CACI Behavioral Interview for Engineering–Product Designer (Mission-Focused UX in GovTech)

This structured behavioral interview reflects CACI’s mission-first, government-focused environment and emphasizes how you’ve delivered human-centered design within complex, security- and compliance-constrained programs. Expect a panel of a hiring manager, a design/UX lead, and a program or product representative; the format is STAR-driven with scenario probes tailored to defense, intelligence, and federal civilian work. Core focus areas: (1) Mission orientation and ethics: examples of making tradeoffs that protected user safety, security, and program integrity; handling sensitive information appropriately; aligning design decisions to operational outcomes. (2) Human-centered design under federal constraints: planning and executing research when direct end-user access is limited or classified; leveraging SMEs, proxy users, and observational methods; delivering accessible experiences compliant with Section 508 and aligning to USWDS or program design systems; documenting rationale to meet auditability/traceability needs. (3) Collaboration at scale: partnering with systems/software engineers, product owners, and cybersecurity to translate complex requirements into workflows for C4ISR, enterprise IT, or analytics tools; working within Agile/SAFe cadences; writing clear user stories and acceptance criteria; preparing artifacts for reviews and deliverables. (4) Decision-making under legacy and security constraints: evolving UX within secure enclaves or low-connectivity environments; designing when cloud tools are restricted; balancing performance, security, and usability; iterating when telemetry is limited. (5) Stakeholder and customer engagement: communicating with government POCs/CORs, negotiating requirements, handling evolving scope/contract changes, and presenting to mixed technical and non-technical audiences. (6) Outcomes and measurement: defining success beyond UI polish—adoption, task success, error reduction, training burden, and mission impact—and demonstrating continuous improvement within contract boundaries. Typical flow: 5 min introductions, 35–40 min behavioral deep dive with follow-ups, 10 min portfolio process walkthrough focused on constraints and outcomes (not visual polish), 5 min candidate Q&A. Candidates should be ready with specific stories on accessibility, research in restricted settings, cross-functional alignment, and delivering measurable value to mission customers.