Propeller

Application

I applied online. The process took 2+ months. I interviewed at Propeller (Portland, OR) in July 2015.

Interview

The first three interviews were great and I left each feeling excited while the fourth and final interview felt like it was for a different job and tainted the entire experience.

There were four rounds of interviews including a phone screen, in-person technical interview, in-person culture fit interview, and finally an in-person business case review/presentation. The first three interviews were informal meetings at coffee shops focusing on my experience and how it related to the work done at Propeller. They were each about an hour long. During the technical and culture fit interviews I was asked to problem solve for a mini-case, again it was very informal and the goal was for the interviewer to understand how I process my thoughts and problem solve. Much of the conversations centered around relationship management, process, organization, and understanding the human element of consulting.

The business case interview was formal and lasted about 2.5 hours in their office. After the HR rep welcomed me and reviewed the process for the interview I had roughly 1.5 hours to review the case and white-board a presentation of recommendations. I presented to a panel which included one of the principals and a director who role played as the client. My recommendations focused mainly on the objectives and relationship management. As the presentation became a discussion it became clear I hadn't included ample case analysis, specifically hard timelines, budget line items, and success metrics.

As a result of the case review, I didn't receive an offer. Upon reflection, I believe there was a misalignment of expectations on my end and Propeller's around the position. In each preceding interview, the focus had been on my experience as a workflow and service delivery manager. Managing day-to-day operations, relationship management, and leading process improvements. I had been told up to that point that my my skills were transferable. The final case review was heavy on analytic and project management skills. They were looking for someone with hard PM skills. If this was their intent all along then it should have been made clear from the beginning of the interview process not left to the very end.

From those I interviewed with, I understood the company to be one that seeks talent in the earlier stages of their careers and is supportive of their development. I got the impression from the fourth interview that they were looking for a seasoned PM, which I never claimed to be.

Interview Questions