Can you recall a time where you and your supervisor or an executive didn't see eye-to-eye? How did you manage it?

Question

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

It was when we were preparing data for warranty negotiation, my boss asked me to
prepare data past 3 years back but I didn’t agree because data should be data to
be used since last negotiation on 2018.
I told my boss about history of this topic and told her that the more sample we
had, the more   opportunity to win negotiation.
then I prepared 2018-2024 data and reviewed together, we found that by comparing
data between 2020-2024 and 2018-2024, warranty responsibility is much lower. We
both agreed to use 2018-2024 data for negotiation and the result as we expected,
we got the ratio as we proposed.

Anonymous · Answer

i always  remain calm, however in my last project i have given the methodology
that were not useful for customer needs. i accepted but it didn't work until i
had deep down discussion with my line manager and suggest the best way to  dealt
with the situation, i defended my case proffesional and with evidences, and got
accepted.

Anonymous · Answer

There was a time when I disagreed with my boss about the prioritization of
resources for two competing product launches - one for an assay and the other
for a software application. My boss wanted to focus all efforts on the software,
but I believed that both products had significant market potential and needed a
more balanced approach. While I understood the importance of maintaining focus,
I felt each product targeted a distinct customer base and could drive growth in
different ways.

The challenge in this situation was that my boss had a clear vision for the
software’s potential, and there was resistance to the idea of spreading
resources thinner by dividing focus. Additionally, gathering data to support my
perspective was complex. I had to collect insights from multiple teams,
including R&D and sales, and incorporate customer feedback from different
segments. Aligning everyone on the market demand for both products and
forecasting their potential impact took time and effort.

Despite these challenges, I initiated a discussion with my boss, presenting a
detailed, data-driven analysis. I included market research, revenue projections,
and customer feedback that highlighted the opportunities for both products. I
also proposed a phased approach where we would prioritize the software launch
first, but ensure that the assay received sufficient attention and resources
shortly after.
Initially, there was hesitation, especially from the sales team who was
concerned about balancing their efforts. But after further discussion and
reviewing the data together, my boss agreed to a modified strategy that allowed
us to effectively allocate resources for both launches. The result was a 20%
increase in capital equipment sales in the first year due to the software, and a
25% adoption rate for the assay when bundled with the software.

This experience reinforced the importance of resilience in facing resistance,
being persistent in gathering relevant data, and effectively communicating the
value of a balanced, customer-focused approach to decision-making.

Anonymous · Answer

I was leading a high visibility critical project from CEO to build a software
that captures a comprehensive 360 data view of our consumers. This data can then
use to drive new revenue opportunities and understand our consumers' interests,
objectives and experiences. As we were about to ship the software, product
manager requested an additional feature to allow an external client access to
our APIs. This would require changes in design and delay our launch.
Additionally this would require approvals from data privacy team as user data
can be transmitted to external clients over the public internet. I disagreed
with product manager, as I believed this would put our project at risk but
thanked her for this new feature which will increase revenue in future. I
proposed a two-phase approach: first, we would launch the current version for
our internal clients, then we would develop the additional feature in the next
phase. This would minimize risk and allow us to thoroughly test the new feature.
Product manager was initially hesitant about the delay but I was able to
convince her by presenting a detailed plan and timeline that showed how we could
manage the additional work without compromising the security and data privacy
issues. This experience taught me the importance of strategic thinking, clear
communication, and standing up for what I believe is best for a project. In a
subsequent project, when a similar situation arose, I was able to apply what I
learned from this experience and handle the situation more effectively,
resulting in less tension within the team and a more successful project outcome.

Anonymous · Answer

At a previous project, my manager wanted to push a new feature quickly without
adding automated tests to save time. I disagreed because I felt skipping tests
could lead to bugs and more delays later. I explained my concern and offered to
write a minimal set of tests that would cover the critical paths without slowing
delivery. After seeing the quick turnaround and stability those tests provided,
my manager appreciated the approach and made testing a regular part of our
workflow.

Anonymous · Answer

At a previous project, my manager wanted to push a new feature quickly without
adding automated tests to save time. I disagreed because I felt skipping tests
could lead to bugs and more delays later. I explained my concern and offered to
write a minimal set of tests that would cover the critical paths without slowing
delivery. After seeing the quick turnaround and stability those tests provided,
my manager appreciated the approach and made testing a regular part of our
workflow.

