Product at Asana (and finding a PM job)

Hi! If you are reading this it’s likely that you are interested in a Product Manager position at Asana.

In this article, I try to answer some questions you may have. Finding a PM job is hard in general, so I took the liberty of adding a few strategies that work for me.

What is expected of a PM at Asana?

First of all, the best way to answer that question is to visit Asana’s Careers site and review role descriptions.

Having said that, three characteristics stand out for me:

1. PMs articulate their mental model

When asked about how you’d solve a problem, any problem, your reply shouldn’t start with the answer, but with an overview of your process to solve the problem. If you are asked to design a product for a given scenario or demographic (e.g.: the proverbial alarm clock for the blind), you answer should start with your framework to get to a solution. For example:

“The way I like to solve this problem is to first ask myself:

1. “Why?”, what is it that we want to accomplish building this: our mission, success metrics, target outcomes etc. Then I ask…
2. “Who?”, what are the characteristics of our target users, their pain points, and use cases.
3. Finally, I think about “What?”. What can we build that would solve for the intersection of Why? and Who?”

And only then apply the framework to the specific problem. This shows that you’ve (hopefully) solved this problem before and have the tools to do it comfortably. It will also help you structure the way you think while under pressure.

2. Design is key

As a PM you are expected to be great at the Engineering/Design/Business triad and, ideally, very strong at one or more of them. That said, Design is a fundamental discipline at Asana and you will be asked Design questions and problems, so make sure you have your own opinions and frameworks. This may not be the case for other companies, so ask people working there what is a strong requirement and make sure you nail that.

3. PMs lead and inspire cross-functionally

Asana is an extremely cross-functional, collaborative team. For example, Engineers are an integral part of the Product discovery, design, and definition steps. You don’t just throw specs over the wall: they have opinions, feedback, and are very vocal about it from day one.

PMs must keep everyone in the loop about their team’s work, and I really mean everyone: Engineering, Design, UXR, PMM, Data Science, Pillar Leads, Sales, Business, CSMs, Sales Engineering, Customer Support, Community, Legal, and more. You can also expect your work to interact with that of several other PMs and program teams, so that too!

This translates to having to constantly communicate and make decisions, working with several stakeholders and their points of view. When you interview, make sure you tell a story that shows that you are ready to do that.

➡️ If you enjoy this article, you may like my free course where you can learn strategies to turn your Product Manager job search into job offers.

How can I improve my resume?

Your resume is a product you iterate on. The goal of the product is for the people reading it to know, with the least friction possible, that you are a great fit for the role. A great fit is someone who won’t need a lot of training or time before they can add value.

For me, there are three rules to conveying this with your resume:

1. Have a bulleted, succinct summary (not “objectives”, not “mission”, a summary) at the very top of the document. Assume this is the only thing recruiters will read. A list of 3–5 bullets, not more. Don’t do centered alignment, bullets that take two or more lines, or any other weird layouts. Keep it simple.
2. Tailor that summary to every company you apply to and match or exceed the requirements of the role as much as possible, in order of priority (usually the order in the job description but use your own judgement). Make it a habit of reading job postings and drafting specific resume bullet points that match what the team is looking for.
3. Both your summary and your work experience should be a lot about outcomes, and very little about describing responsibilities. Showcase results, metrics, and impact. If you are not using the past tense, it’s likely that it can be more outcome-related.

If you need a resume template or examples, sign up for my free newsletter where I share them frequently.

How can I improve my interviewing skills?

There are two resources I used:

• “Cracking the PM Interview” is your very best friend. You should have answers and mental models for most, if not all, of the questions in that book. This is true for anyone interviewing for a PM role at mature Product-led organizations. For those interested in Asana, one of the authors is Jackie Bavaro, who was a PM at Asana for many years and is still an advisor.
• This 3-part article by Haseeb Qureshi has excellent advice on the mindset to approach interviewing. It’s also the best resource I’ve found on negotiating an offer. Unless you are applying for a very technical PM role, you can skip the Engineering-specific parts.

Also, check out these tips on remote interviewing from Asana’s Head of Talent!

Finally, the best way to improve interviewing is by learning what a company is specifically looking for and making sure you show you have that. It takes time to prepare, but it’s what makes the difference:

• Come up with ideas for improving their strategy, features, or design.
• Think about your relevant projects, products, or challenges, and how they fit in the company’s context.
• Show that, if you were hired tomorrow, you’d be ready to start adding value right away.

So, to sum up, do your homework. Interviewers can tell!

➡️ If you enjoyed this article, you may like my free course where you can learn strategies to turn your Product Manager job search into job offers.

Special thanks to Ashley Waxman, Katie Guzman, and Rich Ha at Asana for helping me write this article.