Tell me about a time you had to get engineering and product teams to change direction based on data. How did you build agreement?

What the interviewer is looking for

• This question tests collaboration & influence. Builds agreement with product and engineering through shared evidence, listening to objections and adjusting the plan.
• What to bring out: Involves people early, frames evidence around their goals, listens to objections, and accepts or adapts when challenged fairly.
• Expect a follow-up like: What would you have done if they had said no?

Another way it may be asked: Imagine the roadmap is set but your analysis says a different priority matters more. How did you persuade people?

A structure to follow: STAR, with the weight on Action and Result

1. Step 1

   Situation

   One or two sentences: where, when and what was at stake. Pick a real example you were close to.

2. Step 2

   Task

   What you personally were responsible for. Say "I", not only "we", so the collaboration & influence you showed is visible.

3. Step 3

   Action

   The two or three things you did and why you chose them over the alternatives. This should be about half your answer.

4. Step 4

   Result

   What changed, in your own measure of it, and what you would do differently. Only use numbers you can stand behind.

This is guidance on shape, not a script. Use your own real experience and facts; never invent details to fill a gap. See the STAR guide and answer frameworks.

Common slips

• Describing what the team did without saying what you did.
• Choosing an example with no clear outcome, or one you cannot answer detailed questions about.
• Ending on the action and skipping the result and what you learned.

How to practise it

Write two bullet points for each STAR letter, then say the answer aloud in about two minutes.

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