Hey folks, I failed almost all PM interviews I could get. I have done intensive prep with many mock interviews, and I am realizing that I am just bad at interviewing. I love the product I work on at Microsoft, but it is so underfunded and it is constantly on 🔥. I cannot bear talking to another customer who got duped into the purchase and now is struggling to make it work. And...TC is 🥜 - tired of junior folks getting better offers. Need to figure out what to do next. Vote on it! List of onsite rejections: 1. Meta - failed onsite. I think I wasn't as excited about Meta as I should have been. 2. Rivian - feedback was positive but went with a different candidate. 3. TikTok - ghosted after a very creepy follow up with HR after an on-site. 4. Chewy - changed the role on me last minute, but could have led to an offer. New role was not interesting. 5. Box - failed onsite. This was a bit of a surprise, but probably failed talking about improvement of engineering processes. 6. Uber - rejected after an onsite. Recruiter said something about engineering team didn't feel that it will be the right fit. Rejections before onsite: 1. Google - had a referral but rejected without talking to anyone. A recruiter then reached out to work on internal tools and I just couldn't stomach it. 2. Salesforce - rejection after the second round. I think the team expected me to have a different set of experiences. 3. Discord - rejection after an HR call. 4. Robinhood - rejection after an HR call. 5. Qualtrics - rejection after talking to a hiring manager. 6. Coinbase - rejection after a two round initial screen. Rejections I'd like to get: 1. Snap - multiple referrals but no contact #snap 2. Apple - was referred for a very interesting position but no contact #apple 3. Adobe #adobe 4. AirBnB - applied but have not gotten any response #airbnb 5. Lyft #lyft 6. Any other public or pre-IPO company. I lived a startup life before and I am not ready to go back. Most pleasant interview was with Box. Worst interview was with TikTok. TC 187k, YOE 6, L63 at MSFT, Seattle area #pm #product #productmanager
Sorry to hear about this, interviewing can be tough. Having gone through some rejections myself, I’d encourage to continue looking for new options, both externally and internally. Something will click for sure 🤞
How long have you been In PM role at Microsoft officially ?
All 6 years. College hire at L59->L63 in 5.5 years, which is not bad.
You also said you "lived a startup life before and aren't ready to go back". What does that mean?
Have you prepped by yourself? I recommend working with an interview coach. I used exponent and it helped me a lot
I mostly focused on paid and unpaid mock interviews. I'll give a coach a shot. Thanks!
No problem! I suggest going with the ones where you pay per session. There are also coaches that say "pay me 10K now and I'll help you get your dream job" 🙂 I wouldn't trust those people 🙂
Did they give you feedback on your interviews
Generally, no. That's a standard practice anyway.
Not true for all. Meta gave me detailed feedback both times. Key is to keep it verbal.
I second the idea of working with a coach. By the way, you have done pretty well progressing to onsite rounds at so many companies. Have faith and work on your blind spots.
DM me and I can try to help
keep doing it. I think you have done too much work to stop it now
At this point I am not sure where else to interview, tbh. I have been resisting interviewing at Amazon for some time, but others haven't shown interest in me.
OP how did you go about getting the interview calls? Referrals or just a resume drop? Good luck for your next set of interviews!
I had 4 referrals - Meta, Rivian worked, and snap and apple didn't. For the rest I either applied or recruiters reached out to me directly.
You’re out of alignment with what you really want and need. Take a short LOA and work with a coach on reconnecting with your values. Your heavily focused on high profile companies and comp (ego) but not with what really engages you. If you’re focused on the wrong things it will never work out at least not for any measurable time.
OP - a lot of the replies are really awesome BUT this one 👆🏾 is GOLD.
This hurts to hear...
Good you realized it ultimately. Nothing can be done about it.
Savage