Getting ready for a senior resource manager interview? Aiming to level up from resource manager to a more advanced role? We're here for you.
As you climb the resource management career ladder, your role takes on a less operational and more strategic focus - and so will the interview questions you encounter.
To help you succeed in your next job search, here are 10 senior resource manager interview questions to prep for.
(Looking for your first resource manager role? Check out our interview questions for resource managers article instead. Bookmark this for a few years’ time 😉).
12 key skills senior resource managers need (and need to talk about at interview)
Resource management skills for senior resource managers
- Strategic resource allocation – Strategically prioritizing and allocating resources based on organizational goals as well as project priorities.
- Workforce planning – Aligning resource needs with business objectives, through skills mapping, capability planning, talent development strategies, and more.
- Organizational capacity management – Ensuring appropriate resource supply for future business demand through forecasting, capacity planning, and scenario planning.
- Budget and cost management – Managing costs effectively and optimizing the use of available budgets to deliver the strongest return on resources for the business.
- Risk management – Identifying potential risks related to resource shortages, and developing risk mitigation strategies.
- Contractor management – Increasingly important in the contingent workforce, experience of merging external and internal resources to achieve operational agility and cost efficiency.
Key professional skills for senior resource managers
- Strategic mindset – Aligning resource management decisions with broader business goals and long-term plan.
- Leadership and emotional intelligence – Providing motivational leadership to RM teams, understanding cross-departmental team dynamics, and managing relationships with empathy.
- Stakeholder management – Ability to collaborate with, and influence, key stakeholders to balance resource requests and expectations.
- High data literacy – Supporting data-driven decision-making at senior levels through strong data analytics, communication, and presentation skills.
- Prioritization and problem-solving – Clarity to assess competing demands for resources and prioritize effectively for the highest business benefit, developing effective solutions under pressure.
- Facilitation and conflict resolution – Providing evidence to help stakeholders prioritize and resolve resourcing conflict, such as through scenario planning and data-based evidence.
10 senior resource manager interview questions you need to practice
At the senior level, interviewers will focus on your experience of strategic resource management, rather than just day-to-day operational skills.
They’ll be looking for examples of how you handle higher-level activities such as capacity forecasting, scenario planning, and strategically aligning resources to long-term business goals.
The questions below are indicative of the type of senior resource manager interviews questions you might encounter. They cover the key knowledge and capabilities you’ll need as you progress your RM career.
Some may or may not be relevant to the organization in question – such as IT or RMO implementation. And they may not be phrased exactly this way. But they’re a good place to start prepping for your interview.
Knowledge-based senior resource manager interview questions
In your experience, how does strategic resource management differ from operational resource management?
This question will assess how well you understand the change you’re about to make, from a more operationally focused resource manager, to a strategically focused senior resource manager role or higher.
It will test your awareness of the different aspects of resource management at different levels of an organization, and how strategic resource management contributes to the success of the organization.
Be sure to touch on the following.
- Scope and focus – Strategic resource management involves long-term forecasting and planning for future growth. Operational resource management addresses day-to-day scheduling based on current project demands.
- Goals – Strategic resource management is driven by broader business objectives such as growth, cost efficiency, competitive positioning, staff retention, etc. Operational resource management focuses on meeting immediate project deliverables, adhering to budget, client satisfaction, etc.
- KPIs – Strategic resource managers are concerned with the birds-eye view, such as organizational capacity, and overall utilization and realization rates. Whereas resource managers look at more granular detail such as individual and team utilization, project schedule variance, etc.
- People management – Strategic resource management involves collaborating with, and influencing, senior leaders and stakeholders. Operational resource management centers on managing relationships with individual resources and project teams.
How do you achieve strategic alignment of your resource management strategy with overarching business objectives?
This question aims to assess not just your understanding of the importance of strategic alignment, but your ability to achieve it. Here are some factors you should cover.
- Stakeholder consultation – Engaging with key stakeholders – such as senior leaders, department heads, and project managers – to understand their priorities, resource needs, and long-term objectives to ensure alignment with their goals. Emphasize the importance of listening, understanding, and aligning.
- Strategy review – Reviewing key strategy documents to identify overarching goals, so you can identify opportunities for your resource strategy to deliver relevant impact. Outline how you will revisit and update your strategy annually, in alignment with the organization’s strategic planning cycle.
- SWOT analysis – Performing a SWOT analysis to assess internal capabilities and external factors, proactively using your expertise to identify strategic opportunities for the business. Try to give some examples from your experience here, such as a time you spotted a critical skills gap or emerging trend.
- Monitoring – Regularly reviewing the effectiveness of the strategy through agreed resource management KPIs. Adjusting strategy as business objectives evolve or new challenges arise, ensuring ongoing alignment.
Our business is ambitious. How can capacity planning/forecasting support our future growth and ensure resource scalability?
This question may not be phrased just like this but you should be prepared to talk about organizational capacity planning and your experience. You need to demonstrate your awareness of the process, how it’s done, and what the benefits are.
