Prior to Tech Elevator, I didn't know there were multiple types of interviews. Software developers typically have to deal with two: behavioral and technical.
The basic goal of a behavioral interview is to prove you are not a sociopath. This is what the average person usually thinks of when interviewing is mentioned. It goes kind of like this:
- You sit in a tiny room with unfamiliar people and they may offer you a beverage. If you are me, you always decline because you were taught from a young age to not accept food from strangers.
- They will then proceed to ask you a bunch of questions about your strengths and weaknesses. You must come up with a way to answer these without seeming like a narcissist or woefully incompetent.
- They will ask if you have any questions for them. The answer to this should always be yes. Come equipped with at least two, but no greater than four. For the love of all that is holy, do your research and ensure these are insightful and not salary related.
- You will leave and cry in your car, wondering if you bungled the opportunity of your dreams.
Personally, I am very concerned with company culture. I value a work environment in which people are respected and harassment/discrimination is not tolerated. It should be inappropriate to comment on someone's body or start screaming at them for no reason. If there are rules, everyone should be held to them, no matter ranking or status. Failure to comply should be met with accountability.
The above may sound like I'm being a overly sensitive, but I have stories that will make any person with an ounce of empathy cringe, including one in which, as a teenager, I managed to acquire a stalker and no one cared, but we can talk about those in another post. :)
I know I want a 401k or something similar because I have no retirement to speak of whatsoever. I'm worried that I will be 85, on my deathbed, and still reporting to management.
Now that we've discussed behavioral interviews, it is time to talk about the unfamiliar beast that is the technical interview. Technical interviews are meant to ensure you are not a fraud. You will be expected to demonstrate your knowledge of coding and may even be given a kata to solve. There is absolutely no standard for these and you may even be given a technical by someone who knows nothing about coding.