if that in thefuture I could be given more time to complete an assignment by staying laterthe night
before or being able to come in sooner.
26. Tell me about a tough decision you had to make?I had to separate my personal life from my business life
by not working withfamily members. Even though there aremany advantages to working with family the
disadvantages outweighed the pros.
27. Describe what you did at your work placeyesterday. I prepare my daily list oftasks to be done for the
day. Usingoutlook, I set reminders for priority tasks and ad to them as they come in viarequests. That way I
dont miss tasksand I keep proper time management. Iwent to two clients and gave proposals and
immediately sent thank- you lettersvia email for the opportunities. Icontinued to work on proposals
according to my task list.
28. How would you solve the following technicalproblem? (Describe a typical scenario that could occur in the
new position.) A client called about their computer beinglocked up. I usually follow a format todo a full
reboot (not a restart). Ifollow the client over the phone to log in as usual to make sure the computeris no
longer locked up. I also follow upwith some questions on what programs were open so that they dont cause
usageproblems.
29. What strengths did you bring to your lastposition? I brought tenacity, perseverance, listening skills and a
sense ofhumility for others.
30. Describe how those contributions impactedresults? By being tenacious, I continued to ask questions and
clarify theobjectives so our team didnt waste time putting together a proposal thatdidnt hit the mark. With
perseverance,I continued throughout the night making sure we had met the morning deadline.Most people
spend their time talking and never learning anything. I make a special effort to listen to therequests which
made the presenter feel more comfortable with choosing us as aprovider. I often ask how a person isfeeling
about an issue so that they feel my empathy. This builds rapport and confidence that I/wecan handle bigger
and more challenging tasks.
31. What are the necessary steps to successfulproject management? 1) Ask questions to clarify objectives. 2)
Verify that youare on target. 3) Complete task on time. 4) Ask for follow up work or havesigned punch list. 5)
Bill or Invoice project
32. How do you plan for a project? First I researchany items Im not certain about. Iverify who all the
players are and what their schedules consist of. I check with my schedule to see if there areany conflicts. I
make sure I have allthe materials and necessary expenses to accomplish the task(s) on time.
33. What is important to consider when planning a(your type of project)? It is importantto consider
funding, time management and potential accolades or future businessopportunities.
34. What are things that you have found to be lowpriority when planning for (your type of project)? Typically
transportation andlunch considerations are of low priority. They can help and are necessary but they tend to
be things that can beput off as the work completion takes priority, then the time it takes and howto get
somewhere for lunch or dinner can wait.
35. What distinguishes a project from routineoperations? Operations are daily eventsthat dont differ
significantly from day to day. A project on the other hand has specificgoals and differing methods of
accomplishing them.
36. What are the three constraints on a project? Three typical constraints on a project aretime, funding, &
technology.
37. What are the five control components of aproject? There are five control components to every project:
The control environment,
Risk assessment,
Control activities,
Information and communication, and
Monitoring.
38. What qualifications are required to be aneffective project manager? Thequalifications of a project
manager are that they be good communicators. Theyneed to communicate regularly with the project team, as
well as with anysubcontractor. Effective and frequent communications are critical for keepingthe project
moving, identifying potential problems, and soliciting suggestionsto improve project performance. This will
keep customer satisfaction and avoidsurprises.
A high level of communication is especially important early in the project tobuild a good working
relationship with the project team and to establish clearexpectations with the customer. The project manager
needs to establish clearexpectations of the members of the project team so everyone knows theimportance
their roles are regarding the project objective. The essentialqualities of the project manager are strong
leadership ability, ability todevelop people, excellent communication skills, good interpersonal
skills,problem solving skills, and time management skills.
39. What experience have you had in projectmanagement? I have handled hundreds of projects from
quoting/estimating,designing, installation and service.
40. Name five signs that indicate your project mayfail. 1) Poorly defined scope. 2) Loss of executive
sponsorship. 3) A change inbusiness needs. 4) Funding. 5) Labor choice.

