Mudassar KhanProgram (Project )Manager| Woodward Canada IncPeterborough, ON, Canada
Mar 14, 2017 3:39 PM
Replying to Naomi Caietti
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S:
Andrew is on the right track; this is typical though.
The biggest thing that standout out for me in that you have a hard deadline to finish this project with 5FTE that most likely aren't full time. So you begin by working backwards by beginning with the end in mind.
Basically, they want to know you can think on your feet, want to know what kind of approach you would recommend and how you would proceed. It's okay to make assumptions and suggest a couple of scenarios back on methods you might use.
So, in hindsight; review your approach and consider what options are best practice.
Excellently put forward by Naomi Caietti Saving Changes...
S RajasekarSenior Project Manager| AllscriptsBangalore, Karnataka, India
Mar 14, 2017 10:19 PM
Replying to Anupam
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Did you asked for the feedback? or they gave you the explanation?
Yes , I asked for feedback he told me i'm not selected :-( apart from that no explanation Saving Changes...
S RajasekarSenior Project Manager| AllscriptsBangalore, Karnataka, India
Thanks for all your inputs and thoughts , this is not a typical interview question but in some places some people ask strange questions and expect some specific answer.
Surprisingly it was for one of the world reputed company and the position was for Senior Program Manager, interviewer was Senior Director of PMO in that Org.
It happens at time......:-)
Thanks Everyone. Saving Changes...
Patrick ShediackProgram Manager| Air Force Lifecycle Management CenterDayton, Oh, United States
Mar 14, 2017 10:52 AM
Replying to Ruben Dario Abello Medina
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To start to planning you need to know what to do, thats the projec itself
After know that, you need to know the scope, requirements, etc
you need to ask, why they think 5FTE and 6months could be enough to finish the project, how they stimate it?
try to get as much information as you can
I'm with you, Ruben.
My question to the interviewer would have been, "The five phases of a project are Initiate, Plan, Execute, Control and Closure. The Initiating Phase is where the organization commits to an effort that produces a product or service. So what did the organization commit to produce?"
If you have no idea what the organization committed to produce, then the number of FTEs, duration and so forth are nothing more than nonsensical talking points.
For example, maybe the organization committed to building and donating a dog house for the new bomb sniffing dog at the local police department. If that was the commitment, then the interviewer's data points in the original poster's case are worthless since one carpenter could probably build a very nice doghouse in a single day including putting a shingled roof with underlayment on it.
I've run into these sorts of questions before on interviews. It's usually the sign of a novice interviewer who has only a peripheral understanding of structured project management.
The way to deal with that question is to go to the starting point: What is the product or service we're supposed to produce with this project? A good interviewer should be able to state that in no less than five sentences; if not, you're dealing with an amateur in PM. In that case, go back to basics and formulate your answer in a structured manner based on Initiate, Plan, Execute, Control and Close. If nothing else, it will show you're thinking in an analytical, but methodical basis; not running out the door, so to speak, to 'do something'. Saving Changes...
george milonogiannissales| freelance sales and marketing projects data analysisGerakas, Attika, Greece
FTE is not necessarily 5 people. You need to convert the 1000 hours to ftes. and start from there Saving Changes...
