The ultimate guide to engineering manager interviews. Developed by FAANG engineers, prep faster with proven strategies, real-world questions, and a structured approach. Get interview-ready in hours.

Engineers working as individual contributors may want to switch to management roles in the middle of their careers. A significant part of this transition will involve preparing for the engineering manager (EM) interview. This course is meant for folks preparing for an EM interview, enabling them to systematically cover the often-asked questions and strategies to come up with good answers.
The course begins with education about the EM role and the interview process for this role. It then covers the patterns and strategies to answer typical management questions in a story-like fashion. These involve people management, project and cross-functional management, and behavioral questions.
The course has been prepared by experienced engineering managers and directors for top-tier tech companies with years of experience giving and taking interviews for this role. This course will help you to persuasively present your own management experience during the interview and get your dream offer.

Acing the Engineering Manager Interview

# Key points
Congratulations on completing the course! It was designed to help those who wish to either transition from an engineer to an engineering manager or for engineering managers who are applying for a new job. Hopefully, it met your needs and helped you build the necessary confidence to ace your interview. The interview process for this role is elaborate, and candidates have to demonstrate impressive technical and people management skills. This course has provided you with an in-depth guide on how to ace your management interview and covered the basics you need to know in order to prepare for technical interviews. 



The EM role is a step up from your role as an engineer. There are numerous responsibilities that you need to manage. You’re not going to be writing as much code since you'll be tasked with managing a team of people and keeping all the projects streamlined. However, that doesn't mean you won't be coding at all. Engineering managers are advised to write code often enough to keep their skills sharp. You need to have a firm grasp of your technical skills to be able to lead an entire team of engineers and head problem-solving. That's why technical interviews are very important and must be prepared for thoroughly. 

For your management interview, the STAR method is an effective way to give structured answers that cover all the important details your interviewer needs to hear. Keeping the question in mind, you elaborate on the situation, task, action, and result. Interviews are stressful situations for the best of us and can often catch us off guard with sudden bouts of nervousness. Remembering the STAR method will help you formulate an answer in case you get flustered or if you simply need a system to make sure your answer covers all the relevant bases.

That being said, you should also prepare a story bank. The interviewer may explicitly ask for examples of situations you've been in. Again, you might get flustered and find it difficult to recall relevant situations at the time of the interview. Preparing stories that answer questions you're likely to be asked will help you. 

This course elaborates on two main aspects of your interview: people management and project management. It has covered questions that are most likely to come up and has given mock answers that interviewers would appreciate. Every individual is unique, so keep in mind that those answers are simply an example of what a good answer looks like. In the interview, you will have to formulate your own answer, ideally by using the methods stated above. In the people management interview, you need to demonstrate your cool-headedness and empathy every step of the way, showing how you’re cut out for being an impartial leader who is invested in the growth of those working under them. In the project management interview, your ability to solve problems while keeping multiple stakeholders happy is what needs to shine through in your answers. 

You must have gotten an idea of how the role of an engineering manager is a highly people-oriented role. Your ability to communicate effectively, empathize and build strong teams will matter the most. If that's what you are passionate about, then this is the job for you. To secure this job, it's integral to ace the interview, and this course is here to help you prepare. Good luck!


Let's wrap up this course by summarizing a few key points.

Introduction

The EM Interview Loop

Management Interview Patterns and Strategies

People Management Questions

Project and Cross-functional Management

Behavioral Questions

Summary and Conclusion

Key points