41. Tell us about a project in which youparticipated and your role in that project. We had a new software
release. My job was to make sure that batch jobs weresubmitted on time and that they were generating the
proper reports. In addition, I had to make sure that the datawas being back up and mirrored properly for
onsite and offsite storage.
42. When you are assigned a project, what steps doyou take to complete the project? Icreate a specific check
off list for each milestone. Once I complete each task I send off an emailto the corresponding parties and
any action they have to take as a result. After checking their responses I add newtasks or modify the task to
stay on target. Once the project is complete I send the corresponding reports throughthe proper channels.
43. As you begin your assignment as a projectmanager, you quickly realise that the corporate sponsor for the
project nolonger supports the project. What will you do? I will research to see if I canget another sponsor for
the project and speak with my supervisor to discuss ouralternatives.
44. Your three month project is about to exceed theprojected budget after the first month. What steps will
you take to address thepotential cost overrun? First, I will find ways to shave time and therefore thecost of
the overrun. I will alsoconsider outsourcing some of the work to lower costs via a bid process. I will put
together the necessary additionalfunding request to my supervisor.
45. Tell us about a successful project in which youparticipated and how you contributed to the success of that
project. I worked on a new rollout where each team wasresponsible for separate sections of the
development. My task was to act as a liaison between theteams to make sure the project was completed on
time. If a team was falling behind, I would findadditional work members or ask the team if I could help
reduce their timeexpenditure.
46. You are given the assignment of project managerand the team members have already been identified. To
increase theeffectiveness of your project team, what steps will you take? I will bydemocratic vote ask each
team to identify a leader. I will stay in contact with the leader ofeach team to make sure he/she has the
resources to complete the task on time.
47. You have been assigned as the project managerfor a team comprised of new employees just out of college
and entry-levelconsulting staff. What steps can you take to insure that the project iscompleted against a
very tight time deadline? I will ask each staff member whattheir strengths and weaknesses are so that I can
pair the most knowledgeablemembers with a less knowledgeable member to evenly balance the group.
48. What is a project milestone? a milestoneis the end of a stage that marks the completion of a work
package or phase,typically marked by a high level event such as completion, endorsement orsigning of
a deliverable, document or a high level review meeting.
49. What is project float? ProjectFloat: the cushion you provide yourself b4 committing a date
tocustomer. Suppose your planned schedule completion is: 15 June andyou promise the customer 15 July
for completion of deliverables, you are givingyourself a month more time.
50. Your project is beginning to exceed budget andto fall behind schedule due to almost daily user change
orders and increasingconflicts in user requirements. How will you address the user issues? I would discuss
the reasons for the dailychange orders and see why those are happening. Probably the objectives have not
been clearly stated so changes arebeing made to the project as they are being clarified by each team
member.
51. Youve encountered a delay on an early phase ofyour project. What actions can you take to counter the
delay? Which actionswill have the most effect on the result? Take a look into the delay and see whyits
happening. Isolate the reason forthe delay such as technical problems, team problems or an individual. The
best bet is to work with each individualand help them solve their efficiency problem. Set in place a
monitoring schedule perhaps a tracking program withscreen shots or regular emails showing a chronology of
progress.
52. Describe what you did in a difficult projectenvironment to get the job done on time and on budget. On
one particular project I had to stay insteady contact with the vendor to make sure product was being
completed ontime. This included checking estimateddelivery schedules or to check and sign off on design
reports moving throughthe engineering dept. I usually tried tokeep a fixed price schedule so I didnt go off
budget. If the vendor was late, they have to payassociated fees for being late.
53. What actions are required for successfulexecutive sponsorship of a project? Knowand communicate the
business goals, put accountability in the right places andget people excited.
54. How did you get your last project? Through a BNI(Business Network International) B2B group.
55. What were your specific responsibilities? I wasthe education coordinator. My job was topresent our
company and do presentations on our service. We also shared networking strategies with newand existing
members.
56. What did you like about the project and dislikeabout the project? I liked the flexibility of doing most of
the project fromhome. The budget for the project wasthin so I didnt profit as much as I would have liked,
but sometimes you haveto take a few low budget projects with new clients to get the better payingprojects.
57. What did you learn from the project? I learnedhow to research particular products and present them
mixing and matchingmarketing materials from different vendors.
58. Tell me about a time when you ran into anydifficult situations. How did you handle them? Delivery time
lines were changedby the client after the job was accepted. I had to change the parameters of the project so

