Cracking Product Management Interviews: A Strategic Guide to Estimation Questions (Used at Google)
PMs are still asked estimations questions at places like Google and X! (No Joke)
They’re so stressful. You rarely have to do it on the job.
Here’s how to succeed in the interview:
𝗢𝗡𝗘: 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗮 𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 → 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗔𝗠𝗘 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸
Most PMs dive straight into numbers and get lost.
Instead, start with GAME to create a strong foundation:
→ Goals: What are you estimating for? Define the objective.
→ Assumptions: Fill knowledge gaps with educated guesses.
→ Metrics: What key KPIs matter? Identify them.
→ Estimate: Tie it all together with clear calculations.
Don’t guess blindly. Build answers that make sense.
𝗧𝗪𝗢: 𝗢𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 → 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗧 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸
Metrics overwhelm most PMs because they don’t know where to start.
Google’s HEART framework simplifies this:
→ Happiness: Are users satisfied?
→ Engagement: How deeply are they involved?
→ Adoption: Are new users coming in?
→ Retention: Are they sticking around?
→ Task Success: Are users achieving their goals?
Use HEART to cover all the angles when discussing product metrics.
𝗧𝗛𝗥𝗘𝗘: 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸 𝗜𝘁 𝗗𝗼𝘄𝗻 → 𝗔𝗔𝗥𝗥𝗥 𝗣𝗶𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗠𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀
Estimation can feel like solving the impossible, especially for growth-related questions.
Here’s where the AARRR framework comes in.
Think of it as your North Star for user lifecycle analysis:
→ Acquisition: How do users find your product?
→ Activation: What’s their first “aha moment”?
→ Retention: Why do they keep coming back?
→ Referral: What makes them tell others?
→ Revenue: How does the product make money?
Breaking it down shows structure, clarity, and business acumen.
𝗙𝗢𝗨𝗥: 𝗞𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗜𝘁 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹 → 𝗦𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗖𝗵𝗲𝗰𝗸𝘀 & 𝗦𝗰𝗲𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘀
Throwing out unrealistic numbers is the fastest way to lose credibility.
→ Sanity Check: Use known facts to check your estimate.
Start with a range — what’s too high? What’s too low?
→ Scenario Analysis: Estimate segment by segment and add it up.
Example: Split users into small businesses and enterprises, estimate separately, and combine totals.
This approach is clean, logical, and shows you can think like a business leader.
𝗙𝗜𝗩𝗘: 𝗚𝗼 𝗕𝗲𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗕𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗰𝘀 → 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗶𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀
When the basics aren’t enough, it’s time to bring out the heavy hitters:
→ The Funnel Method: Filter step-by-step to narrow down users.
→ Analogous Estimation: Use similar data points and adjust.
→ Cohort Analysis: Compare behaviors over time for long-term impacts.
→ Jobs-to-be-Done: Focus on what job the product solves and estimate adoption from there.
These advanced tools are the difference between a good answer and one that blows the interviewer away.
I cover all my research in the deep dive.
Have you encountered estimation questions in PM interviews?