Anonymous · Answer

I was working on a high stake project with very high visibility from my senior
management.
Me and my manager were thinking of can we leverage the quality of the
development using help from QA team. He wanted to keep the QA team separate. His
point of view was that a separate team would keep clear focus for the team and
they would focus on finding more customer facing bugs. I thought that we should
have QA embedded in the scrum team as that would help in easier collaboration
and quicker bug fixes plus this is a more efficient way. Though I understood his
point of view I always believed that in QA embedded inside the scrum team. I
went back had a thought to measure the merits and demerits of the proposals. I
put down in a slide the merits and demerits of each. Merit from having a
separate team, clear focus and better filtering of quality, demerits less
collaboration with development team. I then proposed that the QA engineers
attend the calls of dev teams but keep a separate QA board for their tasks. This
will give clarity of what bugs they find, what test scenarios they create and
finally the metrics to measure the bugs reported per development. My boss and I
both agreed as it solved the problems of each proposals

Anonymous · Answer

On a high-stakes project aimed at providing a comprehensive data view of our
consumers, I was leading the team towards a tight deadline when a significant
conflict arose. The product manager requested an additional feature that would
allow external clients to access our services, just as we were about to ship the
software. This posed risks of delays and security vulnerabilities. Understanding
the importance of the project timeline and the associated risks, I took the
initiative to resolve the conflict. I arranged a meeting with the product
manager and other key stakeholders to discuss the situation. During the meeting,
I presented a document listing all potential risks and communicated my concerns,
focusing on the delay and security implications of the new feature. I also
listened attentively to the product manager's perspective, who insisted on the
feature for its potential to increase revenue. To address the conflict, I
proposed a two-phase approach: first, we would launch the software for internal
clients as planned, and second, we would develop the additional feature for
external clients, ensuring all security concerns were addressed. This plan was
accepted by all stakeholders, allowing us to meet the original deadline and
later implement the new feature without compromising the project's integrity.
The experience underscored the value of open communication, collaboration, and
strategic problem-solving in conflict resolution.

Anonymous · Answer

I was leading a high-visibility project with a tight deadline to build a
software that would provide a comprehensive data view of our consumers within
the company's ecosystem. The project was closely monitored by the CEO. Just as
we were about to ship the software, the product manager requested an additional
feature that would allow an external client to access our services.  This
request posed significant risks, including potential delays and security
vulnerabilities. Recognizing the importance of the project timeline and the
associated risks, I arranged a meeting with the product manager and other key
stakeholders. During the meeting, I clearly articulated my concerns, focusing on
how the new request could delay the launch and introduce security risks. I
ensured that I listened to the product manager’s perspective to understand the
rationale behind the request fully. I proposed a two-phase approach. First, we
would proceed with the initial launch for our internal clients as planned. In
the second phase, we would work on developing the additional feature for
external clients, addressing the security concerns and avoiding any delay to the
initial launch. I presented a detailed plan and timeline, demonstrating how we
could achieve both objectives without compromising the project’s integrity. The
stakeholders agreed with the phased approach, allowing us to meet the original
deadline while ensuring that the additional feature was carefully developed and
implemented later. This experience reinforced the importance of open
communication, collaboration, and understanding different perspectives when
resolving conflicts.

Anonymous · Answer

I was leading a high-visibility project with a tight deadline, tasked with
building software that would provide a comprehensive data view of our consumers
within the company's ecosystem. The project was closely monitored by the CEO,
underscoring its importance. Just as we were about to ship the software, the
product manager requested an additional feature that would allow an external
client to access our services. This request came at the last minute and posed
significant risks, including potential delays and security vulnerabilities.
Recognizing the importance of the project timeline and the associated risks, I
arranged a meeting with the product manager and other key stakeholders. During
the meeting, I clearly articulated my concerns, focusing on how the new request
could delay the launch and introduce security risks. I ensured that I listened
to the product manager’s perspective to understand the rationale behind the
request fully. To find a middle ground, I proposed a two-phase approach. First,
we would proceed with the initial launch for our internal clients as planned. In
the second phase, we would work on developing the additional feature for
external clients, addressing the security concerns and avoiding any delay to the
initial launch. I presented a detailed plan and timeline, demonstrating how we
could achieve both objectives without compromising the project’s integrity. The
stakeholders agreed with the phased approach, allowing us to meet the original
deadline while ensuring that the additional feature was carefully developed and
implemented later. This experience reinforced the importance of open
communication, collaboration, and understanding different perspectives when
resolving conflicts.