that the client coulduse 75% of the project and get the other 25% of the project as regularlyscheduled.
59. Tell me about the types of interaction you hadwith other employees. Differentemployees have different
impacts on a project. If they were involved in the presentation to the client then webrainstormed the best
method to communicate with the client. Other employees involved in delivery werenotified of potential
changes and updated on completed product.
60. Tell me of an accomplishment you areparticularly proud of and what it entailed. I worked on a project
that I never worked on before. I went to a trade show and found a couple ofvendors that produced similar
product. Using their marketing materials and cost sheets I had another vendorreproduce their product at a
lower cost and thereby increasing profitsignificantly.
61. Do you have people from your past consultingservices who would provide a professional reference?
Absolutely! ABC contracting Rick Berzowski. Mike Hintz from Classic Cargo International. George
Tzortsos from G.E. Medical/KohlsDepartment Stores.
62. What other similar consulting or independentcontractor services have you rendered? I provide specialty
technical writing onelance.com.
63. Discuss how you would envision working as anindependent contractor or consultant for us. Feel free to
see my website http://mkgconsultant.elance.com. I have a working history, portfolio andreviews.
64. What conflicting responsibilities will you have?I will not have any conflicting responsibilities. I can set
my freelanceschedule as I see fit. This positionwill take full priority over any other project. Much like any
home life by freelance schedule is akin to a personalhobby.
65. What would be your specific goals for this newrole as a consultant or independent contractor? My
specific goals are to accomplisheach and every request on time and in budget. I look forward to building my
portfolio and my success with this companyis paramount.
66. What experience do you have that you think willbe helpful? My particular experience as Owner/ operator
of a commercialdealership and a co-owner ship of a service company makes me uniquelyqualified.
67. This assignment will require a lot of[describe]. Will that be a problem for you? Discipline is required for
thesetypes of projects. My past has given methe fortitude to complete assignments on time. Not only will
this not be a problem for me, it will be a pleasure.
68. This assignment will require interacting with[describe the types of people]. What experience do you have
working with suchpeople? I have experience working with various consultants and ITprofessionals. Working
as a ComputerOperator and Help Desk Analyst, I have worked with Networking Analysts,Programmers and
IS Directors.
69. What would you like to gain from this newassignment? More than anything, Id liketo gain the
satisfaction of having others depend on me for the profitability ofthe company.
70. What are two common but major obstacles for aproject like this? What would you do in the face of these
obstacles to keepyour team on schedule? Time and communications are the major obstacles for thisproject.
Constant communications withclear cut goals signed by each member is a start. Also, I recommend using
positivereinforcement for achieving milestones.
71. What is project charter? The Project Charterdetails the project purpose, overview, goals, and high-level
deliverables. What are the elements in a project charter?
Theproject overview- A project overview contains a description of the business need, purpose,
andproduct or service that is to be provided.
72. Which document will you refer to for futuredecisions? I would use the Contract.
73. How will you define scope? When the project was proposed for funding,there should have been an initial
set of objectives and deliverables defined.There may even be some type of high-level scope statement. Any
information thatwas created earlier should be used as the starting point for defining the moredetailed scope
statements. If you find that you do not have enough informationto create a clear and comprehensive scope
statement, you must work with thesponsor to gather additional information. That is the purpose of the
definitionand planning process.
One place to look when defining scope is the project objectives. Bydefinition, there needs to be one or more
deliverables created to accomplisheach objective. Looking at the deliverables then becomes the basis for
thescope definition. After you determine what major deliverables the project willproduce, start asking other
questions to determine other aspects of scope. Thedeliverables describe 'what' the project will deliver. You
can also identify'what' organizations are impacted, 'what' types of data are needed, 'what'features and
functions are needed, etc.
74. What is the output of the scope definition process? As a point ofclarity and contrast, you can also identify
out-of-scope conditions bydescribing what deliverables will not be created, what organizations will notbe
impacted, what features and functions are not included, etc. Of course,there are an infinite number of out-ofscope statements. For the purposes ofscope definition, you want to include only those statements that help
definethe project boundary, and touch upon related areas that the reader may havequestions about. For
instance, if you were installing financial software, youmight state that a new Accounts Payable package is in
scope, but the relatedPurchasing System is out of scope.
It is a good practice to document those organizations that are in scope andthose related organizations that
are out of scope. The readers can thendetermine more easily if they are impacted or expected to assist in

