For people early in their career, a job interview can be one of the most stressful experiences in their entire life. I still remember every interview I've had.

For people early in their career, a job interview can be one of the most stressful experiences in their entire life. I still remember every interview I've had. Writing code on a whiteboard with "everyone's eyes on you" can be extremely stressful for some people. I know brilliant coders who get absolutely paralyzed at the thought of having to present to an audience. (which is what whiteboarding during a job interview is, the social dynamics are entirely different when you're working with a co-worker on a problem) If 99% of a coders job will be sitting at their desk cranking out code, why put some much emphasis in the hiring process on how they perform in extremely high stress social situations? The skills that make someone a great interviewee do not necessarily line up to being a great coder. If someone wants to up open their favorite IDE or VIM and show you how they code, why not let them? Personally, having dysgraphia, I would offer to open a text editor to write psuedocode rather than use a writing utensil. Of course, every hiring situation is unique. If your developers are regularly required to present to clients, investors, or inside management stakeholders, then whiteboarding could be a valid hiring test.