Anonymous · Answer

I was leading a tight deadline project which had high visibility from CEO to
build a software that captures a comprehensive data view of our consumers within
company's ecosystem. As we were about to ship the software, the product manager
requested an additional feature to allow an external client access to our
services which could delay our launch and create security risks, I arranged a
meeting to discuss my concerns, during which I made sure to articulate the
potential delay and security risks in a way that the product manager could
understand. I listened to the product manager's point of view as well. I
proposed a two-phase approach: first, we would launch the current version for
our internal clients, then we would develop the additional feature in the next
phase. I presented a detailed plan and timeline that showed how we could manage
the additional work without compromising the security and data privacy issues.
This experience taught me the value of open communication and understanding
different perspectives when resolving conflicts.

Anonymous · Answer

I was leading a tight deadline project which had high visibility from CEO to
build a software that captures a comprehensive data view of our consumers with
companys ecosystem. As we were about to ship the software, the product manager
requested an additional feature to allow an external client access to our
software or APIs. Product manager wanted to ship this feature alongwith current
software. We encountered an disagreement as this would require changes in
design, require approvals from the data privacy team and would delay our launch,
but I also thanked her for new feature request which is going to increase
companys revenue. To resolve the disagreement, I proposed a two-phase approach:
first, we would launch the current version for our internal clients, then we
would develop the additional feature in the next phase. I presented a detailed
plan and timeline that showed how we could manage the additional work without
compromising the security and data privacy issues. After a thorough discussion,
the product manager agreed to my proposal. This not only resolved the conflict
but we moved forward with a stronger, more unified approach.

Anonymous · Answer

I was leading a tight deadline project which had high visibility from CEO to
build a software that captures a comprehensive data view of our consumers with
companys ecosystem. As we were about to ship the software, the product manager
requested an additional feature to allow an external client access to our
software or APIs. Product manager wanted to ship this feature alongwith current
software. We encountered an disagreement as this would require changes in
design, require approvals from the data privacy team and would delay our launch,
but I also thanked her for new feature request which is going to increase
companys revenue. To resolve the disagreement, I proposed a two-phase approach:
first, we would launch the current version for our internal clients, then we
would develop the additional feature in the next phase. I presented a detailed
plan and timeline that showed how we could manage the additional work without
compromising the security and data privacy issues. After a thorough discussion,
the product manager agreed to my proposal. This not only resolved the conflict
but we moved forward with a stronger, more unified approach.

Anonymous · Answer

I was leading a high visibility critical project from CEO to build a software
that captures a comprehensive data view of our consumers. As we were about to
ship the software, the product manager requested an additional feature to allow
an external client access to our software or APIs. Product manager wanted to
implement this feature alongwith current software. This would require changes in
design, delay our launch, and require approvals from the data privacy team. I
had a disagreement with the product manager, that it would put our project at
risk but thanked her for new feature request which is going to increase companys
revenue. To resolve the disagreement, I proposed a two-phase approach: first, we
would launch the current version for our internal clients, then we would develop
the additional feature in the next phase. I presented a detailed plan and
timeline that showed how we could manage the additional work without
compromising the security and data privacy issues. After a thorough discussion,
the product manager agreed to my proposal.

Anonymous · Answer

I was leading a high visibility critical project from CEO to build a software
that captures a comprehensive data view of our consumers. As we were about to
ship the software, the product manager requested an additional feature to allow
an external client access to our APIs. Product manager wanted to implement this
feature alongwith current software. This would require changes in design, delay
our launch, and require approvals from the data privacy team. I had a
disagreement with the product manager, that it would put our project at risk but
thanked her for new feature. request which is going to benefit companys revenue.
To resolve the disagreement, I presented my concerns about the potential risks
and delays. I proposed a two-phase approach: first, we would launch the current
version for our internal clients, then we would develop the additional feature
in the next phase. I presented a detailed plan and timeline that showed how we
could manage the additional work without compromising the security and data
privacy issues. After a thorough discussion, the product manager agreed to my
proposal. This experience taught me the importance of strategic thinking, clear
communication, and standing up for what I believe is best for a project.