theproject. Also, it may make sense to identify what organizations are in scope sothat you can have people
from those organizations represented on the projectteam - perhaps on a Steering Committee.
75. What is quality management? An ongoing effort toprovide services that meet or exceed customer
expectations through astructured, systematic process for creating organizational participation inplanning
and implementing quality improvements.
76. Do you inspect or plan for quality ? Every project should have a quality plan.In reality, very
few do. Youcan see that if you were checking project quality you wouldhave an inspector who would
typically be external to the Project Team
77. What is EVM? how will you use it in managingprojects? Earned Value Management is a management
methodology for integratingscope, schedule, and resources, and for objectively measuring
projectperformance and progress.
78. What is a project? and what is a program? A project is a temporaryendeavor undertaken to create a
unique product, service or result. Thetemporary nature of projects indicates a definite beginning and end.
The end isreached when the projects objectives have been achieved or when the project isterminated
because its objectives will not or cannot be met, or when the needfor the project no longer exists. A program
is a planned sequence andcombination of activities designed to achieve specified goals.
79. What are project selection methods? Projectselection methods are defined to show the project is worth
taking it.Strategic goals of organization, Market Need, Technological Advancement,Competitive Advantage,
Profitability, Project/Portfolio Management Office(PMO), Sponsors are key in project selection.
80. Which tool would you use to define, manage andcontrol projects? I would use the Project/Portfolio
Management Office (PMO).
81. What is risk management and how will you planrisk response? The process of determining
the maximumacceptablelevel of overall risk toand from a proposed activity, then
using riskassessment techniques todeterminethe initiallevel of risk and, if this is excessive, developing a
strategy toameliorateappropriateindividualrisks until the overall level of risk is reduced to an acceptable level.
Theplan is frequently applied in the project management softwareas a series of tasks in addition to those that
were on the original activitylist. The risk mitigation plan may also identify specific triggers, which areevents
that spur action based on the escalating proximity of a given risk. Asrisks become imminent, the risk
mitigation plan identifies what actions shouldoccur and who is responsible for implementing those actions.
82. What are outputs of project closure? Project closure is the last phasein the project life cycle, and must be
conducted formally so that the business benefits delivered by theproject are fully realized by the customer.
Did it result in the benefitsdefined in the business case? Did it achieve the objectives outlined in theterms of
reference? Did it operate within the scope of the terms of reference? Didthe deliverables meet the criteria
defined in the quality plan? Was itdelivered within the schedule outlined in the project plan? Was it
deliveredwithin the budget outlined in the financial plan?
83. What are the methods used for project estimation? The three methods forproject estimation include
equations, comparison, and analogy.
84. What methods have you used for estimation? Ihave used the estimation methods using equations.
85. How would you start a project? I would puttogether a project plan.
86. If you were to deliver a project to a customer,and timely delivery depended upon a sub-supplier, how
would you manage thesupplier? What contractual agreements would you put in place? I would handlethe
supplier by making sure they sign the contractual agreement. A standardbuyer and seller agreement would
be a start. Other agreements can be obtained through a lawyer.
87. In this field (the field you are interviewingfor), what are three critically important things you must do
well as a projectmanager in order for the project to succeed? The three critically importantthings to do is
create the features list, goals list and work items list.
88. What metrics would you expect to use todetermine the on-going success of your project? I would utilize
cost, effort,& duration as my primary metrics.
89. How are your soft skills? Can you sell theproject to a team? As a sales professional you must find the
customers buyingmotives. Once you have identified theirreason for buying you can isolate their objections
and provide solutions.
90. You have a team member who is not meeting hiscommitments, what do you do? I would try and motivate
the team member bysetting a more achievable goal. If theycannot make that goal then I would consider
replacing the team member.
91. Companies have historically looked at technicalskills, but more and more business managers are realizing
that not havingpeople skills tends to cripple projects. I agree.
92. How many projects have you handled in the past?Deadlines met? On time/ within budget? Obstacles you
had to overcome? I havehandled approximately 25 projects. Mostof the deadlines were met and most
customers were willing to extend thedeadline.
93. Do you understand milestones, interdependencies?Resource allocation? Yes.
94. Do you know what Project Software the newcompany uses and is there training for it? The software was
indicated on thecompany website. Other social mediawebsites have indicated the company has training and
professional development.

95.Tell me about yourself. (To avoid rambling or becoming flustered, plan youranswere.) Whatdifferentiates
me from other project managers is my entrepreneurial enterprise.With extensive knowledge of pricing and
product value on a multitude ofmanufacturers, I can competitively position products against or within
aclients inventory to effectively assess their needs. If there is a phrase thatbest describes my talents it would
be creating something out of nothing.Whether Im working with the A & D community on new space or
creating anergonomic, product, or design standard for companies with a variety of existingproducts, I create
customized functional solutions below budget expectationsdeveloping long-lasting quality relationships.
96. What are your strengths? (Make an exhaustivelist and review it exhaustively before the interview.) My
strengths includeFortitude, Humility, Creative, and Perseverance/Industrious.
97. What are your weaknesses? (What you say here canand will be used against you!) My weakness is a
tendency to be aperfectionist.
98. How would your current (or last) boss describeyou? My current boss has told me that I am invaluable
and indispensible.
99. What were your bosss responsibilities?(Interviewers sometimes ask this question to prevent you from
having the chanceto claim that you did your bosss job. Be ready for it!) My bosss position is to run and
operate thecompanys finances.
100. Whats your opinion of them? (Never criticizeyour past or present boss in an interview. It just makes
you look bad!) I wouldlike to replicate his drive and tenacity.

101. How would your co-workers or subordinates describe you professionally?* (Remember, now is not the time
for modesty! Brag a little bit.)
102. Why do you want to work for us?
103. Why do you want to leave your present employer?

I really enjoy what I'm doing, but I feel I'm following a routine. I looked around for more
opportunities to grow, I want to work in an environment that will help me realize my full potential
and a place I can contribute everything I'm capable of doing. My current job doesn't provide these
things for me and that's why I want to work here.
104. Why should we hire you over the other finalists?

I not only have the experiences necessary to succeed in the position, including working
with many MNC companies, I also fit in well with your departments vision and have the
ability to work quickly and efficiently to keep projects up to task. Other candidates may
have some impressive qualifications of their own, but no other candidate is going to fit in
as effectively as I will.
105. What qualities or talents would you bring to the job?*
106. Tell me about your accomplishments.
My greatest achievement so far in my career would probably be. I made numerous operational changes in my
project, including a massive reduction in tikcets - which significantly boosted performance .
107. What is your most important contribution to your last (or current) employer?
108. How do you perform under deadline pressure? Give me an example.
guess a small amount of pressure is always necessary for good and right execution of work. So yes. I can

I find that I do my best work when under pressure. I enjoy undertaking challenging assignments
and finding creative solutions. One time I had two projects that were due the same week. Instead
of stressing out, I created a detailed schedule that allowed me to complete both assignments on
time
109. How do you react to criticism? (You try to learn from it, of course!)

