4 ms·

Well, then we're in agreement that "end of the hammer" questions are reasonable just to weed out the obvious imposters, right? So the question is whether thes

Well, then we're in agreement that "end of the hammer" questions are reasonable just to weed out the obvious imposters, right? So the question is whether these "nano" questions are reasonable equivalents? And I think "how do you inherit a class" is the "end of the hammer" equivalent for a language if you claim to have been using it continuously for the past two years. I'm much less happy about the "what package" questions, but if they're meant to simply get you to name a few major packages I think they're fine. You might get the package question wrong, but I expect you to get it wrong intelligently ("what package" questions were reasonable 12 years ago when programmers dealt with them daily, but eclipse does all that for you now). I think of these as "what color is the door" questions. If you tell me you've been working at Company X, I expect you to be able to tell me the color of the front door, or where the bathroom is, or something about the place. Not that I care, it's completely irrelevant to your skills, I just want to find out if you're really the person you claim to be before I waste time with a serious interview. Because my time is precious, and I want to spend it with the serious candidates.

kstenerud 15y ago
I think in this case, "take this array of numbers and sort them" would do just fine to see if they know the basics of the language, much like "take this hammer and nail that nail" would for basic hammer knowledge. Another option would be to email the candidate a chunk of average code while you're on the phone with them, then say "walk me through the code and tell me what it's doing." "I think of these as "what color is the door" questions. If you tell me you've been working at Company X, I expect you to be able to tell me the color of the front door, or where the bathroom is, or something about the place. Not that I care, it's completely irrelevant to your skills, I just want to find out if you're really the person you claim to be before I waste time with a serious interview." That's what references are for. FWIW, I can't remember the color of the doors to ANY place I've worked, except for our current office which has quite a peculiar door. And besides, how are you going to know that I'm not bullshitting when I say the door was green and was right beside the elevator? The problem with nano questions is that they assume that these few tiny tidbits of trivial and often overlooked factoids are representative of knowledge on the whole, and thus are prone to false negatives. They are heavily biased towards what YOU tend to notice, not necessarily what others tend to notice.
- jarek 15y ago
  You contact your interviewees' references before the serious interview?
  - kstenerud 15y ago
    It's cheaper to contact a reference than it is to bring someone in for 5 hours.
    - prodigal_erik 15y ago
      My references are people I like and respect, and I'm not going to impose on them any more than absolutely necessary. I don't even give out their numbers until I have a firm expectation of receiving an acceptable offer. (I make an exception for HR staff, because confirming employment and such is part of their day job rather than a personal favor.) Besides, if you have the slightest clue, your references will all speak favorably of you. It's a test with very poor specificity.

kstenerud 15y ago

I think in this case, "take this array of numbers and sort them" would do just fine to see if they know the basics of the language, much like "take this hammer and nail that nail" would for basic hammer knowledge. Another option would be to email the candidate a chunk of average code while you're on the phone with them, then say "walk me through the code and tell me what it's doing." "I think of these as "what color is the door" questions. If you tell me you've been working at Company X, I expect you to be able to tell me the color of the front door, or where the bathroom is, or something about the place. Not that I care, it's completely irrelevant to your skills, I just want to find out if you're really the person you claim to be before I waste time with a serious interview." That's what references are for. FWIW, I can't remember the color of the doors to ANY place I've worked, except for our current office which has quite a peculiar door. And besides, how are you going to know that I'm not bullshitting when I say the door was green and was right beside the elevator? The problem with nano questions is that they assume that these few tiny tidbits of trivial and often overlooked factoids are representative of knowledge on the whole, and thus are prone to false negatives. They are heavily biased towards what YOU tend to notice, not necessarily what others tend to notice.

jarek 15y ago
You contact your interviewees' references before the serious interview?
- kstenerud 15y ago
  It's cheaper to contact a reference than it is to bring someone in for 5 hours.
  - prodigal_erik 15y ago
    My references are people I like and respect, and I'm not going to impose on them any more than absolutely necessary. I don't even give out their numbers until I have a firm expectation of receiving an acceptable offer. (I make an exception for HR staff, because confirming employment and such is part of their day job rather than a personal favor.) Besides, if you have the slightest clue, your references will all speak favorably of you. It's a test with very poor specificity.