Anonymous · Answer

I was leading a high-profile project to build a software that aggregates user
information within our company ecosystem. As we were about to ship the product,
my manager requested an additional feature to allow an external client access to
our API. This would require getting approvals from security team and data
privacy team as user data can be transmitted to external clients over the public
internet. Also this would require significant changes in design and delay our
launch delay. I disagreed with my manager, as I believed this would put our
project at risk. I proposed a two-phase approach: first, we would launch the
current version for our internal clients, then we would develop the additional
feature in the next phase. This would minimize risk and allow us to thoroughly
test the new feature. My manager was initially hesitant about the delay but I
was able to convince him by presenting a detailed plan and timeline that showed
how we could manage the additional work without compromising the security and
data privacy issues. However, this disagreement initially caused tension within
our team. Some members were concerned about the delay and the additional work
required. I addressed these concerns through a team meeting where I explained
the rationale behind my proposal and how it would ultimately benefit us. I
reassured them that their extra effort would not go unnoticed and that their
contributions would be acknowledged. This experience taught me the importance of
strategic thinking, clear communication, and standing up for what I believe is
best for a project. In a subsequent project, when a similar situation arose, I
was able to apply what I learned from this experience and handle the situation
more effectively, resulting in less tension within the team and a more
successful project outcome.

Anonymous · Answer

I was leading a high-profile project to build a software that aggregates user
information within our company ecosystem. As we were about to ship the product,
my manager requested an additional feature to allow an external client access to
our API. This would require getting approvals from security team and data
privacy team as user data can be transmitted to external clients over the public
internet. Also this would require significant changes in design and delay our
launch delay. I disagreed with my manager, as I believed this would put our
project at risk. I proposed a two-phase approach: first, we would launch the
current version for our internal clients, then we would develop the additional
feature in the next phase. This would minimize risk and allow us to thoroughly
test the new feature. My manager was initially hesitant about the delay but I
was able to convince him by presenting a detailed plan and timeline that showed
how we could manage the additional work without compromising the security and
data privacy issues. However, this disagreement initially caused tension within
our team. Some members were concerned about the delay and the additional work
required. I addressed these concerns through a team meeting where I explained
the rationale behind my proposal and how it would ultimately benefit us. I
reassured them that their extra effort would not go unnoticed and that their
contributions would be acknowledged. This experience taught me the importance of
strategic thinking, clear communication, and standing up for what I believe is
best for a project. In a subsequent project, when a similar situation arose, I
was able to apply what I learned from this experience and handle the situation
more effectively, resulting in less tension within the team and a more
successful project outcome.

Anonymous · Answer

On a pivotal project aimed at creating a comprehensive consumer profile system,
I encountered a significant conflict that tested my problem-solving and
leadership skills. The project, which involved two teams of five, was on track
for a six-month completion. We had developed a GraphQL API to provide a
360-degree view of users within our company's ecosystem. As we were preparing to
ship the final product to production, my dev manager requested an additional
feature for internal tracking purposes. This feature would provide visibility
into who was requesting user data. While the feature was valuable, it required
extensive code changes and would delay the project by at least two sprints.
 Understanding the importance of shipping the current version on time, I
approached the situation with a strategic mindset. I proposed a two-phase
approach to my dev manager, advocating for the immediate release of the current
software and treating the new feature as a separate project. This would allow us
to maintain our delivery schedule and dedicate the necessary time to design and
test the new feature thoroughly. After a detailed discussion, my manager agreed
to my proposal. We successfully deployed the initial version to production, and
I immediately began planning for phase two, focusing on the user tracking
feature. This approach not only kept the project on track but also ensured that
we did not compromise on the quality and integrity of the software.  The
resolution of this conflict was a testament to the power of clear communication,
prioritization, and strategic planning. It highlighted the importance of
balancing immediate business value with long-term technical considerations, a
principle that aligns with the core values of delivering excellence and
fostering innovation.

