Scale Engineer

Senior Engineering Manager

Software Engineering ManagerM2High

The interview process for a Senior Engineering Manager (M2 level) at Airbnb is designed to assess leadership potential, technical depth, people management skills, and strategic thinking. Candidates are evaluated on their ability to build and lead high-performing engineering teams, drive technical excellence, and contribute to Airbnb's mission and culture.

Rounds·5

Timeline·~4d

Experience·8 - 15 yrs

Comp band·US$180000 - US$250000

Interview time·255 min

Evaluation

What they measure.

  • Leadership and people management skills
  • Technical acumen and architectural understanding
  • Strategic thinking and business impact
  • Communication and collaboration abilities
  • Cultural alignment with Airbnb's values

Preparation

How to prepare.

Tips

  1. Deeply understand Airbnb's mission, values, and business.
  2. Review your past experiences and identify specific examples that demonstrate your leadership, technical, and people management skills.
  3. Prepare to discuss your leadership philosophy and how you build and grow engineering teams.
  4. Familiarize yourself with common software engineering management challenges and how you've addressed them.
  5. Practice articulating your thought process for technical and strategic decisions.
  6. Research the specific team and product area you would be managing.
  7. Prepare questions to ask the interviewers about the team, the role, and Airbnb's engineering culture.

Study plan

Fig · Study plan — 04 phases

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01

Phase 01 of 04

Company & Self-Assessment

Weeks 1-2: Airbnb business & values, career review, STAR method prep.

Weeks 1-2: Focus on understanding Airbnb's business, product, and engineering culture. Read company blogs, engineering case studies, and recent news. Familiarize yourself with Airbnb's core values and how they translate into leadership expectations. Review your own career history, identifying key projects and accomplishments related to people management, technical leadership, and strategic impact. Prepare STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) examples for common management scenarios.

Questions

Commonly asked.

  • Describe your leadership philosophy and how you build and motivate high-performing engineering teams.
  • Tell me about a time you had to manage a significant technical challenge or project failure. What was your role, and what did you learn?
  • How do you approach career development and performance management for your engineers?
  • Describe a situation where you had to influence stakeholders or cross-functional partners to achieve a goal.
  • How do you balance innovation and execution, and how do you manage technical debt?
  • What are your strategies for attracting and retaining top engineering talent?
  • How do you foster a culture of psychological safety and inclusivity within your team?
  • Tell me about a time you had to make a difficult decision that had a significant impact on your team or project.
  • How do you stay current with technology trends and ensure your team is adopting relevant practices?
  • Describe your experience with scaling engineering teams and systems.
  • How do you handle conflict within your team or with other teams?
  • What are your thoughts on building a strong engineering culture?
  • How do you prioritize work when faced with competing demands?
  • Tell me about a time you had to mentor or coach an engineer to improve their performance.
  • How do you measure the success of your team and your own effectiveness as a manager?

Locations

Regional differences.

Fig · Regions — 02 locations

01 / 02

Location

San Francisco Bay Area

Interview focus

Understanding of local market talent pool and compensation benchmarks.Awareness of regional engineering challenges and opportunities.Adaptability to different cultural nuances in team management.Experience with specific regulatory or compliance requirements if applicable to the location.

Common questions

  • How do you handle a situation where a key team member is underperforming?
  • Describe a time you had to make a difficult decision that impacted your team. What was the outcome?
  • How do you foster a culture of innovation within your team?
  • What are your strategies for attracting and retaining top engineering talent?
  • How do you balance technical debt with delivering new features?
  • In a remote or hybrid work environment, how do you ensure team cohesion and productivity?
  • Tell me about a time you had to manage conflict within your team. How did you resolve it?
  • How do you stay updated on the latest technology trends and how do you incorporate them into your team's roadmap?
  • Describe your experience with agile methodologies and how you've adapted them for your teams.
  • How do you measure the success of your engineering teams and your own performance as a manager?

Tips

  • Research Airbnb's presence and engineering challenges in the specific region.
  • Highlight any experience managing distributed or international teams.
  • Be prepared to discuss how you've adapted management styles to different cultural contexts.
  • Understand the competitive landscape for engineering talent in the location.

Rounds

Round-by-round.

Expand a step for evaluation criteria, sample questions, and prep notes.

DSA

Coding questions at Airbnb.

Frequently reported on Airbnb loops

View all at Airbnb

Other guides

More at Airbnb.