Jonathan Stephens

what are each of you responsible for?
how are each of you held accountable?
how do each of you measure time & accomplishment?
who's accountable for the success of the project?
how is leadership held accountable?
how are people fired?
what state laws do you operate under?
you laid off people last year, with like roles as this. Could you contextualize then and how it has impacted the now?
how was the company evolved over the years since your start dates? (Show you researched then with their start dates and years)
what has big your biggest learning while working here?
how do performance cycles work?
how is feedback given?
how are the company values operationalized & embedded into daily work?
what's the company value you resonate with most? Least? As representative of daily, compounding work?
what's the most challenging issue you face now?
what is your leadership philosophy?
how would you describe the leadership culture in the organization? Leading more with power, authority, or influence?¹
how do you define success in leadership—both in terms of business impact and people management?
what's your philosophy on balancing client expectations with internal culture and craft standards?
how do y'all invest in cultivating leadership capacity (mentorship, coaching, communities of practice)?
when manager's there thrive, what do they consistently do well? where do they stumble?
how do managers align on consistency of feedback, growth paths, and performance expectations?
what tools or rituals help you stay connected with the pulse ofyour team?
how doyou balance supporting client project demands with protecting time for your team's development?
how does management here support one another when teams hit a tough project or client dynamic?
how do managers typically support design leads in pushing quality and advocating for users with clients?
how are design decisions challenged or refined here? what role does management play in that process?
when a project is feeling the pressure, what's the most useful kind of support you get?
what does feedback look like—upward, downward, sideways, and zigzags?
how do y'all cultivate psychological safety?
how to design managers contribute to shaping the culture?
how does this company define its position in the consultancy landscape?
what's this company's differentiator that consistently wins trust?
what qualities are most valued in leaders here, and how are those traits recognized & tended?
how do managers balance client stewardship (project delivery, scope, expectations) with people stewardship (career growth, morale)?
how is leadership accountability measured? what happens hwen a manager isn't meeting expcatationS?
how is transparency practiced here—aroudn company performance, strategy, or leadership decisions?
what makes a 'great client' for y'all?
what does the revenue model look like?
looking back, what do you wish you had invested in sooner as an org?
how do responsibilities differ across your roles?
how do you align as a leadership team?
what does accountability look like at each of your levels? how's that balanced with autonomy?
how do you measure success beyond delivery—both for clients and internal teams?
how did the recent layoffs shape the company's culture & apppraoch to supporting employees now?
what feedback loops exist between managers, craftspeople, and clients?
when have the company values been tested? how'd they hold up?
how has your role evolved since you joined?
how did last year's layoffs affect hte company? What's hanged as a result?
what do you with the company had invested in earlier?
what new leadership challenges do you expect?
if I were to join, what advice would you give me to land successfully?