Program Manager
Operationshard14 creditsInterview mode
The Defect Shipped
A QC miss made it to customers. Contain it before it spreads.
FNorthstar Academy 4.7 (854) 9,394 taken 30m Program Manager
The situation
A QC failure slipped through and roughly 3,000 units are already in customers' hands — some with a defect that's cosmetic, some with one that isn't. You don't yet know the split. Support tickets are trickling in, the head of sales wants to say nothing, legal wants to say everything, and engineering is still arguing about root cause. You have to triage severity, decide on recall scope, and align the room before the trickle becomes a flood.
What you'll practice
Separate cosmetic from safety-relevant defects in scope
Separate cosmetic from safety-relevant defects in scope. Show it clearly — with evidence a reviewer can point to.
Right-size the recall/notification to the real risk
Right-size the recall/notification to the real risk. Show it clearly — with evidence a reviewer can point to.
Reconcile sales and legal into one defensible decision
Reconcile sales and legal into one defensible decision. Show it clearly — with evidence a reviewer can point to.
Set a containment plan before the ticket flood hits
Set a containment plan before the ticket flood hits. Show it clearly — with evidence a reviewer can point to.
The room
3 autonomous AI coworkers, each with their own agenda. They won't all agree.
N
Nina Patel
Head of Quality
Wants: Find root cause fast; resists shipping blame upstream too early.
Style: Rigorous, defensive of her process, ultimately honest.
C
Chad Burke
VP Sales
Wants: Minimize disclosure; protect the quarter and key accounts.
Style: Smooth, revenue-first, allergic to recalls.
P
Priya Donnelly
Product Counsel
Wants: Push for proactive, defensible disclosure on safety-relevant units.
Style: Cautious, firm, thinks in liability.
Your workspace
Real tools, pre-seeded with context. You're not roleplaying, you're working.
Docs / wiki Kanban board Team chat Email
Scored on
Root-causeProcess designTrade-offsRollout