What you need to know to crush your interview with us!

So you’re interested in working on the product team at Fivetran as a Product Manager. Hurray! We’re excited to learn more about you, your background, and your approach as a part of the interview process to see if you’re a great fit for our team. At Fivetran, our product team is responsible for the success of our product which is a huge responsibility. We're looking for folks who will thrive on our team by bringing curiosity, ownership, collaboration, kindness and integrity every day to everything we do.

We’re big on celebrating each other’s amazing work at Fivetran; and so, in anticipation of celebrating your upcoming success interviewing with us, we are pleased to share some tips about our process and evaluation criteria.

What is it like interviewing for a Product Manager role at Fivetran and what do you absolutely need to know? Glad you asked!

What are we looking for?

• Team members who are excited to build the future of Fivetran and to immerse themselves in the data industry
• Team members who will excel (not just accomplish) in the role
• Team members who will add to our diverse culture and embody our values

Interviewing principles

We are constantly iterating on our interview process, and part of that is accepting that at any given moment, our process is imperfect.

Despite that reality, here are some principles that we strive to achieve:

• The best interviews directly simulate skills you will use on the job. While it’s impossible to perfectly simulate “on-the-job” performance in a few hours, we try to evaluate candidates on the sorts of activities they would be doing day to day at Fivetran. Therefore, we will sometimes design mock simulations of a skillset, rather than asking about your knowledge or your experience. We also like to focus on specific examples, rather than generalities.
• Communication and Organization of Ideas. All of the roles within the product team involve regularly communicating ideas with your collaborators and stakeholders. We focus on this communication heavily during the interview process, because we believe it’s critical for success. In each of the interviews, you are expected to have a two-way conversation with the interviewer — asking questions is encouraged!  

Interview process and tips

Recruiter screen - 30 minutes, phone call

During this call, you’ll hear an overview of Fivetran’s product, our rocketship growth as a recently minted “unicorn,” the team structure, and the company goals for the year. Pay close attention to what you learn here — especially insights about our culture — and ask yourself: what resonates with you and what excites you the most?

Be candid. Share what truly motivates you, how you like to work, and how Fivetran can support you in achieving your career goals. Your recruiter will look out for you and will advise if Fivetran is the company you’ll thrive in and enjoy.

Hiring manager - 30 minutes, video

Be prepared to speak in detail about your scope of responsibilities, your contributions to a product that you’ve worked on and to your team’s culture, and what guides you as a product manager.  Pick a project you’ve led and walk your interviewer through it. Make sure you touch on three dimensions — scope, contribution and guiding light (the ‘why’ in your decisions).  Your interviewer may ask detailed questions based on what you share to better understand your thought process and rationale.

You’ll hear about our product principles and how it works in practice. Prepare for this and ask yourself: how do you align with this focus and when have you showcased it through your work?

Be exceptionally curious and ask insightful questions. Even if you already have your assumptions, be bold: this is your chance to confirm them.

Feature release presentation - 40 minutes, video

We want to see you shine as you share your previous work so we have every candidate present a feature or product that they’ve released from start to finish. Our goal is to understand your process, presentation skills, and enthusiasm for your work. Make sure to provide context about your company and how the feature fits into the company strategy. We’re really interested in the “why” behind your decisions.

Onsite interview - 4+ hours, video

At this point, you’ve done your research, you know about the team, the role, and understand our product and where it sits in the market. We’ve learned a little bit about you through the previous conversations, and now is your time to be your authentic self and bring this knowledge along with your expertise to highlight why you’re the best candidate. We’ll be doing the same in showcasing why Fivetran is the right place for your next career move. By the end of the onsite interviews, we want you to be super excited about working on our product and with our team, and we want to feel stoked to get you on board. Our onsite process includes a couple of simulations and behavioral interviews.

The simulations are intended to role play a conversation between two colleagues. Don't expect to have to find a needle-like correct answer in a haystack of wrong ones. Instead, be prepared to talk about the pros and cons of your choices, and why they might work better in certain situations, and not so well in others.

You're encouraged to ask questions about the question, and about the merits of different options. Does your interviewer have a unique perspective on how to tackle the problem? You won’t know unless you ask. This interview works best for both participants if it's a conversation.

Fivetran is hiring!

We're looking for talented product managers to join our growing team!

SEE OPEN POSITIONS