How to respond to a product design question using the CIRCLES method?

 

Often times in a product management interview, a candidate is asked to design a product. One of the key evaluation criteria for the interviewer is to ensure that candidate provides answer in a structured manner. Candidate typically has about 30 minutes to answer this question. A candidate should take one or two key use cases and design the feature to support these use cases. It is critically important to have a well rehearsed approach to product design questions.

There are several frameworks that a candidate can use to structure the answer to a product design question. One of the framework is CIRCLES method created by Lewis C. Lin described in his book 'DECODE AND CONQUER'    

CIRCLES method :

C - Comprehend the situation

I - Identify the customer

R - Report the customer needs

C - Cut through prioritization

L - List solutions

E - Evaluate Trade-Offs

S - Summarize your recommendations

C - Comprehend the situation

Jumping at the solution without understanding the situation and asking qualifying questions is a sure shot way of failing a product management interview. As a product manager you will daily face situations where people will come to you with solutions from their perspective rather than explaining you the real problems. A product manager must be able to ask questions and reach to the root problem and come up with a solution that can be productized. 

Steps to comprehend the situation are as follows -

1. Understand the context
2. Clarify goals and metrics
3. Identify Constraints and Assumptions

I - Identify the customer

List potential customer personas. Select one persona from the list and list the role, demographics details, behavioral characteristics as well as needs and goals.

R - Report the customer needs

List user needs, requirements, use cases, pain points. These can be listed in the use case format as - As a < role >, I want < goal > so that < benefit >.

C - Cut through prioritization

Prioritization is a key skill for a product manager. Often there are more problems to solve that available time, money and human resources allow. Determining the priority of use cases based on an objective framework often helps. Example of such framework Intercom's RICE framework -

R - Reach. How many people will be impacted?

I - Impact. Benefit of this user story from low to high.

C - Confidence. Probability of success.

E - Efforts. Time, Resources etc.

RICE Score = Reach * Impact * Confidence / Efforts 

L - List solutions

For each of the use case, come up with at least 3-4 different solutions. Think big and always keep customer benefits in mind. 

E - Evaluate Trade-Offs

List pros and cons of each of the approach based on criteria such as customer satisfaction, implementation feasibility, revenue potential, 

S - Summarize your recommendations

Finally, summarize your recommendations -

1. Recommended product features
2. Why it will beneficial to user and the company
3. Preferred solution
4. Next steps to explore this idea further