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How to source and shortlist {role_name}

Hiring guide

About {role_name}

Job description

Source and shortlist candidates

Structured interview

Progression and salary

Where can you find qualified {role_name}?

1. Professional Networks

  • Start with platforms where Product Managers are already active, such as LinkedIn, AngelList (Wellfound), Product School communities, and relevant Slack groups.

2. Job Boards : Post roles on both general and product-specific job boards. Some examples include:

  • US: BuiltIn, Product School Jobs, AngelList, Indeed
  • India: Naukri, Instahyre, Hirist, Wellfound
  • UAE & KSA: Bayt, GulfTalent, Naukrigulf, LinkedIn Jobs
  • Remote roles: RemoteOK, WeWorkRemotely, Working Nomads, FlexJobs

3. Company Career Pages and Referrals

  • Many good Product Managers come through internal networks or referrals. Also review past applicants and internal employees ready for a product role transition.

4. Training and Certification Programs

  • Candidates from Product School, General Assembly, and well-known product management courses are often job-ready and actively seeking opportunities.

What are the best practices for headhunting {role_name}?

  • Target candidates currently working in fast-paced SaaS, marketplace, fintech, telecom, or retail tech companies.
  • Personalize outreach using a message referencing:
    • Their recent product launch
    • Their roadmap responsibility
    • Key metrics shown in their profile (KPIs, conversions, feature adoption
      • Example outreach:
        “Noticed you led checkout redesign increasing conversion — we’re building a similar product and your experience stands out. Open to a quick conversation?”
  • Offer clarity about:
    • Product stage (MVP, scaling, enterprise, sunset phase)
    • Expected ownership level (strategy vs execution)

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How to shortlist candidates?

Once you have started to get applications from applicants, a thorough screening process and shortlisting of prospects will help you make the most of your time spent with the most qualified ones. 

Automated shortlisting tools :

Automated screening quickly filters out unqualified candidates, saving time for manual review. This allows the manual process to focus on the most promising candidates, ensuring the best ones are considered for further evaluation.

Screening questions to auto-shortlist based on predefined criteria

like qualifications, location, experience, and skills. Either use job board or use an ATS such as whitecarrot. Here are some questions for {role_name}

  • How many years of experience do you have in Product Management?
    • Accept candidates who have 2 to 6 years of experience for mid-level roles.
    • Automatically reject candidates with less than 1 year of experience, unless you are specifically hiring an Associate Product Manager.
  • Have you led cross-functional teams (such as engineering, design, marketing, or data)?
    • Accept if the candidate answers yes with clarity or examples.
    • Auto-reject if the answer is no, since cross-functional collaboration is a core responsibility for this role.
  • Are you located within the required hiring geography or open to remote work (based on your company policy)?
    • Accept if the candidate says yes, confirms relocation, or is eligible for remote work.
    • Auto-reject if there is no response, they do not meet work eligibility, or the candidate is unwilling to work within required hours or location.

Skill based question to auto shortlist candidate

Analyze the skill test data to automatically shortlist top-performing applicants. (recommended screening test time - 15 minutes). Here are some skill test questions for {role_name}

Product Strategy & Roadmapping

Tests understanding of prioritization and product planning.

  1. The main purpose of a product roadmap is to:
    A. Track employee performance
    B. Align product direction with business priorities
    C. Replace sprint planning
    D. Test prototypes
    ✔ Correct: B

  2. Which framework helps prioritize features based on effort vs value?
    A. SWOT
    B. MoSCoW
    C. RICE
    D. PESTLE
    ✔ Correct: C

  3. MVP means:
    A. Maximum viable product
    B. Minimum viable product
    C. Most valuable plan
    D. Management value product
    ✔ Correct: B

Market Research & Customer Understanding

Evaluates candidate’s ability to gather product insights.

  1. Which method helps understand customer pain points quickly?
    A. Brainstorming
    B. User interviews
    C. Design handoff
    D. Coding
    ✔ Correct: B

  2. A feature that solves no customer problem is known as:
    A. Dead feature
    B. Vanity feature
    C. Core feature
    D. High-priority feature
    ✔ Correct: B

  3. A good product requirement should be:
    A. Detailed but confusing
    B. Clear, measurable, and testable
    C. Technical only
    D. Vague and flexible
    ✔ Correct: B

Product Lifecycle & Execution

  1. What is the final stage of the product lifecycle?
    A. Launch
    B. Growth
    C. Decline
    D. Planning
    ✔ Correct: C

  2. Who approves final feature scope before development?
    A. Customer support
    B. Product Manager
    C. Marketing team
    D. Sales
    ✔ Correct: B

  3. Which document is used to guide developers during a sprint?
    A. Gantt Chart
    B. Roadmap
    C. User Story + Acceptance Criteria
    D. Team Charter
    ✔ Correct: C

Note - Auto reject candidates if scores less than 70% in this section

One way video interview

Recruitment Bullet

Use tools like hirevue, whitecarrot.io to ask candidates pre-recorded questions about their experience and skills.

Recruitment Bullet

Use sample question given in scorecard.

Collect other information 

Recruitment Bullet

Collect data from shortlisted candidates, such as salary expectations and visa status.

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Manual candidate profile shortlisting:

Recruitment Bullet

Thoroughly review the CVs of the top scoring candidates from the automated process

Recruitment Bullet

Look for evidence of the required skills, experience, and achievements

Recruitment Bullet

Review the candidate’s portfolio or GitHub repositories to see examples of their work.

Schedule recruiter calls with the candidate

Recruitment Bullet

Use a tool like calendly or whitecarrot to allow candidates to self-schedule calls based on your availability

Recruitment Bullet

Confirm the call details (date, time, dial-in info) with the candidate via email

What questions to ask in the recruiter phone screen?

Recruitment Bullet

 Use scorecard for rating candidates for recruiter

Recruitment Bullet

Sample scorecard : 

Criteria Sample Question Rating (1 to 5)
Strategic Thinking How do you decide what features go into the roadmap?
Communication Explain a feature you worked on as if I’m a non technical user.
Collaboration Describe a conflict between engineering and design and how you resolved it.
Market Understanding Who is the customer and how did you validate their needs?
Execution Describe a launch you managed and outcome metrics.
Recruitment Bullet

Check for consistency in responses from the candidates.

Recruitment Bullet

Record such scorecards in an ATS like whitecarrot or use google doc

Frequently Asked Questions?

Most common skills to look for in a Product Manager?

Look for strategic thinking, product lifecycle knowledge, user understanding, analytical skills, and cross-functional communication.

How do I keep candidates engaged during sourcing?

Share the product vision, ownership level, impact metrics, and roadmap stage. Product Managers care about purpose and autonomy, not just salary.

How can I assess cultural fit?

Ask scenario-based questions such as: “Tell me how you handle disagreement with leadership when you believe data supports another direction.”

Hiring guide

About {role_name}

Job description

Source and shortlist candidates

Structured interview

Progression and salary