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Oh yes, they absolutely need a coding test! Has Google innovated much in the interviews themselves in the last, say, 10 years? My perception is No. I get the i

by gkop 10y ago

Oh yes, they absolutely need a coding test! Has Google innovated much in the interviews themselves in the last, say, 10 years? My perception is No. I get the impression that Google's old-fashioned process is a point of pride that they hang on to because it works (at least, the business is succeeding) and they are afraid of change. But it's a missed opportunity for a technical leader to advance the status quo in our industry. For example, onsite, Google interviewers will still ask you to write code or pseudocode on the whiteboard. That's something they could re-examine (perhaps by giving an option of whiteboard or computer, and ensuring a level playing field between the options). They could get some good publicity from re-examining this, I think.

dikaiosune 10y ago
Posting a reply for @tsion, who seems to not be able to post at the moment: I interviewed on-site successfully at Google Seattle about a year ago, and I was given the option between writing code on a whiteboard or in a text editor on a Chromebook, being projected onto the screen in the room, so the interviewers could easily follow without awkwardly looking over my shoulder. Of course, I picked the text editor. I can't imagine wanting to write code on a whiteboard. However, I did use the whiteboard voluntarily as a thinking and planning aid. Unfortunately, I also heard that the text editor option was only available at certain offices at that point. I really hope coding in a text editor becomes a universally available option because it's just so much more natural. It essentially put my mind at ease and helped me think more clearly. On a more general note, my strategy, which seemed to work well for me, was to treat the whole situation like a pair programming task. Even though the interviewer won't directly tell you what to do, they will often comment on things if you question yourself out loud enough.

by gkop 10y ago

dikaiosune 10y ago

Posting a reply for @tsion, who seems to not be able to post at the moment: I interviewed on-site successfully at Google Seattle about a year ago, and I was given the option between writing code on a whiteboard or in a text editor on a Chromebook, being projected onto the screen in the room, so the interviewers could easily follow without awkwardly looking over my shoulder. Of course, I picked the text editor. I can't imagine wanting to write code on a whiteboard. However, I did use the whiteboard voluntarily as a thinking and planning aid. Unfortunately, I also heard that the text editor option was only available at certain offices at that point. I really hope coding in a text editor becomes a universally available option because it's just so much more natural. It essentially put my mind at ease and helped me think more clearly. On a more general note, my strategy, which seemed to work well for me, was to treat the whole situation like a pair programming task. Even though the interviewer won't directly tell you what to do, they will often comment on things if you question yourself out loud enough.