Skip to contentSkip to footer

Design Manager Interview Questions

Salaries
Interviews

1,656 design manager interview questions shared by candidates

My main feedback here is that the recruiters and EAs did very little to prepare me for the interviews. They frequently didn't know who would be in these panels and only posted the information after my prompting and following up. If JPL is really serious about inclusivity they need to share all questions up front to give people with anxiety or neurodivergence the ability to prepare and feel at ease during the interviews. There were a couple of red flags during the interviews: 1. It seems like there is a ton of bureaucratic red tape. 2. It seems impossible to fire underperformers which is a massive hindrance to effective leadership, how can you turn things around or improve things if you have to drag low performers along with you? 3. It seems technologically behind when it comes to the tech stack that the teams use, which is ironic. The people I met were completely lovely, some had been there 20 years or longer. The pay is quite low compared to tech companies, if I had moved forward with this position it would have been a 75K pay cut, and trading in a flexible fully remote job for a hybrid job.
avatar

Design Manager

Interviewed at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

3.9★
Sep 18, 2023

My main feedback here is that the recruiters and EAs did very little to prepare me for the interviews. They frequently didn't know who would be in these panels and only posted the information after my prompting and following up. If JPL is really serious about inclusivity they need to share all questions up front to give people with anxiety or neurodivergence the ability to prepare and feel at ease during the interviews. There were a couple of red flags during the interviews: 1. It seems like there is a ton of bureaucratic red tape. 2. It seems impossible to fire underperformers which is a massive hindrance to effective leadership, how can you turn things around or improve things if you have to drag low performers along with you? 3. It seems technologically behind when it comes to the tech stack that the teams use, which is ironic. The people I met were completely lovely, some had been there 20 years or longer. The pay is quite low compared to tech companies, if I had moved forward with this position it would have been a 75K pay cut, and trading in a flexible fully remote job for a hybrid job.

I was asked about my design process and design management style, about my views on the role of a design director in working with product and marketing, about what I would identify as the most immediate goals for the role, and to what extent I can serve as a hands-on designer in addition to design leadership. Given the technical nature of their products I was also asked about my knowledge of the security product space. Also, they have staff in Eastern Europe so I was asked about managing staff and working with product managers remotely.
avatar

Director of Design

Interviewed at OPSWAT

3.8★
Jul 8, 2015

I was asked about my design process and design management style, about my views on the role of a design director in working with product and marketing, about what I would identify as the most immediate goals for the role, and to what extent I can serve as a hands-on designer in addition to design leadership. Given the technical nature of their products I was also asked about my knowledge of the security product space. Also, they have staff in Eastern Europe so I was asked about managing staff and working with product managers remotely.

Viewing 191 - 200 interview questions

Glassdoor has 1,656 interview questions and reports from Design manager interviews. Prepare for your interview. Get hired. Love your job.