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I get the best results from just asking them to describe something they've worked on that they're particularly proud of, or was particularly difficult. And keep
by orr94 13y ago
I get the best results from just asking them to describe something they've worked on that they're particularly proud of, or was particularly difficult. And keep prodding for more details to get a real feel for how the person works. Basically, pretend you have just taken over a project and are trying to get more information on it from one of the developers on your team. You'll find out a lot about the person in a conversation like this, far more than from purely theoretical or "the answer is B" questions.
- Jemaclus 13y agoThis. A thousand times this. Each candidate is different. You should be asking questions to figure out what they know. Requiring specific experience is often a bad idea, because, for example, I can train you how to use our custom codebase, but I don't have time to train you on basic coding skills. You should be able to fully describe a project you built, from start to finish, discussing problems and obstacles and their solutions. I also think it's perfectly okay to say "I don't know off the top of my head, but I can find out" when asked a question. Or alternately, "I don't know off the top of my head, but based on what I know about other things, I would start here..."
- mvkel 13y agoI like this a lot. You can ask a lot of follow-ups that tie more into the skill set while staying inline with something they're passionate about. Good stuff.