4 ms·

Interviewed here a year or so ago. Honestly I'll admit I didn't do well technically, but every interviewer I had just seemed super impersonal and not very frie

Interviewed here a year or so ago. Honestly I'll admit I didn't do well technically, but every interviewer I had just seemed super impersonal and not very friendly. They asked very interrogative questions, and while I get it and am mostly ok with it, I felt like they were asking due to the existing environment they have there. I just didn't get a great vibe. Disclaimer: But again, I know I didn't do well on the technical stuff so maybe I'm biased negatively toward the experience.

toomuchtodo 7y ago
This breaks my heart to hear. I interviewed there in 2011 as an infra guy, and not only was the infra team personable (the winning question was rapidly identifying the symptoms of a duplex mismatch on a switch ethernet port), the VP of Engineering was awesome as well. He even went so far as to say, "As a tech person, you belong out here in the Bay, even if it's not with us". I turned down the offer, but it was one of the best interview experiences I've ever had.
- spike021 7y ago
  Well, like I said, could just be that my perspective was tainted a bit by not doing as well as I'd have liked. But I think sometimes these things just happen too. I think I interviewed in 2018, so that'd be 7 years after you did. I'm sure a lot changes in that much time.
  - ThrowawayH4MCb 7y ago
    A bunch of engineering directors were brought in from external sources a few years back, and that really changed the atmosphere. Before then, we seemed to try to hire smart engineers and give them independence to solve problems. Those new directors lowered the hiring bars to grow their teams, and the culture got way more rigid and corporate.
    - spike021 7y ago
      That's too bad. Sounds fairly normal for companies around here, though. Also, I guess I offended some ex or current employees since I've gotten the downvote brigade. :\
- t_serpico 7y ago
  "As a tech person, you belong out here in the Bay, even if it's not with us" - What the fuck does that mean? People working in tech not in the bay aren't second tier.
  - deleted 7y ago
    [deleted]
  - theflyinghorse 7y ago
    > People working in tech not in the bay aren't second tier. Are we though? If we were to establish criteria by which to judge tiers how would anywhere else in the world compare to the Bay? My intuition is that the Bay is probably more productive and gets paid far more for it. The bay certainly drives just about about every tech trend worth a note. Innovation as well how much tech came out out of that region. Disclaimer: I would love to move there one day just to be in that world.
    - igetspam 7y ago
      30 year bay area veteran here. There is nothing special about the bay area that isn't geography. The density of workers means you meet a ton of talentless people who shuffle along with the crowd and are rewarded for it because it's unnoticed. I'm paid more to be remote than I was in the bay area and my money goes a lot further. I'm also exponentially more productive not being in a sardine can office. Your intuition is shaped by your inexperience of the reality of the situation. The grass isn't greener in my old backyard than it is in my new pasture but I have a lot more of it now.
      - theflyinghorse 7y ago
        > Your intuition is shaped by your inexperience of the reality of the situation Yes, largely. Though, frankly the grass IS greener on the other side in my case. I am in the middle of nowhere in Canada and my window into the tech world at large is github and YC. > 30 year bay area veteran here Do you believe you would have the same opportunities today if you did not spend time in the Bay (didn't get experience, network, insider knowledge)?
- maps7 7y ago
  > (the winning question was rapidly identifying the symptoms of a duplex mismatch on a switch ethernet port) What did this question win? Who asked who?

toomuchtodo 7y ago

This breaks my heart to hear. I interviewed there in 2011 as an infra guy, and not only was the infra team personable (the winning question was rapidly identifying the symptoms of a duplex mismatch on a switch ethernet port), the VP of Engineering was awesome as well. He even went so far as to say, "As a tech person, you belong out here in the Bay, even if it's not with us". I turned down the offer, but it was one of the best interview experiences I've ever had.

spike021 7y ago
Well, like I said, could just be that my perspective was tainted a bit by not doing as well as I'd have liked. But I think sometimes these things just happen too. I think I interviewed in 2018, so that'd be 7 years after you did. I'm sure a lot changes in that much time.
- ThrowawayH4MCb 7y ago
  A bunch of engineering directors were brought in from external sources a few years back, and that really changed the atmosphere. Before then, we seemed to try to hire smart engineers and give them independence to solve problems. Those new directors lowered the hiring bars to grow their teams, and the culture got way more rigid and corporate.
  - spike021 7y ago
    That's too bad. Sounds fairly normal for companies around here, though. Also, I guess I offended some ex or current employees since I've gotten the downvote brigade. :\
t_serpico 7y ago
"As a tech person, you belong out here in the Bay, even if it's not with us" - What the fuck does that mean? People working in tech not in the bay aren't second tier.
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
- theflyinghorse 7y ago
  > People working in tech not in the bay aren't second tier. Are we though? If we were to establish criteria by which to judge tiers how would anywhere else in the world compare to the Bay? My intuition is that the Bay is probably more productive and gets paid far more for it. The bay certainly drives just about about every tech trend worth a note. Innovation as well how much tech came out out of that region. Disclaimer: I would love to move there one day just to be in that world.
  - igetspam 7y ago
    30 year bay area veteran here. There is nothing special about the bay area that isn't geography. The density of workers means you meet a ton of talentless people who shuffle along with the crowd and are rewarded for it because it's unnoticed. I'm paid more to be remote than I was in the bay area and my money goes a lot further. I'm also exponentially more productive not being in a sardine can office. Your intuition is shaped by your inexperience of the reality of the situation. The grass isn't greener in my old backyard than it is in my new pasture but I have a lot more of it now.
    - theflyinghorse 7y ago
      > Your intuition is shaped by your inexperience of the reality of the situation Yes, largely. Though, frankly the grass IS greener on the other side in my case. I am in the middle of nowhere in Canada and my window into the tech world at large is github and YC. > 30 year bay area veteran here Do you believe you would have the same opportunities today if you did not spend time in the Bay (didn't get experience, network, insider knowledge)?
maps7 7y ago
> (the winning question was rapidly identifying the symptoms of a duplex mismatch on a switch ethernet port) What did this question win? Who asked who?