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Interviewing Developers - Boulder Ruby May 2018
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Marty Haught
May 16, 2018
Technology
1
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Interviewing Developers - Boulder Ruby May 2018
This was given at Boulder Ruby on May 16th, 2018 during Boulder Startup Week.
Marty Haught
May 16, 2018
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Transcript
Interviewing Developers Marty Haught @mghaught
Disclaimer Not a definitive guide Based on our experience A
work in progress
Background 20 years experience Small to medium teams, especially startups
Interviewed 100+ engineers for clients, internally
Conducting an Interview
Diversity Be inclusive Examine every step of your process Culture
add
Hiring team Hiring manager Members of the team that is
hiring Visionary
Rubric List of desired attributes 1 to 5 scale Description
to guide scoring Each team member scores
Job description Be clear what you’re looking for Informed by
your rubric Should include who you are Not too long
Process Screening Call Technical Submission Technical Sessions Final Interview
Screening call 30 minutes Paint a broad picture of the
candidate Sufficient non-technical and technical Should they move forward?
Format General background Technical review Overview of HCW Discussion about
the position
Behavioral questions “Tell me about a time when…” Context (the
situation) What they did (the action) Results (the outcome)
Behavioral follow-up Ask questions about specific parts Look for detail
How much did they do themselves? (vs using ‘we’ too much)
Things to look for Why are they on this career
path? Why have they left previous jobs? Where do they want to go?
Cover your company Vision Values Specifics on the position Expectations
Engagement What do they ask about? How do they react
to the details of the company and position? Do they express any concerns?
Technical Submission Should mimic the kind of work you do
What are you testing from the rubric? Timebox the task at 4-6 hours
Submit your code Inconsistent across candidates Can't determine how much
time was involved Can't tell how much was their effort or design
Take home exercise Consistent across candidates Can test advanced coding
abilities Can easily mimic real work What questions/clarification do they ask?
Review pull request Consistent across candidates Can test advanced coding
abilities Can easily mimic real work What do they notice and take issue with?
Technical Sessions Vet key technical and non-technical skills Involve the
technical members of the team hiring Goal to score the rubric
Sessions types In-depth technical question and answer Pairing sessions Whiteboard
exercises Logic puzzles
Pairing session #1 Typically takes 2 hours Done on candidate’s
computer Okay to help but candidate drives Review and extend technical submission
Pairing session #2 Different teammate pairs Focus on different skills
than #1 Tackle small bug in open source
Final interview Cover remaining unknowns Explore career goals Talk in
detail about position Anything else before the decision?
Making a decisions Compare rubric scores Long term potential vs
immediate impact Culture add
Recent posts https://robots.thoughtbot.com/updating-our-technical-interview https://haughtcodeworks.com/blog/culture/hiring-remote
Interviewing well
Research the company What do they do? What are their
values? Learn about the team your applying to Who’s interviewing you?
Grok the job description Imagine what the job actually entails
What will the interviewers look for? How closely do you match that?
Write a cover letter Use your research and analysis Explain
how you are a great fit Highlight strengths that match position
Healthy interviews are there to get to know you and
see if you're a fit for their team.
Do’s Be yourself Dress for position you want Be professional
Practice good nonverbal communication
Don’ts Be cocky Appear desperate Throw people under the bus
Provide answers Tell a story through your experience Be detailed
and specific Be honest and say you don’t know
Bring questions What are their values? How will they support
you through onboarding? Will you have a mentor? What will you be doing exactly?
Technical exercises Be prepared Show how you work Demonstrate you
don’t give up
Follow-up Send a short and pleasant thank email
Thank you! Marty Haught @mghaught Feedback welcome!