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Technical Interviews rj zaworski · @rjzaworski · github.com/rjz

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Write a program to shuffle a deck of cards.

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How did you do?

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Ineffective interviewing ★ Vague, open-ended questions ★ No introduction or context

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Ineffective interviewing ★ Vague, open-ended questions ★ No introduction or context ★ No communication!

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Before we begin 1. Software is collaborative 2. Teams aren’t just tech 3. Interviews are conversations

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Before we begin ★ Every team is different ★ Every company is different ★ Every hiring process is different

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Before we begin ★ Every team is different ★ Every company is different ★ Every hiring process is different ★ Your mileage may vary

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Setting the stage First impressions matter!

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Setting the stage ★ Get to know the company ★ Introduce yourself

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Setting the stage ★ Get to know the company ○ Industry? ○ Major products or projects? ○ Team / management structure? ○ Technologies? ★ Introduce yourself

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Setting the stage ★ Get to know the company ★ Introduce yourself ○ Cover letter ○ Current github ○ Focus technologies / projects for role ○ Demos?

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Show up Technical interviews are still interviews

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Show up ★ Get a good night’s sleep ★ Arrive early (but not too early) ★ Dress one notch above ★ Bring what you need

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Show up Q: What to expect? What to bring? A: Ask recruiter / hiring manager in advance!

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Whiteboarding ★ Knowledge, thinking, and communication ★ Text editor ~ physical whiteboard ★ Format may vary ○ pair programming ○ take-home ○ one thing about spec work..

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Whiteboarding 1. Write the spec 2. Propose a naive solution 3. Implement it 4. Validate against the spec

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Whiteboarding In other words, “TDD”

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Whiteboarding 1. Write the spec a. Clarify problem, assumptions b. “Given a deck of cards, expect the same cards in a pseudo-random order, assuming cards are a string array” 2. Propose a naive solution 3. Implement it 4. Validate against the spec

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Whiteboarding 1. Write the spec 2. Propose a naive solution a. Talk through your approach b. Revise assumptions 3. Implement it 4. Validate against the spec

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Whiteboarding 1. Write the spec 2. Propose a naive solution 3. Implement it a. Functions clarify input / output b. Define placeholders (e.g. Rand() => Number ) if needed c. Don’t worry about optimizing (yet!) 4. Validate against the spec

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Whiteboarding 1. Write the spec 2. Propose a naive solution 3. Implement it 4. Validate against the spec a. Step through function, check result to spec b. It failed? Correct errors and repeat. c. Or it passed! What’s next?

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Whiteboarding Remember: it’s a communication exercise!

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Any questions?

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Wrapping up ★ Ask company / team questions in person ★ Thank interviewers for their time ★ Follow up afterwards

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Wrapping up ★ Ask company / team questions in person ○ Technical interviewers have ‘been there!’ ○ Get scoop on tech stack, teams, and roadmap ○ Inquire about next steps! ★ Thank interviewers for their time ★ Follow up afterwards

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Follow up ★ Ask company / team questions in person ★ Thank interviewers for their time ★ Follow up afterwards

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Follow up ★ Ask company / team questions in person ★ Thank interviewers for their time ★ Follow up afterwards ○ Build relationships with simple thank-yous ○ Keep in touch of status changes (other offers, etc)

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Further Reading ★ Grad’s guide to team coding (Atlassian) ★ Practice problems (Codewars) ★ Even more practice problems (Hackerrank) ★ The whiteboarding exercise

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Thank you! rj zaworski · @rjzaworski · github.com/rjz