How we run technical interviews
A structured process that measures how someone builds, not how well they have rehearsed.
Short answer
Effective technical interviews measure the work the role actually requires, use the same rubric for every candidate, and produce a written evaluation with specific evidence. Puzzle-style questions mostly measure preparation; realistic problems with room to ask questions measure judgement.
Design around the real job
The single biggest improvement most teams can make is to stop asking questions unrelated to the work. If the role is building and maintaining a web backend, the interview should look like building and maintaining a web backend, reading existing code, extending it, and making a trade-off out loud.
Score consistently
A rubric fixed before the interviews start makes candidates comparable and decisions defensible. Without one, teams drift toward whoever felt most familiar. Which is where bias does its damage.
What we look for
- How they clarify an ambiguous problem before coding.
- Whether they can explain a trade-off and pick a side.
- How they respond to a new constraint mid-problem.
- Whether their code is something a teammate could maintain.
- How they handle not knowing something.
Write it down
A verdict without evidence is an impression. Every interview should produce a short written evaluation: what the candidate demonstrated, where they struggled, and a clear recommendation, so the hiring decision can be reviewed later and the process can improve.
Common questions
Are take-home assignments better than live interviews?
- Take-homes reduce time pressure but cost candidates unpaid hours and are hard to verify. A short, realistic live problem with room to ask questions usually gives comparable signal with less burden, and shows how someone thinks, which a finished submission hides.
How do you reduce bias in technical interviews?
- Use the same role-relevant questions and the same rubric for every candidate, score against defined criteria rather than overall impression, and record specific evidence for each rating.
Should you ask algorithm puzzles?
- Only if the role genuinely requires that work. For most product engineering roles, puzzle performance mainly reflects recent practice and filters out strong engineers who have been busy shipping.