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Programme Manager Interview Questions

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Indeed’s Employer Resource Library helps businesses grow and manage their workforce. With over 15,000 articles in 6 languages, we offer tactical advice, how-tos and best practices to help businesses hire and retain great employees.

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Whether you are preparing to interview a candidate or applying for a job, review our list of top Programme Manager interview questions and answers.

  1. As a programme manager, how do you reinforce the company’s goals and objectives within your team? See answer
  2. What are the critical skills of a successful programme manager? See answer
  3. What technology and tools do you have experience using as a programme manager? See answer
  4. As a programme manager, how do you stay organised? See answer
  5. How has your education prepared you for a career as a programme manager? See answer
  6. How do you update your skills and knowledge as a programme manager? See answer
  7. How does a programme manager contribute to the success of a company? See answer
  8. When managing multiple projects, how do you evaluate the health of each project? See answer
  9. Describe a time you had to share resources between two individual projects. See answer
  10. What key performance indicators or metrics do you feel are most important to evaluate as a programme manager? See answer
  11. What process do you use for change management within the programme and projects you manage? See answer
  12. What process do you follow to monitor various projects in progress? See answer
  13. Describe a time you had to resolve a conflict between two team members. See answer
  14. What about our company interests you as a programme manager? See answer
  15. What’s the most significant impact you’ve made on a company as a programme manager?
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Our mission

Indeed’s Employer Resource Library helps businesses grow and manage their workforce. With over 15,000 articles in 6 languages, we offer tactical advice, how-tos and best practices to help businesses hire and retain great employees.

Read our editorial guidelines

15 Programme Manager Interview Questions and Answers

As a programme manager, how do you reinforce the company’s goals and objectives within your team?

A programme manager must provide clear direction and guidance to their team not only about their ongoing projects but about the company's larger goals and objectives. The purpose of the question is to evaluate the candidate's ability to communicate the company's direction and vision to their team. What to look for in an answer:

  • Ability to understand the company's goals and objectives
  • Communication skills to relay critical information to their team
  • Interest in creating a culture of open discussion

Example:

"It's important that I provide clear direction to my team of the overarching goals and objectives of the company. To do this, I hold regular team meetings to review both the company and programme goals and the progress we're making."

What are the critical skills of a successful programme manager?

The goal of the question is to evaluate the candidate's perspective on the necessary skills to succeed in the position. What to look for in an answer:

  • Understanding the full scope of duties and responsibilities of the position
  • Ability to identify critical skills and abilities of a successful programme manager
  • Ability to adapt their experience to benefit the job and company

Example:

"Having been a programme manager for several years, I relate my success to several critical skills. To narrow down, I would say the top three abilities are organisational, analytical, and communication skills. All of these skills are essential to be successful in the role."

What technology and tools do you have experience using as a programme manager?

A programme manager uses applications and computer programmes to manage projects and remain organised. The goal of the question is to determine the tools and technology the candidate has experience using in their position. What to look for in an answer:

  • Solid foundational computer literacy skills
  • Experience using company-specific software or tools, as required
  • Understanding how the use of technology can improve productivity

Example:

"Having worked first as a project manager before I moved into programme management, I have years of experience using various project management software platforms, such as Citrix Podio and Basecamp, as well as basic programmes such as Microsoft Excel and Word."

As a programme manager, how do you stay organised?

For a programme manager to lead their team, they must remain organised. The goal of the question is to evaluate the candidate's process for organizing their tasks and responsibilities. What to look for in an answer:

  • organisational skills to manage multiple projects and teams
  • Interest in creating and maintaining a streamlined framework to work from 
  • Critical thinking and analytical skills to prioritise tasks and duties

Example:

"Staying organised is an essential part of being successful in a programme manager role. As such, I keep a detailed calendar with all tasks, meetings, updates, and deadlines. I use my calendar to remind me of upcoming milestones and for keeping a running to-do list."

How has your education prepared you for a career as a programme manager?

The goal of the question is to evaluate the candidate's academic training and ability to adapt their knowledge to benefit the position's requirements. What to look for in an answer:

  • Completion of company-specific educational training, as required
  • Ability to adapt their knowledge to implement within the role
  • Interest in continuing to improve their professional skills and knowledge

Example:

"Having an MBA, or master's degree in business administration, provides me with a solid knowledge base of business operations and best practises. I use this knowledge daily in my job as a programme manager. For example, I use my training when I'm completing a risk analysis of a new project."

How do you update your skills and knowledge as a programme manager?

A competent programme manager must strive to improve their professional skills consistently. The goal of the question is to evaluate the candidate's approach to updating their skills and knowledge. What to look for in an answer:

  • Interest in taking part in professional development opportunities
  • Self-awareness of their professional strengths and weaknesses
  • Ability to accept new information and implement it into their daily tasks

Example:

"It's important to me to improve my skills and enhance my knowledge. I take regular courses online specific to programme management to be a better leader and manager. I'm also part of several meetup groups that network with each other and provide monthly guest speakers."

How does a programme manager contribute to the success of a company?

