(dev, data scientist, & hiring manager here)
First, I know there's a lot of argument about the merits and fairness of coding challenges for interviews. I'm not here to debate that. Our company has decided that they are valuable and necessary for our needs.
Given that decision, what are some things we should keep in mind when creating a coding challenge? What do you like/don't like? Looking for feedback on:
- Types of questions (algorithms, data structures, code review, language/framework-specific, etc.)
- Question format (pure code, pseudo-code, multiple choice, draw schematics, etc.)
- In-person/take home
- Time limit
- Difficulty
- Length
- Candidate feedback
- Other?
What turns you off? What do you appreciate as a candidate?
We're considering Qualified.io (makers of Codewars) or HackerRank. Others? (Does anyone know if TopCoder offers employer-facing versions.)
Thanks, ya'll!
Top comments (5)
I got in touch with Zalando and Amazon and both used codility.com/
Ideally the question asked should be time-constrained (like 60 minutes) and relevant (some meaningful link with what the company is doing)
Thanks! I'll check it out!
(Also, why do all these platforms force you to "Request a Demo" or "Contact Us"? Seems like unnecessary friction to trying out the service.
probably because they have found it works better for them.
Also, how would you assess the skill level of a senior dev?
Most of the coding challenges cater to new grads or jr/mid-level devs. Seems a little silly to ask someone with 15+ years of experience to implement quicksort or a heap. However, I'd still like to get a sense of the proficiency, as compared to others with similar years of experience.
We've made some bad hires in the past—partly due to technical interviews that were insufficient—so it's important we do more than just ask the candidate about his/her experience.
Thanks for the thoughtful reply, Andy. I agree algorithms belong in school or specialized workplaces.