Constructive criticism is an important part of professional growth, and this is a good chance to
show your employer you are striving to be the best and are open to improvement
110. Describe a conflict or disagreement at work in which you were involved. How was it resolved?

Once, a co-worker and I disagreed on the way an unsatisfied customer was dealt with. I
decided to meet with them one on one to talk and resolve our dispute in a peaceful

manner. We both agreed that our goal was to keep the customer happy and came to a
compromise that consisted of both of our ideas
111. What are two of the biggest problems you've encountered at your job and how did you overcome them?
112. Think of a major crisis you've faced at work and explain how you handled it.

I havent faced a situation that could really be described as a major crisis

113. Give me an example of a risk that you took at your job (past or present) and how it turned out.
114. What's your managerial style like?
115. Have you ever hired employees; and, if so, have they lived up to your expectations?
116. What type of performance problems have you encountered in people who report to you, and how did you
motivate them to improve?
117. Describe a typical day at your present (or last) job.
118. What do you see yourself doing five years from now?
Source
119. What is project management?
120. Is spending in IT projects constant through out the project?
121. Who is a stakeholder?

A stakeholder is any person, organization, social group, or society at large that has a stake in
the business.
122. Can you explain project life cycle?
123. Twist :- How many phases are there in software project?

1. Initiation phase
2. Defi nition phase
3. Design phase
4. Development phase
5. Implementation phase
6. Follow-up phase

124. Are risk constant through out the project?

125. Can you explain different software development life cycles?

1. Requirement gathering and analysis

2. Design
3. Implementation or coding
4. Testing
5. Deployment

6. Maintenance

126. What is triple constraint triangle in project management?

The three constraints in a project management triangle are time, cost and scop
127.
128.
129.
130.

What is a project baselines?

What is effort variance?
How is normally a project management plan document organized?
How do you estimate a project?

131. What is a fish bone diagram?

visualization tool for categorizing the potential causes of a problem in order to

identify its root causes
132. Twist:- What is Ishikawa diagram?
133. What is pareto principle?
134. Twist:- What is 80/20 principle?

135.
136.
137.
138.
139.
140.
141.
142.
143.
144.
145.
146.

The Pareto Law,80 percent of results come from 20 percent of efforts

How do you handle change request?

What is internal change request?
What is difference between SITP and UTP in testing?
What is the software you have used for project management?
What are the metrics followed in project management?
Twist: - What metrics will you look at in order to see the project is moving successfully?
You have people in your team who do not meet there deadlines or do not perform what are the actions you will take?
Twist :- Two of your resources have conflicts between them how would you sort it out?
What is black box testing and White box testing?
What's the difference between Unit testing, Assembly testing and Regression testing?
What is V model in testing?
How do you start a project?

147. How did you do resource allocations?

Breakup the project into WBS and assign the resources
148. How will you do code reviews?
149. What is CMMI?
Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI)
150. What are the five levels in CMMI?
Inital,Managed,Defined,Quantitatively managed,optimizing
151. What is continuous and staged representation?
152. Can you explain the process areas?
153. What is SIX sigma?
Six Sigma is a disciplined, data-driven approach and methodology for eliminating defects
154. What is DMAIC and DMADV?
Mostly used in Six sigma methodologies to

DMAIC: Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control

DMADV: Define, Measure, Analyze, Design, Verify

155. What are the various roles in Six Sigma implementation?
156. What are function points?
157. Can you explain steps in function points?

158. What is the FP per day in your current company?

159. Twist :- What is your company's productivity factor?
160. Do you know Use Case points?
161. How do you estimate maintenance project and change requests?
Source

162.
163.
164.
165.
166.
167.

What are all the skills you will be looking at if you have to hire a project manager?
Why are you looking out for a job?
What is your current role and responsibilities? What did you like most in your current job?
How does your day normal look like? What are some of challenges you face on a daily basis?
What makes you exciting about Project management?
Why should we hire you as a Project manager?

