Practice
Describe a time you had to say no to a senior stakeholder.
Read first: a sample answer
Fictional sample answer written by JoRoute to show the shape of a strong answer. Do not copy it: replace every detail with what is true for you.
In 2023 our sales director asked for a custom feature for one large client two weeks before a major release. As product manager, I owned stakeholder management for that release. I showed him that the feature would delay a fix affecting 4,000 customers, and I offered a workaround the client could use within a week. He agreed to the workaround. After I offered the workaround, the release delay fell to zero days and the client renewed for two years; the director now brings requests to me earlier.