The goal of the question is to evaluate the candidate's understanding of the role and ability to contribute positively to the business. What to look for in an answer:

  • Understanding the full scope of duties and responsibilities of the job description
  • Ability to manage multiple projects effectively 
  • Interest in providing a positive contribution to the organisation within their role

Example:

"A programme manager contributes to the overall success of a company by effectively managing and leading multiple projects that bring the company closer to its goals and objectives. Having a clear vision and communicating it to the team is the first step of contribution."

What's the most significant impact you’ve made on a company as a programme manager?

The goal of the question is to evaluate the candidate's ability to positively impact the company they work for within their role as a programme manager. What to look for in an answer:

  • Ability to make progress within projects and programmes
  • Communication skills to provide clear direction and support to their team
  • Management and leadership skills to build a solid and effective department

Example:

"The most significant impact I've made as a programme manager would be the successful launch of a brand new client retention programme for my previous employer. It was a project we had worked on for a year and to see the impact it made for the company's revenue was a great feeling."

When managing multiple projects, how do you evaluate the health of each project?

A programme manager monitors multiple projects and needs to be aware of the health of each. The goal of the question is to evaluate the candidate's ability to monitor and analyse the health and viability of their projects. What to look for in an answer:

  • organisational and time management skills to balance multiple projects
  • Critical thinking and analytical skills to assess project health and risks
  • Management and leadership skills to provide direction and guidance to project managers and team members

Example:

"I evaluate the health of my projects by monitoring the progress of each project. Using project management software, I can assess each project within the dashboard to review progress, team milestones, deliverables, and resources. I also..."

Describe a time you had to share resources between two individual projects.

A successful programme manager must maximize their workforce and resources, often sharing between several project teams. The goal of the question is to evaluate the candidate's ability to manage shared resources effectively. What to look for in an answer:

  • Understanding of project management best practises and organisation
  • Ability to delegate responsibilities and tasks to others
  • Creative thinking and problem-solving skills to determine best methods of resource sharing

Example:

"I often have team members work on several projects at once, with accountabilities for each project they're involved in. For example, a team member may work on social media graphics for several projects. I'm also familiar with..."

What key performance indicators or metrics do you feel are most important to evaluate as a programme manager?

A competent programme manager must maintain insight on specific metrics to evaluate the success of a programme or project. The goal of the question is to assess the candidate's understanding of key performance indicators (KPI) within their role. What to look for in an answer:

  • Solid foundational knowledge of key programme metrics
  • Ability to create and monitor measurement and tracking systems for evaluation
  • Understanding of the most critical KPIs in the specific company

Example:

"In my previous positions, the most important key performance indicators that I monitored were budget variance, customer satisfaction, and resource capacity. These KPIs helped me to evaluate the overall effectiveness of a programme. It also provided insight into future improvements."

What process do you use for change management within the programme and projects you manage?

A competent programme manager must monitor for project creep, or the process where a project begins to go over budget, over deadline, or over capacity, often due to changes within the project. The goal of the question is to evaluate the candidate's ability to monitor changes within a programme or project and manage project creep. What to look for in an answer:

  • Understanding of project and programme management best practises
  • Ability to monitor changes within a programme or project effectively without side effects
  • Communication and leadership skills to keep all team members on task and target

Example:

"Within specific projects, I like to use a formal change management process that entails written assessment and evaluation of the change and then modifying the project scope. Within the programme, I follow change management best practises of..."

What process do you follow to monitor various projects in progress?

A programme manager typically monitors various projects and provides leadership to several project managers. The goal of the question is to evaluate the candidate's process for monitoring current projects under their programme. What to look for in an answer:

  • Use of technology and software programmes to monitor projects effectively
  • Understanding the scope of the projects under their leadership
  • Communication skills to ask questions and have open discussions with their project managers

Example:

"As a programme manager, I prefer to use a project management software platform that allows me to have real-time access to the progress of each project. I also believe in having regular update meetings with my project managers to stay current and intervene as needed."

Describe a time you had to resolve a conflict between two team members.

A programme manager must build a solid team and resolve conflicts when required. The goal of the question is to evaluate the candidate's communication and management skills to resolve a team conflict. What to look for in an answer:

  • Communication skills to ask questions and have an open discussion to resolve the conflict
  • Management skills to create expectations and a framework of acceptable work behaviour
  • Negotiation and persuasive skills to lead team members to a mutual resolution

Example:

"I had two employees disagree over the sharing of an assistant within their separate projects. I sat down with both individuals and led a conversation of how they could work together and share the assistant for mutual benefit."

What about our company interests you as a programme manager?

Am interview candidate should complete research on the company and position before attending the interview. The goal of the question is to evaluate the candidate's understanding of the role and the company's mission and values. What to look for in an answer:

  • Interest to complete research about the company and job description before the interview
  • Understanding of the company's mission, values, and industry they serve
  • Understanding the full scope of duties and responsibilities for the role

Example:

"As a programme manager, my passion is knowing that the work I do is valuable to the clients the company serves. So, as a social support company, I immediately knew that I could make a difference not only for your organisation but for the people your company helps."

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