168. How do you handle pressure and stress?

Stress is very important to me. ...
I react to situations, rather than to stress. ...
I actually work better under pressure and I've found that I enjoy working in a challenging environment.
From a personal perspective, I manage stress by visiting the gym every evening.
169. Your team is following agile practices. You have to hire a resource for your team. What are all the skills consider when
you hire a new resource.
170. You are starting a new project, which includes offshore/onsite development. How do you manage communications?
171. Your project team does not have hierarchy. You have couple of good techies in your project that has same skills and
experience. There is a conflict between two of them. Both are good technically and very important to the project. How do
you handle conflict between them?
172. Have you done performance appraisals before? If yes, how do you appraise people? 173. How do you estimate? What
kind of estimation practices do you follow?
174. Your customer is asking for an estimate. You do not have time do FP. But you do not want to give a ballpark estimate.
What kind of estimation will you give?
175. Your company is expert in providing solutions for a particular domain. You are appointed as a project manager for a
new project. You have to do Risk management. What will be your approach?
176. How do you improve your team's efficiency?
Delegate Task Designate Time Frames ,Only meet when necessary
Taking regular breaks
Keep a positive attitude and outlook
177. You are joining as project manager for a team, which already exists. How do you gain respect and loyalty of your
team members?
The first thing that you need to do to gain respect from your team members is to treat them with respect
Be their leader, Show your problem solving skills, Be consistent, Show up to work on time, Don't act like the
class clown(though you are highly paid and having car), Don't break your promises, Don't treat your team
members differently, Don't take sides, Have a reasonable amount of compassion(if some one has hard time
give some time to recover)
, Don't over-allocate them
178. You are going to be the project manager for a web-based application, which is targeted towards Insurance. Your gut
feeling is that it would take 5 resources and 8 months to deliver this application.
a. What kind of resources you will hire for this project?
b. If you are asked to deliver the project in 6 months. Can you accelerate the development and deliver it in 6 months?
What will be your approach?
179. What kind of release management practices do you follow?
180. Your application is in testing for the last 2 weeks and you are supposed to deliver the application at the EOD. Your
testing team has found a major flaw in your application in the afternoon. You cannot miss the deadline and your developers
cannot fix the bug in couple of hours. How do you handle this situation?
181. You have a resource that who is not happy with his job and complains all the time. You have noticed that because of
that the team morale is getting spoiled. How do you handle that resource?
182. Your team is into the 6th Iteration of 8 Iteration project. It's been really hectic for the team for the last couple of
months as this project is very important for your customer and to your company. You have started noticing that some of
your key resources are getting burnt out. How do you motivate these resources?
183. Yours is a dedicated team for a customer and it's been a dull period for you and your team. You are not actively

involved in any development activities. Your team is providing support to the application, which you have delivered earlier.
Your team is getting bored as the application stabilized now. Due to budget issues, customer is not going to give you work
for another 3 months. How do you motivate the resources?
184. There was a situation where more than one-way to accomplish the same task. Your onsite tech lead and offshore tech
lead has different opinions about doing this and the feelings were very strong. Both are very important to you. How do you
react to this?
185. What are the practices you follow for project close out? Assume you are into a product customization for a customer
and the application has gone live. How do you close this project?
186. Your team is in between iteration. Your customer wants few more items to be delivered in that iteration which you are
working now. How do you react to your customer?
187. You are at the customer's place and your application is in UAT/stabilization phase. Your customer comes up with a
change request and says that it's a minor one and he wants to see it in the next release. What will be your
response/approach to your customer?
188. What is velocity? How do you estimate your team's velocity?
Amount of work a Team can tackle during a single Sprint and is the key metric in Scrum
The sum of the story points equals 20. Our velocity is then 20. If, in the next iteration, our team delivers 30
story points, then our average velocity is 25, or (20 SP + 30 SP) divided by 2 iterations = 25 SP. Velocity is
the number of story points completed by a team in an iteratio
189. What is earned value management? Why do you need it?
To measure project performance, comparison of worked performed and work planned.usefull in project
forecasting
190. Describe the type of manager you prefer.
A Manager that makes you feel that you are a part of the team and that your contribution makes a difference.
A Manager that is not embarrassed to admit he/she made a mistake and apologize for it.
That Manager would get so more out of his employees than behaving like a know it all tyrant.
191. What are your team-player qualities? Give examples.

The ability to communicate effectively with others

The ability to recognise and understand the viewpoints of others
The ability to appreciate the contribution you are expected to make

192. How do you prioritize your tasks when there isn't time to complete them all?
193. How do you stay focused when faced with a major deadline?
194. Are you able to cope with more than one job at a time?
195. In your opinion, why do software projects fail?
196. Your customer wants a bug to be delivered at EOD. You have got the BUG/CR information in the morning. It will not
be possible to develop, completely regress this issue and deliver it at EOD. How do you approach this issue?
197. You are following Waterfall as your development methodology and you have estimated X days for design phase. Your
customer is not ready to accept this. How do you convince your customer to have X number of days for design phase?
198. You have to sell agile practices (XP/Scrum) to your organization. Your management is very reluctant to change. You
are sure that if you do not change to agile, it will be very tough to survive. What will be your approach?
199. How do you set and manage expectations (with customers, your managers and your team)?
200. For some reason you've encountered a delay on an early phase of your project. What actions can you take to counter
the delay?
201. What is Function point analysis? Why do you need it?
202. What is the difference between EO and EQ? What is FTR?
203. You are estimating using Function point analysis for a distributed n-tier application. How do you factor the complexity
for distributed n-tier application? Does FP Provides support for it?
204. You are getting Adjusted Function point count. How do you convert it into Effort?
205. How do you manage difficult people/problem employees?
206. How do you build your teams morale?
207. How do you estimate your SCRUM/XP Projects? How do you define velocity for the first couple of iterations? What is a
load factor?
208. What is team building? What are the stages in team building? Do you consider it as an important thing? Why?
209. What are some of your lessons learnt with your previous iteration delivered? How do you use your lessons learnt in
your iteration planning?
Source
210. Can you describe this position to me in detail, why you believe you are qualified for this position, and why you are
interested in it?
211. Can you describe this company to me as if I were an investor?
212. How do you get your team working on the same project goal?

