PM behavioral: improving collaboration between two departments

Describe a situation where you helped two departments collaborate better. What was holding them back, what did you do, and what changed as a result? ```hint Diagnose before fixing Before describing your actions, explain why the two groups were not working well together from each side's point of view, so that what you did reads as a fix for that cause. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - Do the two groups need to be formal departments, such as sales and engineering, or can they be two teams within one organization? - Are you most interested in a case where I had authority over neither group? - Should I measure success by a business result or by how the two groups work together day to day? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - The concrete cost of the poor collaboration to customers or the business - A diagnosis of the misalignment that represents each group's goals, incentives and information fairly - How the candidate influenced both groups without relying on authority, and how they handled resistance from each - A result the candidate can measure, and evidence that the improvement lasted beyond their involvement ### Follow-up Questions - Which side resisted more, and how did you win them over? - What happened to the collaboration after you moved on, and how do you know? - If one department's leader had refused to change, what would you have done?