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Job Hunting in 2022

mhlakhani.com

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Re: Job Hunting in 2022

#181

Post by ripley12 »

TimPC wrote: post #92

You absolutely can prepare for system interviews it’s just some of the best content for doing so is behind paywalls. I opted to buy a course on leetcode covering this topic and my performance before was like night and day. Going through about 20 worked examples each of which has a 45 minute explanation means learning about 60 patterns you can slot into various problems. Once you’ve seen the patterns it’s a lot easier…

Yeah, you can also pay to do system design interviewing practice. I did a few paid system design interviews last year (interviewing.io) and found it helpful before a few FAANG interviews.

Re: Job Hunting in 2022

#182

Post by shostack »

listenallyall wrote: post #179
lr4444lr wrote: post #176

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is true, but I think you have the reason misconstrued: it isn't that working at a FAANG on your resume provides a signal of greatness, it's that it guarantees a reliable floor competency. The recruiter is concerned with making her quota just as much as finding rock stars, if not more, and ex FAANG candidates probably stand a higher chance of making it through the interview funnel on average.

> you have the reason misconstrued I don't believe my post suggested any reasons. > it guarantees a reliable floor competency I disagree. FAANG experience only demonstrates that, at one point, somebody believed you could do the job. There are dead-weight employees at FAANGs (and everywhere of course) who don't really have much competency (or perhaps one very specific competency that's only valuable in that specific r…

Why do you view focusing on one's family as a negative? You can still do excellent work and focus on your family.

If by that you mean "won't be willing to be exploited by working 70hr weeks and weekends" then that's a whole different conversation.

Re: Job Hunting in 2022

#183

Post by shostack »

ecshafer wrote: post #171
osigurdson wrote: post #164

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> don’t have all the fancy google tools or services Hard to believe that all of the fancy google tools haven't been replicated in open source yet. Software people love writing tools to make writing software easier - what's up?

I haven't worked at Google. But I think that the level of infrastructure at a larger Tech company really shouldn't be disregarded. I've worked in a small <10 person shop, a large non-tech finance co, and a tech co. One really big difference is that the internal tooling, infrastructure, etc. are really well polished at a larger tech focused company compared to non-tech and small places. Even if there are a lot of open…

Not to mention when there's a problem, especially a SEV, you have oncalls and entire teams of people rushing to fix it, giving trackable status updates, responding directly to you, etc.

Compare that to posting on Stack Overflow and praying for a high quality response.

Re: Job Hunting in 2022

#184

Post by propogandist »

bubba_sparks wrote: post #69

I'd rather be tortured by al qaeda than go through all that. I wish someone would write an article on how to hack this process. There's always a back door. Then again if there were I wouldn't be sharing it here.

al qaeda means the database, and as with all DBs, it has a backdoor operated by the CIA.

Re: Job Hunting in 2022

#185

Post by [deleted] »

shostack wrote: post #182
listenallyall wrote: post #179

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> you have the reason misconstrued I don't believe my post suggested any reasons. > it guarantees a reliable floor competency I disagree. FAANG experience only demonstrates that, at one point, somebody believed you could do the job. There are dead-weight employees at FAANGs (and everywhere of course) who don't really have much competency (or perhaps one very specific competency that's only valuable in that specific r…

Why do you view focusing on one's family as a negative? You can still do excellent work and focus on your family. If by that you mean "won't be willing to be exploited by working 70hr weeks and weekends" then that's a whole different conversation.

[deleted]

Re: Job Hunting in 2022

#186

Post by RobRivera »

listenallyall wrote: post #179
lr4444lr wrote: post #176

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is true, but I think you have the reason misconstrued: it isn't that working at a FAANG on your resume provides a signal of greatness, it's that it guarantees a reliable floor competency. The recruiter is concerned with making her quota just as much as finding rock stars, if not more, and ex FAANG candidates probably stand a higher chance of making it through the interview funnel on average.

> you have the reason misconstrued I don't believe my post suggested any reasons. > it guarantees a reliable floor competency I disagree. FAANG experience only demonstrates that, at one point, somebody believed you could do the job. There are dead-weight employees at FAANGs (and everywhere of course) who don't really have much competency (or perhaps one very specific competency that's only valuable in that specific r…

you can be terrific and have a focused family life.

