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Using the Pragmatic Marketing Framework for Job Interviews

Here’s a great tip: when you’re part of a product management job interview, take along your Pragmatic Marketing Framework. Whether you are a hiring manager or job candidate, referring to the Framework during the interview process can be a highly effective way to structure the conversation.

Pragmatic Marketer Volume 7 Issue 5Hiring Managers

One approach to an effective interview is to refer to the Pragmatic Marketing Framework and use it to explain the open position.

Perhaps you used the activities in the Framework to divide work amongst multiple job titles. Using the Framework in an interview, you can identify the activities this candidate will perform, along with any hand-offs to other team members.

Or perhaps the ideal candidate needs to handle all 37 activities on the Framework. In that case, use the Framework to have the candidate talk about the various activities and identify their strengths and weaknesses.

 

Candidates

It is always a great idea to have the Pragmatic Marketing Framework with you when you interview for a new position. Convey to a hiring manager that you use a structured process for your work, to show both competence and confidence.

If they know the framework, you’ll build instant rapport; if they’ve never seen the framework, then you look even smarter.

The printed Framework is also an excellent tool to illustrate your view of a particular role in a company. For example, if you are interviewing for a position that will require you to be the “messenger of the market,” the Pragmatic Marketing Framework can be used to talk about how you would fulfill that responsibility.

Perhaps you’d point at Market Problems or Win/Loss Analysis and illustrate with a prior set of job experiences how you used data from market interviews to drive product direction.


Summary

Don’t be afraid to use the Pragmatic Marketing Framework during the interview. If the person across the table is also familiar with the model, you immediately have context for the balance of the interview. Maybe they will pull out their copy, and it will work like a secret handshake!


Pragmatic Marketing Framework


 

Excellent idea!

Posted by John Keller at 2009-11-19 06:31 PM
Thanks for this great idea. I have already used Steve's Pragmatic Marketing eBook "The Strategic Role of Product Management" to help justify establishing a new Product Manager role at a small company, and I'll use this framework diagram to help guide the conversation in future interviews. Thanks again for all the support you provide.

John Keller
The Agile Product Manager
http://jwkeller.weebly.com/

The Strategic Role of Product Management

Posted by Steve Johnson at 2009-11-20 10:24 AM
Thanks for the kudos!