- Introduction to capacity forecasting – Explain that capacity forecasting involves predicting future resource needs based on current resource utilization, growth trends, skills profile, market conditions, and the company’s intended direction of travel.
- Aligning resources with growth – Describe how capacity forecasting helps align resource planning with anticipated growth – by estimating future demand for resources and creating workforce strategies to meet that demand.
- Use of data and predictive analytics – Talk about how you can use historic data and predictive analytics to anticipate likely demand to ensure your workforce grows with the right people and skills for future success. Highlight how data improves forecasting accuracy.
- Forewarned is forearmed – Close by talking about the value of looking ahead to meet resource demands in a timely way. For example, the cost savings associated with having the time to upskill internally rather than recruit more costly external hires.
How do you ensure that resource allocation aligns with strategic priorities across multiple business units or functions?
This question assesses your ability to manage cross-functional priorities and ensure that resources are aligned with strategic goals. The key thing here is to show you have a structured approach to prioritization and problem-solving, as well as the interpersonal skills to manage conflict effectively.
Depending on the level of the role you’re interviewing for, the senior resource manager may be responsible for prioritizing projects directly, or they may have to help others prioritize by understanding the implications of their decisions. Pick and choose from the points below depending on your specific circumstances.
- Recognize the challenge – Acknowledge that resources are in short supply and not everyone will agree on the best way to deploy them.
- Explain how you’d personally prioritize – If you’ll be responsible for prioritization directly, explain how you’d prioritize based on various criteria such as strategic alignment, ROI, and overall business value.
- Use scenario planning – Explain you’d also use scenario planning techniques to assess the business impact of pursuing different priorities – and present the data to stakeholders – so they can make their own informed decisions.
- Give an example – If possible, give a relevant example from your past employment, demonstrating how your analysis and interpersonal skills resolved a real-life conflict.
What KPIs will you share with our senior leaders? And how will you ensure they understand the significance of what you’re showing them?
This question tests your understanding of the key performance indicators that are relevant at the senior management level – as well as your ability to use them to influence time-poor non-specialist stakeholders. Here’s how to handle it.
- Outline relevant KPIs – Define some of the key performance indicators for strategic resource management, such as overall resource utilization and employee realization rates, project completion rates, customer satisfaction scores, employee satisfaction and turnover, etc.
- Tailor and contextualize data – Explain that you’ll present data relevant to the specific interests and strategic priorities of the C-suite, and explain how the data can help deliver impact.
- Use visualization – Talk about using data visualization techniques such as graphs, heatmaps, etc. will make complex data easy to understand.
- Provide recommendations – Explain you’ll offer actionable recommendations to support data-informed decision-making and use scenario planning to illustrate different options.
Experience-based senior resource manager interview questions
Tell us about a time you’ve used scenario analysis to support strategic decision-making.
Scenario analysis is a key skill at senior resource manager level. This question evaluates your ability to anticipate challenges and adjust resourcing strategies based on the optimum outcome for the wider business.
The best way to structure an answer to an experience-based question is STAR – Situation, Task, Action, and Result. Here’s how you could use the STAR format to answer this question.
- Situation – Describe the context of the problem you solved. For example, in your previous role, the organization needed data to help them choose between a range of competing project opportunities.
- Task – Explain what you needed to do. For example, ‘I was responsible for conducting a scenario analysis to provide data-driven insights that would help senior management make an informed decision on which projects to prioritize and how to allocate resources effectively.’
- Action – This is the main part of your answer. Describe exactly what you did to achieve your task. For example, collaborating with cross-functional teams to gather information and validate assumptions, using resource management software to model each scenario, recording project resource needs and financial implications, presenting findings to senior management.
- Result – Describe the positive outcome of your work. For example, the scenario analysis provided comprehensive insights into opportunities and risks, allowing the business to confidently select which projects to onboard and how to resource them effectively.
Give us an example of when you’ve implemented new technologies or methodologies to improve resource management efficiency.
This question assesses your ability to adopt and implement new tools and techniques to enhance resource management practices. It’s also an opportunity to demonstrate your interpersonal skills – such as influencing people – and show you are adaptable and in touch with industry best practices.
Here’s an example of how you could answer this question about implementing a new resource management software system, like Runn.
- Situation – Provide context, such as how, in a previous role, the use of spreadsheets was hindering the organization’s visibility into allocations and capacity, and how that meant missed opportunities, as well as under- and overutilization.
- Task – Explain what your role was in fixing the problem. For example, you were tasked with identifying and assessing potential resource management platforms that could improve resource allocation accuracy and efficiency.
- Actions – Go into detail about what you did. In this example, this would include getting buy-in for resource management software, researching needs, creating a specification document, shortlisting vendors, conducting demos, enrolling test users, etc.
- Result – Here’s where you discuss your positive impact. Try to quantify it where you can. For example, following the rollout of Runn, we improved resource utilization by X points, reduced bench time by X%, and increased forecasting accuracy 3 fold.