Re: Job Hunting in 2022

#187

Post by neilv »

Aeolun wrote: post #139
nsxwolf wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is incredibly common. I hate running interviews - we do the leetcode whiteboard pressure cooker crap - it's a policy I have no say in unfortunately. I've had candidates with strong backgrounds go to pieces right in front of me - it's awful to watch and I hate that I had anything to do with making someone experience that. More people than you might imagine take Xanax to get through interviews.

I don’t know whether it’s more disturbing that our interview process is structured so that Xanax is necessary in the first place, or that so many people in the comments jump in to say what a great idea it is…

I had the same thoughts. Some people need various kinds of medication, and that's fine.

But if a normally functioning person needs to start Xanax for the purpose of getting through (let's admit it) a power-play hazing ritual that has little to do with the job, then maybe that person and the rest of us should go tell those companies to take a hike. The EEOC should, as well.

Re: Job Hunting in 2022

#188

Post by gabereiser »

lurking_swe wrote: post #162
listenallyall wrote: post #142

> After leaving Meta recently That's all I needed to hear. Back in the day, the college you went to opened (or shut) doors to get interviews. And most people, who did not attend an Ivy League school or similar, rejected the concept as being anti-meritocratic. However, today, it's the same thing -- just replace college with the company(ies) you list on your resume. A shitty programmer with a bad attitude from Meta, Go…

as someone who started their software career working at 3M of all places (shitty software practices) and slowly worked my way up to a tier-2 software company (just below faang) with a total comp of $200k+, don’t sell yourself short. Oh and i went to a state school, and also applied for these jobs directly online, no referrals. Where you start doesn’t matter if you are motivated and have some luck along the way. Yes t…

With an attitude like that, you are richer than you realize.

Re: Job Hunting in 2022

#189

Post by shagie »

turdprincess wrote: post #161
angarg12 wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> * They had a _full_ pipeline, interviewing every day for three weeks straight. It's a grind, but you definitely get "in the zone". Additionally, setting this goal ensures that you are being properly proactive/aggressive in pursuing opportunities. As a married man nearing his 40s I can't imagine doing this. I need to keep my full time job to support my family, so just quit and focus 100% on prepping is not an option…

I think the problem these days is that it’s so hard to fire someone. I’m not sure if it’s legal, cultural or otherwise, but I constantly see coworkers who are at best useless and often detrimental being kept on and on and on. So the game becomes to avoid hiring someone like that at all costs, because once they are hired they are impossible to get rid of. I wish employment was more like contracting - you give someone…

Unless the person is truly a net negative producing programmer - firing, hiring (1-2 month process), onboarding, and then hoping they don't job hop tends to be even more expensive for an organization than having them plod away slowly.

If they are a NNPP, gathering the necessary documentation and putting them on a PIP or shuffling them to another team is likely an easier path.

Re: Job Hunting in 2022

#190

Post by listenallyall »

dan-robertson wrote: post #146
listenallyall wrote: post #142

> After leaving Meta recently That's all I needed to hear. Back in the day, the college you went to opened (or shut) doors to get interviews. And most people, who did not attend an Ivy League school or similar, rejected the concept as being anti-meritocratic. However, today, it's the same thing -- just replace college with the company(ies) you list on your resume. A shitty programmer with a bad attitude from Meta, Go…

Would the person who wrote the best dry-cleaner management software do well at a company like Google? That is, I think a lot of the required skills there are ‘getting things done in a company the size of Google’ and having worked at Meta for a few years is perhaps a better signal for that than having made some great software. Likewise someone from Google may have a harder time in some startup where the structure is d…

> Would the person who wrote the best dry-cleaner management software do well at a company like Google?

Offer them a job and find out.

> the required skills there are ‘getting things done in a company the size of Google’

this sounds like a fake excuse to exclude someone who has demonstrated a high degree of ability and skill, but doesn't fit your mental image of what a Google employee should be -- otherwise known as gatekeeping

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