5 ms·

Technical interviews are only good at indicating whether or not someone is good at Technical interviews. The best way to figure out if someone is a culture fit

Technical interviews are only good at indicating whether or not someone is good at Technical interviews. The best way to figure out if someone is a culture fit? Ship code with them. If you can start off on a contract, do that. It is the best way to even out the power dynamic of the interview process. If you are not in a place where you can do that, check out what we are building at www.commit.dev to Re-build career transitions around the engineer.

JohnBooty 5y ago
When I'm the interviewer, I don't do whiteboard/CoderPad exercises. As a candidate, they make me nervous. But, I do think they can be a decent part of a larger interview process. I've had some very reasonable whiteboard exercises where the interviewers were very clear that the problem was tricky and I wasn't necessarily expected to solve it - the emphasis was on conversation and hearing my thought process. I actually enjoyed some of them. If you can start off on a contract, do that. It is the best way to even out the power dynamic of the interview process. I agree in principle but in practicality, there are some difficulties such as needing healthcare coverage for my family. (Yes, the US system of employer-subsidized healthcare is utterly broken, but that's what I'm dealing with) Counterpoint: why not just just take a fulltime job and quit / move on if it's not a good fit?
- pm_me_your_quan 5y ago
  >Counterpoint: why not just just take a fulltime job and quit / move on if it's not a good fit? The company doesn't want to be on the hook for unemployment or wrongful termination I think. > I agree in principle but in practicality, there are some difficulties such as needing healthcare coverage for my family. (Yes, the US system of employer-subsidized healthcare is utterly broken, but that's what I'm dealing with) I actually did this for my last job, because I'm terrible at interviewing (I both hate practicing leetcode, and have fairly bad anxiety). I had the same concern as you, and the way I got around it was to ask for them to pay me on contract an amount equivalent to what my salary would be AND benefits. I guess if you're employed then that doesn't work so well, but as an unemployed (at the time) person it worked out great.

JohnBooty 5y ago

When I'm the interviewer, I don't do whiteboard/CoderPad exercises. As a candidate, they make me nervous. But, I do think they can be a decent part of a larger interview process. I've had some very reasonable whiteboard exercises where the interviewers were very clear that the problem was tricky and I wasn't necessarily expected to solve it - the emphasis was on conversation and hearing my thought process. I actually enjoyed some of them. If you can start off on a contract, do that. It is the best way to even out the power dynamic of the interview process. I agree in principle but in practicality, there are some difficulties such as needing healthcare coverage for my family. (Yes, the US system of employer-subsidized healthcare is utterly broken, but that's what I'm dealing with) Counterpoint: why not just just take a fulltime job and quit / move on if it's not a good fit?

pm_me_your_quan 5y ago
>Counterpoint: why not just just take a fulltime job and quit / move on if it's not a good fit? The company doesn't want to be on the hook for unemployment or wrongful termination I think. > I agree in principle but in practicality, there are some difficulties such as needing healthcare coverage for my family. (Yes, the US system of employer-subsidized healthcare is utterly broken, but that's what I'm dealing with) I actually did this for my last job, because I'm terrible at interviewing (I both hate practicing leetcode, and have fairly bad anxiety). I had the same concern as you, and the way I got around it was to ask for them to pay me on contract an amount equivalent to what my salary would be AND benefits. I guess if you're employed then that doesn't work so well, but as an unemployed (at the time) person it worked out great.