Demonstrate leadership and product collaboration
Overview
This question evaluates leadership skills, cross-functional product collaboration, stakeholder communication, scope definition, and technical conflict resolution within a software engineering context.
Parafin
Jul 31, 2025, 12:00 AM
Software Engineer
Onsite
Behavioral & Leadership
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Behavioral & Leadership (Software Engineer Onsite)
Context: This multi-part behavioral prompt evaluates your ability to lead through ambiguity, align with product when engagement is low or priorities conflict, and resolve technical disagreements. Answer with STAR (Situation, Task, Actions, Results, Reflection) and include measurable outcomes.
1) Leading Through Ambiguous Requirements
Describe a time you led a team with unclear requirements.
- How did you elicit clarifications (stakeholders, users, data, assumptions)?
- How did you define scope (MVP vs. non-goals, metrics, risks, timeline)?
2) Challenging Collaboration With a Product Manager
Describe a difficult collaboration with a PM, especially when engagement was low or priorities conflicted.
- How did you build alignment and influence the outcome?
- What process or data did you use to reconcile priorities?
3) Significant Technical Conflict
Give an example of a major technical conflict on your team.
- What alternatives did you consider? What was your role in the decision?
- How did you resolve it, and what were the measurable results?
- What would you do differently next time?
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