Anonymous · Answer

After releasing and announcing the software supply chain security compliance for
Dart & Flutter my boss called me to a meeting to discuss re-purposing the
security team resources to work on testing. I share that security was a very
important area for the community and users and I also shared my concerns that
stopping the security work would impact ongoing projects with the Flutter
internal releases.
The meeting then moved to negotiating what parts of the security program would
need to continue and how to reprioritize the resources to also work in testing.
The outcome of the meeting was to keep the security operations and move half of
the security resources to work on testing.
Even when I disagreed with the decision to eliminate the security team I managed
to negotiate keeping the most important parts of the security program and at the
same time comply with the decision and moving some of the resources to work on
testing.

Anonymous · Answer

While working at a startup this summer, my boss and the CEO was very excited to
rapidly deploy an new AI model that was capable of remixing songs to the
website. However, me and the other main engineer believed that we would need
some more time to continue working on the model, as we wanted to be very
thorough with our testing of it before it was deployed to users. To discuss this
discrepancy in timelines, I scheduled a meeting between the CEO and engineering
team and discussed the various components and deliverables that needed to be
done before the model could be deployed, and the timeline associated with each
of these items. Specifically, I presented how the labeling and cleaning of data
as well as time required to train the model served as major bottlenecks that
required multiple iterations of work. I was definitely a little apprehensive
about how he would take the news that the model deployment would have to be
slightly delayed, but after speaking with the rest of the engineering team, we
thought it would be the best course of action to ensure the product remained
high quality. Breaking down each of the components specifically was very helpful
for the CEO to understand what work was being done to create the model, and it
helped to realign us as we pushed onwards.

Anonymous · Answer

While working at a startup this summer, my boss and the CEO was very excited to
rapidly deploy an new AI model that was capable of remixing songs to the
website. However, me and the other main engineer believed that we would need
some more time to continue working on the model, as we wanted to be very
thorough with our testing of it before it was deployed to users. To discuss this
discrepancy in timelines, I scheduled a meeting between the CEO and engineering
team and discussed the various components and deliverables that needed to be
done before the model could be deployed, and the timeline associated with each
of these items. I was definitely a little apprehensive about how he would take
the news that the model deployment would have to be slightly delayed, but after
speaking with the rest of the engineering team, we thought it would be the best
course of action to ensure the product remained high quality. Breaking down each
of the components specifically was very helpful for the CEO to understand what
work was being done to create the model, and it helped to realign us as we
pushed onwards.

Anonymous · Answer

In a recent project, I led a collaborative effort with a remote development team
based in another country. We encountered a disagreement about the coding
standards used by our respective teams. The other senior engineer on the project
preferred their team's existing standards, while I believed aligning with our
project's coding standards would improve consistency and ease collaboration
across both teams. To resolve the disagreement, I scheduled a meeting with both
teams to discuss the situation and understand the reasoning behind each team's
preferred approach. During the meeting, I emphasized the importance of standards
for maintaining code quality and readability throughout the project. We
collaboratively reviewed both sets of standards and merged the best practices
from each to create a unified set of coding guidelines for the project. This
process involved actively listening to the other engineer's perspective and
respectful dialogue between the teams. By reaching a consensus on the unified
standards, we were able to enhance collaboration and improve code quality across
the entire project. This experience highlighted the significance of effective
communication while working with remote teams and managing cross-cultural
differences

Anonymous · Answer

At the beginning of the implementation phase, I was struggling to implement a
feature. My manager told me to just move onto my next feature and pass this onto
my intern buddy, but I believed I could implement this on my own. Although I
followed his instructions while at work, I did some extra digging after work to
finish my original feature. I was able to diagnose the error but failed to solve
it, and ended up asking my intern buddy anyways.

Anonymous · Answer

At Auctane, while my team was in the middle of the rewrite - for refund module,
The PMs wanted a new feature to the legacy system, I pushed back on the switch
as it would cause a lot of churn for my team. PM got my Manager involved and
convinced that this was a good idea to release new feature on monolith. My
manager aggreed for this swap, I was disaggreed with this decision but commited
to the change in direction.
I breifed my team with this change, and we could accomate the feature request
after negotiating the scope of the microsystem re-write.

Anonymous · Answer

i haven’ encountered a situation like this.However if I found some idea wrong I
will challenge it with respect and professionalis,If i were to face this
situation in future my approach would be open communication and understanging
each other perspectives and discussing potential solution to find common grounds
through which we can move towards a unified direction

Can you recall a time where you and your supervisor or an executive didn't see eye-to-eye? How did you manage it?

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