This role has been introduced to oversee the implementation of a new RMO. What are the first steps you’d take towards that?
Obviously, this question may not be relevant in every interview. But if you do get asked about setting up an Resource Management Office from scratch, here are some top points to include.
Gather requirements – During our LEAP webinar series, countless experts have talked about the ‘listening tour’ as the cornerstone of RM success. Discuss how you’d speak to key stakeholders to understand the challenges and pain points they face around resourcing, as well as senior managers about their strategic goals. This information will inform the mission, vision, and charter of your RMO.
Write your RMO charter – The RMO charter is a concise overview of what your RMO will – and will not – be involved in. It contains an executive summary to gain understanding and buy-in, and is the North Star for your team when you assemble them.
Build your team – Your team structure will depend on the needs of the organization but will likely include an RMO director (perhaps that will be you), internal and external resource managers, administrative support, and others.
Establish processes and governance – Define and implement key processes and governance structures. This includes setting up resource allocation workflows, establishing decision-making frameworks, and defining performance metrics. Create a governance model that ensures accountability, transparency, and effective management of resources.
Communicate and engage – Empathy and understanding are key to resource management success, so don’t forget to highlight the importance of communication. When gathering requirements and when launching the new RMO. People find change challenging and you need to manage that process.
For the full lowdown on what to do, read our article How to Build a Resource Management Function from Scratch ➡️
If you get the job, what will you do in your first 30, 60 and 90 days?
This question is to check you’ll be proactive when appointed and hit the ground running. And it’s a biggie! So big that we have a whole article on the topic. Check out 30-60-90: Fast-track to Success in Your First 90 Days as a Resource Manager for tips.
Skills-based senior resource manager interview questions
Can you describe a time when you have influenced senior stakeholders to secure buy-in for a major resource strategy initiative?
This question tests your ability to influence people – one of the major differences between management and leadership skills. It’s time to show how you can create a waterproof business case and win stakeholder buy-in. Here are some key factors to discuss.
- Understanding stakeholder concerns – Explain that you’ll begin by identifying and understanding the specific priorities and objections of the senior stakeholders involved.
- Developing a compelling case – Then, based on their specific concerns, you’ll craft a business case that demonstrates how your new initiative aligns with their interests and goals.
- Using data storytelling – Show how you’ll back up your business case with relevant data - visualized and contextualized to make it irrefutable – such as resource management ROI.
- Addressing objections – Explain you’ll anticipate potential objections and be prepared to address them with evidence and counterarguments.
- Give an example – Finish with a real-life example of how you successfully influenced senior stakeholders in a similar situation.
How would you approach a situation where members of the C-suite disagree on a particular resourcing strategy?
This is about your conflict management skills. Remember, at the highest levels, resource professionals aren’t there to push a particular angle. They’re there to present the evidence and let the C-suite make their own informed decisions. Here’s how to handle the question (and the situation).
- Gathering context – Say you’d collect detailed feedback from each C-suite member to understand their differing viewpoints and concerns.
- Running scenarios – Then you’d develop and present various scenarios that illustrate the potential impacts and outcomes of different resourcing options.
- Facilitating discussion – At the meeting, you’d discuss the scenarios and their implications, providing objective data to guide the discussion and facilitate agreement.
What to ask the recruiter in your interview
How would you rate the organization’s resource management maturity?
This question shows that you understand organizations operate at different levels of sophistication when it comes to resource management. Most people would probably prefer to work in a company with high resource management maturity, where processes are well-established, tools are in place, and there’s buy-in from leadership. That means you’ll be supported by strong practices, proper technology, and enough budget to make things work smoothly.
On the other hand, if you enjoy tackling challenges and driving change, a lower maturity level could mean you’ll have the chance to set new processes and make a significant impact. Either way, their response gives you insights into the company's overall approach to resource management and whether it aligns with your expectations.
Learn more: A Guide to Resource Management Maturity ➡️
Does the resource management function have a representative at senior management level?
This is a great way to gauge how seriously the organization takes resource management. If resource management has a voice at the leadership table, it means the company sees it as a strategic function, not just an operational necessity.
It also implies that resource managers will have the backing of senior management to push for what’s needed, whether it’s budget, new technology, or changes in processes.
If the function is not represented at that level, it might mean resource management plays more of a reactive, back-office role, with limited influence over key decisions. Is that the sort of place you want to work?
Watch our webinar: What the C-Suite Expects from Resource Management ➡️
From all of us at Runn - good luck with your next move!
Taking a step up in your resource management career is big step - but don't be daunted by it. Organizations need resource management now more than ever to help them navigate the rocky waters of a challenging and rapidly transforming business landscape.
But in order for resource management to have the biggest impact, it needs to be seen as a strategic function with a seat at the decision-making table. And in your senior resource management role, you'll be in the best position to advocate for the strategic value of resource management - and make exciting things happen.
So, on behalf of the Runn team (aka your fellow resource management nerds 🤓), get out there and ace that interview!