213. What do you do when a project is initiated and given to you and you have a gut feeling the scope is too large for the
budget and the timeline?
214. What formal project management training have you received, where did you attend, and what have you learned from
it?
215. We are very siloed, can you explain how you operate interdepartmentally?
216. Consider that you are in a diverse environment, out of your comfort zone. How would you rate your situational
leadership style? Give me examples.
Source
217. You may also be presented with a couple of case studies. For instance, 'What if a key employee falls sick at a critical
time of project delivery?' and etc.
218. My favorite questions are the "Tell me about a time when..." questions. Make sure you have stories about projects
you participated in or managed. Especially share stories of those that had a difficulty to overcome (eg: budget or time
constraint blown) and how the difficulty was managed in order to bring the project to a successful conclusion, or how the
project was closed down before damaging the stakeholders.
Source
219. How stakeholder expectation is managed?
220. How internal and external project risk is managed (quantitatively if possible)
221. How organizational change is managed (involving the stakeholders that will experience change in their lives as a
result of the project),
222. How 'scope management' is done, when the project has not been scoped properly - this is not scope creep I am
talking about, merely the fact that the user, client and management learns what they really want as the project progresses
nine times out of ten - incidentally, glib answers like 'We use RAD, spiral models, prototypes only indicate that the
candidate knows of such things, and not that they know how to use them,
223. What needs to be reported to stakeholders, when and how the data is collected - I normally focus on financial
management techniques here - does the PM know how to use the GL, does the PM understand signing powers, how is
overtime managed and used, etc.
224. How does delegation work - you don't want a PM that does technical work(domain specific work) - the PM should
manage the project (not always practical, but it sounds nice anyway),
225. How does the interface between line management and the Project work - Can the PM negotiate with Middle and
Senior resource managers when interests conflict,
226. How is project progress measured - Anyone that tells me that the %complete calculation function in MS Project works
is ignorant!! - I can prove to anyone who is interested that the algorithm is faulty, and
227. How project team communications, stress and conflict is managed.
228. Describe a time when you had to give bad news on a project to a customer. There are a lot more approaches to this
than you would think, and answers can be insightful.
229. What did you learn from your first job (like flipping burgers at McD's)? The idea here is to see if they can glean useful
information out of simple situations, can they reflect and learn from any situation. I think this form of continuous learning
is key for PMs.
230. How good are you at MS Project (or whatever tool you use)? This is almost a trick question from my perspective. I
believe that most of a PM's job is people, so if someone knows a piece of software forwards-and-backwards, they probably
don't have the people skills required to do the job.
231. Describe how you motivate and manage a matrixed team--where the people on your team do not work for you. Since
this is often the mode, they must be able to do it.
232. How would you go about organizing a project that had enterprise wide implications?
233. What is your approach to managing projects and how does it vary based on the size and complexity or the project?
234. Who should lead projects?
235. Who should be accountable for the project's outcome?
236. What was the budget for the largest project you have managed?
Source
237. What is the project management structure in your project? Is a PL assigned to the project?
238. How do you know that a particular individual is the project leader (or) how do you know that you are the Project
Leader?
239. What and where are the policy statements for software project planning?
240. Explain the various activities you do (as a PL) when the project is started up.
241. How do you know what you need to deliver or do in your project?
242. How do you create the Software Project Management Plan (SPMP)?
243. What training have you undergone in project planning?
244. How do you ensure that your project plan is available for others to see? Where will you find the plans of other
projects executed (in the past or currently) in the center?
245. How did you choose the appropriate lifecycle for your project?
246. What are the documents that you will refer to create the plan?
247. How do you estimate the effort for your project? Where is the estimation procedure documented?
248. What procedures do you follow to arrive at the project schedule?
249. Where and how are the risks associated with your project identified and documented?
250. When you come in to the office, how do you know what you have to do during the day?
251. How do you report the status of your project?

252. How are team members kept informed about the current status of the project?
253. How do the audits cover planning activities?
254. How does the senior management review your project's progress?
255. How do you track the technical activities in your project? How is the status of the project communicated to the team?
256. How do you track the size or changes to size of the work products in your project?
257. When do revise your project plan? When do you know you have to revise your project plan? Where is the plan
revision frequency documented?
258. How do you ensure that you and all the other team members in your project have the required technical skills to
execute the project?
259. How do you assign tasks to your team members?
260. What is the document that should be consulted to know about your project, the activities you do, your schedules and
milestones?
Source
261. How do you handle disruptive team members?
264. How do you motivate people?
266. How do you start a project?
267. If you are teaching the ropes to a new Project Manager, what would you say are the most important things he needs
to look for?
268. What would be the key artifacts needed in a project?
269. How do you manage change?
270. How do you manage conflict in the project team?
Team Building Activities,understanding conflict roles, Adopting a "No Tolerance" Policy Is Often Not Enough,
Encourage Communication
271. How do you deal with a difficult team member?

