Verified

Verified by Technical Program Manager at Apple

Apple Technical Program Manager Interview Guide

Interview Guide Jan 14

Detailed, specific guidance on the Apple Technical Program Manager interview process - with a breakdown of different stages and interview questions asked at each stage

The role of an Apple Technical Program Manager

A Technical Program Manager (TPM) organizes technical initiatives in collaboration with stakeholders and engineering teams. TPMs use their management, leadership, and communication abilities to assist teams in making, communicating, and executing strategic choices. To design complex project plans and perform efficient project management, you'll need to employ problem-solving skills.

Apple Inc. is a multinational technology firm headquartered in Cupertino, California, that specializes in consumer devices, software, and online services. It is the most valuable corporation on the planet, as well as the fourth-largest personal computer seller by unit sales and the second-largest mobile phone manufacturer. Along with Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft, it is one of the Big Five American information technology corporations.

Role of a technical program manager at Apple

  • Establish workstreams.
  • Bring cross-functional teams together.
  • Measure and create a dashboard.
  • Analyze datasets.
  • Develop technical solutions.
  • Automation of processes
  • Take notes and schedule meetings.
  • Keep track of action items and projects.

Preferred Skills/Qualifications

  • 3 to 5 years of experience developing software (with knowledge of system design and/or cloud technologies).
  • 1-2 years of experience delivering products to customers.
  • 1-2 years of experience in IT operations or risk assessment.
  • Strong communication skills.
  • Strong organizational and scheduling skills.
  • Leadership experience.

The average salary of Apple TPM

The technical program manager's salary at Apple ranges from ₹ 13.8 Lakhs to ₹ 20.7 Lakhs.

Apple Technical Program Manager Interview Guide

The interview process for the Oyo software engineer role consists of 3 stages:

  • Phone Screen 
  • Phone Interviews (1-2)
  • Onsite Interviews
Relevant Guides

Apple TPM - Phone Screen Round

Overview

A recruiter will usually conduct the phone screen round. The recruiter's purpose is to gain a better understanding of you, your goals, and your qualifications for the position. They'll want to know what piqued your interest in the position you're applying for, as well as what relevant experience you have.

Tips

Prepare an elevator pitch as well as a discussion of your previous work experience.

Interview Questions

  • When did you take the initiative on a project?
  • How did you use your ability to solve problems for the benefit of a company or team?
  • Can you describe a time when you used creativity to overcome a dilemma?
  • Which is your best team-based project idea?
  • Tell me about a time when you were called in to help with a situation.
  • Is it easier for you to work in a group or on your own?
  • Why do you wish to work at Apple?

Practice more such questions with an Apple Technical Program Manager

Book Now!

Apple TPM - Phone Interview Round

Overview

A TPM or hiring manager from the team will conduct one or two phone interviews. These interviews normally last around an hour and a half (around 45-50 minutes). Typically, your program management, technical, and behavioral skills are examined during this interview.

Tips

Prepare to discuss your history, prior experiences, system design, architecture design, coding, and situational events.

Interview Questions

  • How do you break up complex projects into milestones and prioritize them?
  • Your engineer comes to you and informs you that a particular feature can’t be launched by the due date. How do you respond?
  • Compare the agile and waterfall methodologies.
  • Imagine you find a bug in the software the day before its release date. How would you handle the situation?
  • How do you manage risk for your projects? Please provide an example where you successfully identified and managed risk.
Read these articles

Apple TPM - Virtual or Onsite Interview Round

Overview

This stage of the interview is well-known for being lengthy. The hiring manager will normally conduct 3-5 rounds of technical or behavioral interviews during this stage. The technical round will include a variety of technical questions ranging from system design to coding to technical explanation. Your ability to enable communication amongst product, design, QA and engineering teams will be assessed throughout the behavioral phase of the interview. You'll want to show that you can work effectively with others and lead a team in this phase of the interview.

Tips

Expect to go even deeper into the three focus areas of the interview: program management, technical, and behavioral. You’ll be tested on your program management skills, your knowledge of and understanding of system design, coding, and other various technical concepts, and your ability to lead cross-functional teams.

Interview Questions

System design

  • You open your favorite rideshare app and you don’t see any available cars. What could the issue be?
  • Design a meal delivery app.
  • Design a streaming data processing pipeline that can reliably process data in near real-time.
  • Design a web cache.

Coding questions

  • Write a program to find out if an integer is a palindrome.
  • Write a program to reverse a string using no built-in functions.
  • Parse all lines in a CSV file with a given string.

Behavioral questions

  • Tell me about a time you resolved a conflict between team members.
  • Tell me about a challenge you faced while working with cross-functional teams.
  • Tell me about a time when you worked with a difficult stakeholder/client/engineer.
  • Why do you want to work for our company?
  • How do you manage a team member that underperforms?​

 

Nail your interview by practicing with one of our experts

Book Now!

Frequently Asked Questions