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DoorDash·Product Manager·Onsite - Product Sense / Strategy·Intermediate

Intermediate
Apr 2026

Summary

Did a product sense round for a PM role at DoorDash. One question, pretty open-ended, left me second-guessing my answer for the rest of the day.

Questions Asked (1)

Q1

How would you improve the quality of Airbnb over the next six months?

Product Sense & IdeationProduct StrategyRoadmap Prioritization
Author's notes

Weird to get a question about a competitor's product but I've seen it before.

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AI HintsAI Generated

Suggested Approach

Start by clarifying what 'quality' means for Airbnb—likely guest and host satisfaction, trust, and reliability. Then prioritize improvements based on impact and feasibility, focusing on areas like search relevance, booking experience, and post-stay support. Structure your answer around a clear framework, and tie recommendations to metrics and business goals.

Pro tip: Show that you understand Airbnb's unique marketplace dynamics: quality improvements must balance guest and host needs, and often involve trade-offs between standardization and local authenticity. Mention how you'd measure success with specific metrics like NPS, booking conversion, or repeat rate.

1. Define Quality

Clarify what 'quality' means for Airbnb by breaking it into dimensions like listing accuracy, host responsiveness, cleanliness, and value. Align with the interviewer on which dimensions to prioritize.

2. Identify Pain Points

Map the guest and host journeys to find friction points that degrade quality, such as inconsistent listings, slow support, or trust issues. Use data and user feedback to prioritize the most impactful problems.

3. Generate Solutions

Brainstorm potential improvements for each pain point, considering product changes, policy updates, and operational enhancements. Focus on solutions that are scalable and align with Airbnb's brand.

4. Prioritize Initiatives

Evaluate solutions using a framework like RICE (Reach, Impact, Confidence, Effort) or impact/effort matrix. Select a portfolio of initiatives for the next six months that balance quick wins and long-term bets.

5. Define Success Metrics

Outline how you'd measure the impact of each initiative, such as improved NPS, reduced cancellation rate, or increased repeat bookings. Tie metrics back to overall business goals like growth and retention.

Key Points to Mention

  • Guest and host trust: implement stricter verification, review authenticity, and dispute resolution.
  • Search and discovery: improve ranking algorithms to surface high-quality listings based on personalized preferences.
  • Booking experience: streamline checkout, add flexible cancellation policies, and transparent pricing.
  • Post-stay support: enhance customer service with faster response times and proactive issue resolution.
  • Host quality programs: provide training, incentives, and tools for hosts to maintain high standards.
  • Measurement: use metrics like NPS, booking conversion, cancellation rate, and repeat rate to track progress.

AI-generated suggestions, not part of the candidate's original notes. May be inaccurate — verify before relying on them.