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Technical Interviewing

How We Interview

Hiring people who are a great culture add and technical skill fit is hard. No interview structure is perfect. We strive to balance the following principles:

Our Process

Our current model is as follows, and always subject to modification if we can improve it.

  1. Recruiter Screen
  2. Fit Discussion
  3. Technical Evaluation
  4. Interview

Recruiter Screen

In a combination of phone call or email, the recruiter confirms basic availability fit. Does the candidate’s job seeking timeline line up with our needs? Do they meet basic requirements such as work location, eligibility for clearances, experience guidelines, etc?

Fit Discussion

In a phone/video call, a hiring manager talks or similar discusses the position with the candidate for a 2-way fit. We provide background on the company and position so they can understand fit from their perspective. What are the candidate’s general claimed abilities and career goals - and does that fit the need? Are there strong indicators that the candidate understands modern development practices and team collaboration?

Technical Evaluation

At a time and place convenient to them, the candidate takes a short (< 2 hours) technical test. The test is not a filter and all candidates that make this stage also go on to the following interview. The test is the starting point for the deeper dive interview discussion where candidates can explain thought processes and misunderstandings.

The test and discussion format may work for many. However, if there is a better way to dive into your skills, you can opt for a different method. For example, you may have created other code that can be shared, or you may have a body of work such as blogs, conference talks, etc.

(See additional notes below on our rationale.)

Interview

In an in-person discussion or video call, the candidate speaks with one or more interviewers for a holistic deep dive. This will combine discussion on technical evaluation, team dynamics, growth desires, etc. An interview may be broken into multiple sessions / multiple appointments based on the role. For example, a technical deep dive may be a separate discussion from meeting the team to learn more about specific project skill fit.

Technical Evaluation Methods

We’ve considered the following approaches for evaluating technical skills and aptitude.

The following are ruled out as general bad practice: