Question: Handling Projects That Don't Meet Expectations
Explore how to clearly narrate a project that failed to meet expectations. Learn to define the situation, identify mistakes, and discuss measurable outcomes. Understand how to reflect thoughtfully and show growth by applying lessons learned, preparing you to handle failure questions in product management interviews.
We'll cover the following...
- Interview question
- Scenario overview
- Step-by-Step framework for answering tell me about a failure
- Step 1: Define the situation
- Step 2: State your objective
- Step 3: Outline actions and identify what went wrong
- Step 4: Describe results and reflect thoughtfully
- Example: Clearly discussing a project failure
- Success metrics
- Key takeaways
Interview question
Describe a project you owned that didn’t meet expectations.
In this lesson, you’ll practice constructing a clear, reflective narrative about a project you managed that failed to meet expectations. You’ll explicitly demonstrate your ability to analyze mistakes, articulate lessons learned, and clearly show how you applied those insights moving forward essential skills sought by interviewers.
Scenario overview
Imagine your interviewer asks:
Can you describe a project you led that didn't meet its goals or expectations?
Your task is to clearly outline the situation, transparently discuss what went wrong, articulate the results explicitly, and ...