Approaching the team member with empathy

Building rapport with the person

Only saying positive things to the team member

Offering help if necessary

272.
273.
274.
275.
276.

What qualifications are required to be an effective project manager?

What is the difference between a project plan and a project schedule?
What do you include in a project schedule?
,
How do you track a project?
How do you track risks? Tell me about the risks that your last project had.

277. What is the difference between a risk and an issue?

I've always defined this to the business community in these simple terms. An issue is something that IS
happening and a risk is something that MIGHT happen.
With an issue, you must figure out how to resolve it now so you can move forward.
With a risk, you establish mitigation plans that will (hopefully) eliminate the possibility of the risk occuring or
reduce the impacts if it does occur. Once a risk occurs, it becomes an issue
278. How do you define quality in project management?
279. What would you say if a team member asks why project management is needed? Why do we have to do all this
documentation ahead of the real work?
280. What have you learned in obtaining your PMP that you are using in real-life projects?
281. What do you do if a team member presents a work product that you know for a fact is flawed or incomplete, but the
team member insists it is completed and sound?
282. What would you do if a manager whose resources you are using keeps saying that all the documentation required by
the project is getting in the way of actual progress?
283. What was your role in your last project?
284. What was the most interesting role you played in a project?

Question: How do you go about performance management of your team?

Question: How do you motivate different team members?
Question: What tools and resources do you use to develop your team?
Question: What is your delegation style?
Question: How easily do you delegate responsibility?
Question: How do you monitor and review the delegated responsibilities?
Question: What are your career / project goals for the next 6 months?
Question: How do you set goals for your team? And how do you track these goals?
Question: Describe 2 areas in your current project where there is a high level of
uncertainty. How do you tackle these uncertainties?
Question: How do you control big changes to your project?
Question: How do you ensure that your project is always on track?
Question: What tools do you use as a manager to plan your activities as well as that
of your team?
285. What do you do when a team member does not complete his/her assi
As a PM, s/her has to track team member's work status and should ask him/her to finish of their work and
provide a KT session before he leaves the team. Also, a PM should ask the team member (who leaves the
team)to cross verifyhis/her work done till the time and check if there are any outstanding pending works or
any special tasks that knowledge has to be given an KT to complete team mategnment and has gone to another
project?
286. Have you used Microsoft Project? How do you like it?
287. How do you verify that the requirements identified for a project are actually included in the final delivery to the
users?
288. How do you verify that the requirements are correct and that they reflect what the users want?
289. What are your greatest strengths and weaknesses in the Project Management areas of knowledge?
290. What are the risks you had in your last project?
Source
291. What are the main objects of a project manager?
1. Plays every important role as stakeholder and with Stakeholder.
2. He has to drive the show in terms of Technical, Financial, Risk Mittigation, & never the less the deliverys.
3. Main moto is to ensure every area of assurance of compliance in terms of delivery.
4. He has to be people's person with pleasent personality.
5. Softskill is another key area of his expertise.
6. Time, Material, Cost, Technology/Performance & Resource is his area of play
292. How do you perform Function Point Analysis?

It is a structured technique of problem solving. It is a method to break systems into smaller components, so
they can be better understood and analyzed.
293. What are project management tools? Mention some of them?
Ans:- Project Management Tools. A Gantt chart, Logic Network, PERT chart, Product Breakdown Structure and
Work Breakdown Structure are standard tools used in project planning
294. What are the main attributes to be possessed by a project manager?
Good communicator
Technical competency
Problem-solver
Team leader
Flexibility and willingness to learn
Able to negotiate
Planning and budgeting proficiency
295. How must the project manager react under pressured projects?
With patience and calm.
With these two qualities, a project manager will be able to see the causes for the pressure clearly, and find
effective ways to either remedy or deflect the pressure.
A big no is to transfer that pressure to the worker-bees - the team that is actually executing the tasks.

296. In what percentage or ratio must a project manager possess technical and managerial skills?
It is difficult to rate by percentage or by ratio, PM should have knowledge at macro level in all technical
aspects in his project
297. How often is learning process important for a project manager and why?
Project Management is a practice and in every practice it is very important to understand the framework and
rules.There is certainly a need of learning new methodologies and advancements in this practice as every PM
has unique solution to every situation
298. Explain the managerial features that must be possessed by project manager?
skill, Listen to others and Knowladge sharing.
299. Mention some of the steps to be taken by project manager to reduce stress in the project and among?
Ensure proper time management. Organise short meetings(15-30 mins) with clear objectives. 2)Ensure
communication transparency amongst team members. 3)Rejoice with the team when a milestone is achieved.
300. What are the induction processes a project manager must plan for team members?
Make them comfortable in the new environment explaining them about the whole project what are the
business expectations and deadlines